During our trip, we had the opportunity to create a tile, plate, and mug at C.R.E.T.A Rome. Throughout our visits to different churches and other landmarks throughout Rome, I took pictures of different designs that I could use later as inspiration for my pieces.
Tile
For my first piece, I took inspiration from the ceiling design found in multiple churches. I then combined aspects from a door frame and a design in a wall to add to my image. The colors I chose were loosely based on things that I’d seen but were mainly my decision as to what I was most drawn to while carving my design.
Plate
For my second piece, I attempted to copy a very pretty drain cover that I had found in a church within the first couple of days of being in Rome. For the colors, I was really drawn to the dark green as I’d seen a similar hue on doors throughout the city. I decided to keep the terracota color of the clay as an accent against the green.
Mug from top view
For my final piece, I decided to make a funky little handle for my mug. The shape reminded me of chains which I thought worked well with my chain like design I had found in a church. I added in the star bursts similar to the ones on the ceiling of the basilica in Assisi. For the colors, I wanted a striking contrast between the them hence the blue, white, and golden yellow.
Overall, I’m very happy with how my pieces turned out and I hope I can get them all home safely.
Throughout our trip, we’ve done and seen so much. It’s hard to narrow it down but Bernini’s David sculpture, all of the pasta, and all of the ceiling and floor designs are my favorites.
Bernini’s David
Bernini’s David was my favorite sculpture despite the numerous amount of sculptures that we saw. I love how he captured so much motion and action in a single piece. I found it interesting how Bernini used his own face to sculpt David’s determined expression. The look on David’s face creates tension and emotion in addition to the position of his body. Details such as his muscles and folds of the cloth around him are so impressive to me. The piece as a whole is surreal to see in person.
Cacio e pepe
All of the food in Italy was absolutely incredible but the pasta had my heart. I got to try cacio e pepe as well as carbonara. The cacio e pepe that I had was served in a cheese bowl which was super interesting to me. It was delicious and filling, absolutely hitting the spot for lunch that day.
Carbonara
The carbonara I had that night for dinner also hit the spot. The bacon melts in your mouth and the ratio of sauce to pasta was perfect. I’ve had pasta so many times on this trip which has been so good. Every single type of pasta I’ve tried here, I’ve throughly enjoyed.
Floor mosaic
The final things that I’ve really enjoyed is all of the ceiling and floor designs that have been all over the place. Just about every church that we went to had intricate designs on their floors and ceilings. I wish that floor and ceiling designs were more common in the U.S. I’m going to miss craning my neck up and down to take in all of the artwork.
Ceiling
I’ve really enjoyed this trip and am very thankful that everything went well throughout it. It was truly difficult to choose my favorite things as everything could have easily been on the list.
Bernini created St. Peter’s Square and Sant’Andrea al Quirinale. St. Peter’s Square is located outside of St. Peter’s Basilica and Sant’Andrea al Quirinale is on the Quirinal Hill in Rome. St. Peter’s Square was commissioned by Pope Alexander VII and began construction in 1656 and lasted until 1667. Renovations were necessary for the Catholic Church during this time because of the Reformation that caused a decrease in church members. The Baroque period was used to bring members back to the church with the use of ornate and open architecture. For example, the square for St. Peter was built as a way to welcome more people to the church as its oval shape acts as arms to gather people back to the church after the Reformation. The Sant’Andrea al Quirinale was commissioned by Cardinal Camillo Francesco Maria Pamphili for the Jesuits. Construction lasted from 1658 to 1670.
St. Peter’s Square
These forms of architecture showcase the important elements that the Baroque period values. Movement as well as ornate designs were very important to the Baroque as it evokes emotion and connects people back to the church. As previously mentioned, oval and rounded architecture was used to display the idea of movement without having anything actually moving. Ornate details such as the Corinthian pillars of the Sant’Andrea al Quirinale were also important to the Baroque period. The use of biblical figures such as St. Andrew and cherubs used their visual representations to tell a story, making these spaces accessible for all including ordinary people who were illiterate. There were also creative uses of light such as in the Sant’Andrea al Quirinale with the hidden windows and oval hole in the ceiling to create a connection to God and heaven.
