Wednesday, February 29, 2012

Rome: The Eternal City

This past weekend, I traveled to Rome with some of my friends from FUA. We spent Saturday and Sunday exploring the capitol of Italy. After arriving by train, my friends an I found our hostel and left our luggage there. The weather was a beautiful 65 degrees and sunny, so we were eager to get outside and explore. We walked from one side of Rome to the other in order to reach Vatican City. The walk took 1 1/2 hours, but it was a great way to see the city. After an afternoon spent exploring the Vatican Museum, Sistine Chapel, and St. Peter's, my group took the Metro back to the hostel and enjoyed a big traditional Italian meal. We weren't ready to settle in for the night yet, so we walked to the Spanish Steps and the Trevi Fountian. Under the lights, the city's sights looked stunning. We ate gelato and threw a coin into the fountain. How touristy!

Walking down the street toward the Vatican

Tossing coins into the Trevi Founatin 
On Sunday, we got an early start and were at the Colosseum by mid-morning. The deteriorating structure houses so much history, and such a violent history, that it was an overwhelming experience to enter into and stand were Romans had stood thousands of years ago. Next, we explored the ruins of the Roman Forum and then the Pantheon. We relaxed in the sun of Piazza Nuvona, a square where hundreds of artists gather to draw portraits and sell their paintings of the city.

By late afternoon, we were tired and our feet were sore, but we wanted to see more of the sights that Rome had to offer. We went to the Crypt of the Capuchins, which is a series of rooms within a church that houses the bones of thousands of monks and poor Roman citizens. The bones were arranged in ornate and decorative designs. It was the strangest and most fascinating thing that I have ever seen. On the floor of the crypt a plaque read, "What you are now we used to be; What we are now you will be." One of our last stops of the day was at the church called Santa Maria Vittoria, where the Ecstasy of St. Theresa is found. We ended our day in the Rome's central park, were we walked around enjoying the trees and fountains. At night, we couldn't resist returning to the Colosseum to see the structure lit up. It was even more beautiful than earlier in the day. 

In the Colosseum  
Strolling through the park  
The Colosseum at night
Rome was an incredible place to visit. I loved being able to see the paintings and sculptures that I had learned about in my classes back at CMU. I would love to return and explore even more the Eternal City. Arrivederci Roma!

Wednesday, February 22, 2012

Artists, Carnivale, and the Opera Oh My!

This past weekend was unforgettable to say the least! I traveled out of Florence for the first time since my arrival back in January.

On Friday, I traveled to the small town of Solarolo, which is north-east of Florence and near the city of Bologna, to visit the studio of world-famous ceramist, Andrea Salvatori, whose work has been in the Venice Biennale. The trip was organized by FUA through a program called Arty Fridays. After a 2-hour, bus ride through the hilly landscape, we arrived at Andrea's studio. Here we discovered the works that have made him well-known in the contemporary art world. His work is controversial and darkly humorous. Besides making his own ceramic pieces, he also uses ready-made ceramic figurines and changes the context by adding small elements. For example, he showed us a figurine of a boy and he had added a severed head with the likeness of himself to be held in the boy's hands. The best part of the visit was getting to discover that as a ceramics student at FUA, I will be helping Andrea by making small ceramic pieces that will be used in an upcoming work. I even got to see sketches of the work, but we are sworn to secrecy!

Andrea and one of his most famous works - a dog made out of ceramic tiles

Andrea's "Self Portrait" as I mentioned above

The small ceramic pieces that I will be helping to make

On Sunday, my roommates and I joined up with our friends and went on the FUA trip to Viareggio for Carnivale. Viareggio is a sea-side town in Tuscany, and their Carnivale is famous for its large-scale paper mache floats. The floats are mostly social and political allegories, which use satire to make fun of the government or society as a whole. Visually, these floats are breathtaking. The parade travels up and down the boardwalk for 3 hours and the atmosphere is electric. People are dancing in the streets and throwing confetti. Even though it rained for a majority of the day, the weather could not damper our excitement. 

Me soaking in the excitement of Carnivale

Our group in the streets enjoying the parade

A float about captain of the Costa Concordia
On Wednesday night, I went to the opera in Florence. It was the opening night of Tosca, which is a three-act opera that first premiered in 1900.  The orchestra and opera singers were incredible. Even though I didn't understand anything that they were singing, I could still follow the story and I really appreciated the beauty of the whole experience.

This weekend I am of to Rome!


Thursday, February 16, 2012

Apartment Living and Chocolate Festival-ing

I can't believe that I've been living in Florence for over three weeks now, and I've barely talked about my apartment here. I'm living on a busy street in the city center, which is directly across from one of FUA's buildings. I don't actually have any classes across the street, but instead, I walk 30 minutes across the city-passing the Duomo almost everyday-to reach the fine art building. I just can't believe how lucky I am to be living in such a beautiful and historic city!

My apartment is in an old, ornately-decorated building with huge wooden doors. The apartment is spacious  with five bedrooms, a large kitchen, two bathrooms, and a living room. All eight girls share the space and get along really well. We live in a neighborhood near Santa Croce, which is a beautiful medieval church. Because I live in the city center, there are shops, gallerias, and restaurants close by. There is always something fun to do or a new adventure to be had.


The front door to my building (Photo By Chrissy Jones)

My extremely large bedroom which I share with one other girl (there is even an extra bed)

The view from my window

Santa Croce - the church around the corner from my apartment (Photo By Chrissy Jones) 
This week Florence hosted their annual Chocolate Festival, and I went almost every day. The event was held in the Piazza della Repubblica, where vendors set up stands and sold their delicious treats to crowds of tourists and Florentines alike. There were chocolate fountains, sculptures, and candies. Even though there were plenty of free samples to satisfy my sweet tooth, I still bought over a pound of chocolates.

My roommate and I admiring the chocolate figurines 

My first Italian hot chocolate - so thick and delicious! 



Thursday, February 9, 2012

Ode To Ceramics

After two weeks in my new city, I feel like I am finally getting into the swing of things. I love to romp around the city during the day and just explore my new surroundings. I can't imagine how anyone could ever be bored in a city like Florence. There is always something to do here! My favorite places to go are the leather market in Piazza San Lorenzo and the Central Market, where you can buy fresh fruits and vegetables, and meats and cheeses. Unfortunately, the weather has been unusually cold so I haven't been out as much as I would like to. It's been snowing lightly for the past few days, which is basically unheard of!

When I'm not off exploring the city, I'm attending my classes at Florence University of the Arts, or FUA. I am taking an Italian language class, which has been extremely helpful in learning how to communicate with the locals. I have so much motivation to learn! I'm also enrolled in a class called Wine Culture In Italy, which explores the both the history of wine and the technical evaluation of different wines. My art classes are Florence Sketchbook and Ceramics. As far as favorite classes go, there is already a clear winner for me. I am in love with ceramics! Here's my work so far:
Learning the coil technique in Ceramics 
Making my vase

Finished product! (almost)

Starting my next project - a toy train!
This week, I went to my first museum, Museo Archiologico, where I saw ancient Egyptian, Etruscan, Greek, and Roman pottery. Everything I saw was inspiring and beautiful. The ornate urns were particularly interesting to me. Perhaps I will make something like this in Ceramics!