Interview by Titti Chiarello - Photography Annalisa Ceccotti

Alessandro Colle, born in 1995, a bona fide fortemarmino doc, earned his degree in Jurisprudence from the University of Pisa, with full marks, and his master’s in Parlamentary Institutions from the Sapienza University of Rome, with Luciano Violante as thesis advisor. He currently divides his time between the capital, where he is an intern at the Senate Legislative Office, and Forte dei Marmi, where he returns every chance he gets. Alessandro, you have achieved one goal after another – aren’t you tired? Sincerely, no. I am happy with my life, I am a dynamic personality, I love staying active, and I’m not afraid of hard work. Do you like Rome? Don’t you miss Forte? Rome is beautiful and I am lucky to live in the center. I used to live in the center in Forte as well, so we might say there is some sense of continuity. Where did you grow up? Before moving to green Via Amendola, I lived above what is now the Caffè Giardino: I could see the Fortino from my windows. I grew up in Piazza Garibaldi, between Valè and our “home base” at the pozzo, and Tennis Italia, where I played. Is it true that the wife of the great Marino Marini held you in her arms? Yes, it’s true! (laughs) My grandparents were friends of his from the Pistoia years and they met again later in Forte dei Marmi: proof, were it needed, of our town’s great power of attraction. What do you do when you return to Forte? I enjoy walking in Roma Imperiale, crossing the bridges Carrà loved so much, losing myself in the silence. But I never say no to watching a sunset, let’s say from the Pontile, above all in the winter when the colors reflect off the Apuans and turn them pink. What do you like most about Forte dei Marmi? The fact that, though it continues to change, it never falls out of style. It changes, yet it’s always in step with the times. Think, for example, of Villa Bertelli: from an old, falling-down pensione, it has become a cultural center hosting Italian and international artists; or of the historic shops in the center that coexist with the big names; or of the folk traditions, like the focata for Sant’Ermete, which has to adapt to new safety regulations every year but has never lost its charm – and remains a favorite with fortemarmini and tourists of every generation.