Bernini was a member of a group of patrons, the papal court, that funded many artists in Rome. With Bernini being such a young and talented sculptor, he was connected to many powerful people, being commissioned by those such as the Cardinal Scipione and receiving high regard from Pope Paul V. Not everyone was supportive and liked him though. Innocent X favored Francesco Borromini and Alessandro Alfgardi instead of Bernini. That did not stop him from creating.
Outside the Sant’Andrea al Quirinale
One specific work of Bernini’s caught my attention the most. The Sant’Andrea al Quirinale is such a beautiful church with a story told through the visual elements on the inside. I really like the storytelling aspect of it and how big everything seems even though it is a smaller church compared to others. I find the visuals really appealing along with the sense of movement that Bernini likes to include in his art. The inside of the church is made out of a reddish-brown and white marble for many of the elements such as the Corinthian pillars and is even used to frame a painting at the front of the church. Gold is also used on the inside to highlight the separation between heaven and earth. The gold is used in combination with light to truly create heavenly like areas that emphasize the connection to God. The marble is used as a reminder of earth while the gold is used as a symbol for heaven. The distribution of these materials in the church supports that idea because the marble disappears as the viewers eyes reach the ceiling. Likewise, not much gold is shown below the ceiling other than at the front of the church where some is shining on St. Andrew’s death, representing the transition from earth to heaven. It’s hard to notice details like these that intrigued me. I love to contemplate and analyze why something looks the way it does and what the artist might have had in mind while creating it.
Inside the Sant’Andrea al Quirinale
The Sant’Andrea al Quirinale is a large church built within a limited amount of space. The outside of the church brings the idea that it’s larger than life because of the semi-circle steps that reach out into the sidewalk along with the height of the building. The use of space such as the outside Corinthian pillars that blend into the wall show power and grandness without taking up too much room. Looking at the front of the church, there are multiple shapes that can be seen such as an overall rectangular shape as a whole but breaking down that shape there are triangles and ovals in it as well. Many of these shapes, such as the oval, create movement within the structure that is prevalent in many of Bernini’s creations and a strong element within the Baroque period. The oval shape along with a broken crown shape found at the top of the inside pillars continue into the design of the inside of the building as one steps into a horizontal oval. The broken crown represents the barrier between earth and heaven being opened to let people such as St. Andrew into heaven. That area surrounding St. Andrew is the focal point of the church. Bernini physically created a chiaroscuro effect by having a hidden window that shines on the golden cherubim figures at the front of the church as well as the golden oval center surrounded by cherubim located on the ceiling. The use of cherubim and St. Andrew points to the Catholic Church’s want and need to bring more people into the church even those who were not of high status due to the Reformation that started the Baroque period. Bernini also uses the architectural supports to enhance the overall feel and design of the church. For example, the beams in the ceiling are disguised as rays coming from the lit-up oval that represents heaven. The decreasing size of the hexagon pattern on the ceiling as well as the cherubim create a larger separation of space than what the ceiling actually has.
The center of the ceiling in Sant’Andrea al Quirinale
As mentioned previously, the Sant’Andrea al Quirinale was commissioned by a cardinal for the Jesuit seminary. The church is focused on the story of St. Andrew’s death and acceptance into heaven. The painting, which was not done by Bernini, along with the sculpture, which Bernini did make, floating above it in a broken crown-like arch highlights St. Andrew’s importance within this church. The painting depicts his death while the sculpture displays his ascension to heaven as there are clouds supporting his feet and he has open arms pointing toward heaven. The clouds and arm positioning create a sense of movement despite him being marble, an unmoving material on its own. The cherubim also have a sense of movement as they all point towards or circle around the heavenly spots found in the church. The use of diagonals within the rays in the front of the church point toward St. Andrew. The church’s appearance as a whole draws the eyes of viewers from the bottom all the way to the ceiling as the use of line exaggerates, making the viewer seem small in the presence of the representation of the gates of heaven. The Sant’Andrea al Quirinale as a whole represents multiple aspects of the Baroque movement such as the visual representation of biblical figures, ornate details, and the implication of movement in solid objects.
