When most people think of Parma, they think of prosciutto and Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, but there is much, much more to this city. Parma is located in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna, which is best known for its culinary traditions, and has a population of about 200,000 people. It is home to booming pharmaceutical and gastronomical companies, such as Barilla pasta. But Parma is also home to some of the world’s greatest art treasures. Its twelfth-century cathedral is breathtaking, and its unique multi-tiered baptistery is one of the icons of Italian Romanesque architecture. But the artist that put Parma on the artistic map was the painter known as Correggio (1489-1534). Although not as well-known as Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo, Correggio is considered a giant amongst Renaissance connoisseurs. His frescoes in the Camera di San Paolo, the dome of the church of San Giovanni Evangelista and the dome of Parma Cathedral are some of the most dramatic and beautiful in all of Italy. Buona visita!