“La Strella, Porta delle Langhe”
Ceva lies precisely where the Tanaro River leaves the Alps and flows into the Langhe hills. It connects the Piedmontese plain with the Ligurian coast and once formed an important crossroads for the lucrative salt trade of earlier centuries. Traces of this former prosperity can still be found in the old town center.
La Strella also shows a few signs that suggest a period of economic wellbeing. The house, for example, is decorated with ten arches. It is likely that the farmers benefited from the presence of the five hundred hungry and thirsty soldiers stationed in the fortress on top of the Rocca, just a stone’s throw away.
This prosperity came to an abrupt end when Napoleon’s troops blew up the fortress of Ceva with an enormous quantity of dynamite.
Living in the hills of Piedmont, Italy
Sanna and I have known the house for nearly twenty years, but it was about ten years ago that we truly settled here. The composition of the family changes from time to time, yet it is at its best when the kitchen is full. Little by little we reclaim our territory, and with that comes more maintenance every year. It is an ongoing contest with nature—one we will never win, of course—but the effort yields so much in return. We eat from the land, there are natural springs, and our stove burns wood from the forest. Having so much space means there is always something to do, and you come to rely on that, to grow accustomed to it. You never get used to the view, though, because it is always changing. See 'Il Pioppo'
The Pack and its Domain
The historic center of Amsterdam was for many years a dreamlike setting for a young artist. But as life tends to unfold, relationships formed and children were born. Sanna and I first met on the swell of the Mediterranean Sea, and our eyes became attached to distant horizons. We discovered that we needed space in order to dream.
The pack longed for a wider territory. And so we settled on the southern slope of this hill, taking our place where countless families before us had once had their own doings and dealings.