Bernini’s art took Rome by storm as his expertise is shown in multiple areas of Rome and took place in a couple of different forms. His sculptures and architecture continue to be influential today. In addition to his contributions to art, he was a playwright as well. Although his reputation and grandeur lessened after his death, his name is still known in Italy even though the rest of the world might not be aware of him yet. For example, exhibits in the United States surrounding his work weren’t in existence until 2008 in the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles. The reason being that many of his works are large, such as his architecture and sculptures, that they’re impossible or hard to transport and display in other countries. Despite these issues, I’m glad that I’ll be able to see a number of his works in person.
As wealth increased and an interest started up again in classical art, the Renaissance period began. During that time, new continents and countries were being discovered and overall there was a motivation to learn. The Renaissance was all about gaining knowledge whether through an increase of philosophical thinking or reflection on antiquity. The Duomo is an architectural example of the advancement and power of Florence. On multiple accounts, Florence was threatened by dukes and kings, but many of them died before they had the chance to follow through on their threats. Because of these lucky instances, the people of Florence thought of themselves as the “New Rome.” This viewpoint encouraged them to start investing in their government and art in order to show their power.
Filippo Brunelleschi
I love the paintings of the Renaissance, but I wanted to explore some architecture built during the period to expand my repertoire of knowledge as someone during the Renaissance would aim to do. Filippo Brunelleschi was a sculptor, inventor, and architect who was a master of many trades. The Santa Maria del Fiore needed a roof as the building was already standing and in use but had a very large hole in its ceiling. The challenge of this project was to build a dome across an estimated 150 feet hole on top of walls that were already there, standing at 180 feet tall. The challenge was opened to the public to come up with a design and plan to accomplish this dome with a prize for the winner. Filippo Brunelleschi eventually won, even though he unwillingly shared his plans, fearing that someone else would steal or copy them. Brunelleschi had studied the architecture of the Pantheon which would have helped him with creating the design for the Duomo as they were similar in size.
Brunelleschi’s design
Brunelleschi ended up creating the dome using a self-supported two shell design that has many internal pieces, some visible externally, that prevent the dome from caving in and spewing outward. He used the lightest materials possible and cut down on the amount of wood needed thanks to his new way of building a dome. The expenses of the materials showcase the wealth that connects to the Renaissance. In addition to the innovative design, the machines used to create it were new and invented by Brunelleschi in order to get workers and materials up and down to create the dome. All of the methods he used to build the dome, along with the finished structure, aligns with the values of the Renaissance by combining multiple techniques of inventing and constructing with art. The aesthetic design of the outside matches the gothic exterior of the church; however, he added classical structures that jut out from the sides of the base of the dome. Although the exterior appearance doesn’t necessarily look as though it would be from the Renaissance, the innovative interior structure is because new concepts had to be discovered in order to create it. The dome was finished in 1436, meaning that the design and construction took over twenty years to complete.
The Duomo
I think buildings can be overlooked sometimes because we can get stuck on its appearance instead of what had to happen on the inside in order to make it look that way. The Duomo makes me appreciate the ideas and work that went into its creation, especially given the time period that it was built in. The fact that Brunelleschi essentially made the dome plans from scratch is amazing to me.
Martin Luther brought up the 95 Theses to the Catholic Church, which started the reformation. Protestants disagreed with certain aspects of the church, including their depiction of religious imagery. With the split of the church, the Baroque period began as a way for the Catholic Church to bounce back. The word “Baroque” roughly means misshapen pearl through the combination of Spanish and Portuguese words. The idea of the misshapen pearl describes the movement well even though it was used as an insult at the time. The Baroque period went against the light and idealized characteristics of the Renaissance and instead focused on darker colors and naturalism that evoked emotion in its viewer.
Caravaggio’s Self Portrait as Bacchus
One major artist during this period was Caravaggio who played with chiaroscuro—extreme contrasts between light and dark colors—in his paintings. He also depicted biblical figures and stories in the setting of everyday life by using ordinary people as models for his naturalistic paintings. Caravaggio’s Death of the Virgin, painted in 1606, portrays Mary’s death while people mourn around her body. I chose this painting specifically for the emotion that is represented as well as its dark color scheme, both demonstrating characteristics of the Baroque period, my favorite period of art.
The painting was commissioned for the Carmelite church of Santa Maria della Scala but was rejected by the priests there. It was then sold and hesitantly bought by the Duke of Mantua. Many of Caravaggio’s paintings that were commissioned by churches were rejected by them due to the representation of biblical figures. Churches believed that biblical figures should be painted in a holier way, not using ordinary people to represent them.
Death of the Virgin
The piece is oil on canvas and shows Mary’s dead body lying on a bed with many men, most likely the disciples, surrounding her as well as a woman in the foreground, sitting on a chair crying into her hands. Each man seems to be displaying their grief in a different way. Some look to each, walk or look away from Mary, look at Mary, or cover their face with their hands to cry. The use of multiple expressions shown through the figures’ body language mirrors the emotion provoking aspect of the Baroque period. The lighting directs the viewer to Mary as she is the focal point of the piece that inflicts emotional pain on the others. Her position in the composition being in the bottom right third of the piece assists the viewer to see her first, continuing in an arch from her to see the rest of the scene. The people fill the horizontal plane which contrasts with the half-filled vertical plane, breaking up the number of bodies with a red cloth draped across the ceiling. The composition makes the scene very intimate and private despite the amount of people in the painting. The viewer feels as though they’re in the same room especially given the size of the painting which is roughly 8’ by 12’. Again, it pulls the viewer into it to feel the grief of the figures, mourning with them.
Death of the Virgin zoomed in
Personally, this piece allows me to think about how Mary’s death might have happened as it isn’t recorded in the Bible. In general, I’ve always found the Baroque period fascinating. Knowing more about the historical context of the period has helped me to view pieces such as Death of the Virgin in a different light, especially given the connections to the split of the Catholic Church as well as the beginning of the Protestants.
There are a number of aspects of Italian culture that I’m excited to experience during our trip. One area where their history and expertise shines is in their pasta making. The two main types of pasta dishes that originated mainly in Rome that I’d really like to try are carbonara and cacio e pepe. Carbonara is made with spaghetti, raw eggs, Pecorino Romano cheese, and guanciale. Cacio e pepe is a cheese and pepper pasta. Both are rather simple dishes however I’m quite excited to try them. In general, I want to try out different pasta shapes to check them off of my pasta shapes poster. It would also be really interesting to see how pasta is made, as I’m aware that there are some restaurants that let you watch while your food is being prepared.
Carbonara with rigatoni noodles
Other items that can be found all around Rome are Vespas. Vespas are an Italian scooter that were originally introduced to Rome back in 1946. They have remained a popular form of transportation up unto the present day due to their size and ability to drive on the cobblestone roads. Another popular feature is that people can wear fashionable clothing while riding because of its hidden engine. While in Rome, I don’t think I’d necessarily have to ride a Vespa, although that would be pretty cool, I’m content with just seeing them.
Vespa
Last but not least, I’m really interested in the art, architecture, and general sites to see in Rome. Places such as the Sistine Chapel and the Trevi Fountain are definitely high on my list of things to see. I especially love art and architecture from the Baroque period. It’s darker and moodier than other periods which I like. I also love how historical and beautiful everything is. There’s a story behind everything in Rome with so much to do and see. Overall, I’m really looking forward to Rome and the adventures that I’ll have while there.
Rome in Winter 