Students in Action

As the summer winds to a close, this will be the last post about the Arch2840: Architecture of Florence and Rome class. I am obviously very lucky to be able to teach this kind of class, and I am truly grateful for the opportunity to teach about and expose students to some of the most important buildings in history.

For me, the most rewarding part of this experience is the opportunity to observe students experiencing architecture firsthand. When I was an architecture student, I had the opportunity myself to study abroad and experience some of these very same buildings. I know how important that primary experience was for me. It changed my views on the world, and has impacted my life ever since. My own travel experiences have forever changed the way I view and understand architecture.

To be able now, as an architect and professor, to pass this experience on to my students is a very positive and rewarding activity. I can only hope that in some small way, I have been able to impact and shape the worldview of my students through this course. I can’t help but be overjoyed at the sight of students in awe at the many amazing places that we visited. It reminds me of how I felt, and still feel, when experiencing great architecture firsthand.

Our students on this trip ranged in ages spanning several generations, from the traditional aged student through more savvy veteran travelers. For some students this was their first time leaving the country. For others it was an opportunity to revisit and reconnect to places that had become memories. I think that all involved in this trip, regardless of their prior travel experience, left with a new and lasting understanding of architecture.

The images here are simply a record of students in action. They are not always great photography, and I have obviously had some issues in editing this post. Some shots are mine, and others are not. What they are collectively, however, is a testament to experiencing place, culture, and architecture through travel.

Ralph, admiring the Medici ceiling

Jane, teaching at the Palazzo Medici

the COD group at Santa Croce

The best part of Italy... the food of course!

Who shrunk Dora?

Taking pictures of people taking pictures...

Lunch, in front of a Renaissance masterpiece

Tyler, hanging out

Jane, stopping to admire the view on the way up the Duomo

Which way to Florence?

The COD group at the Spanish Steps

Andy takes in the view from the Duomo

The COD group at the Colosseum

Ralph at the Colosseum

Andy at the Colosseum

Matt, lurking with his camera

Matt and Cam

Sketching at the Pantheon

Anything it takes to get the shot

Yes, Marge made it up those steps!

Jane, teaching at the Campidoglio

Maybe we did look like toursits?

We should have been kissing the ground after that landing

My classroom in Rome

also lurking with my camera

What do you do while waiting for lunch? We sketch.

Singing in the rain (I might regret this one)

Brilliant! Why didn't I think of this?

Skies at St. Peter's

Here are a few images from the day we visitied St. Peter's Basilica. On the day of our visit, the weather changed frequently, which led to a number of photos with the most amazing skies. 

San Carlo alle Quatro Fontane

Photo of the Day: San Carlo alle Quatro Fontane

Today’s images are from the iconic example of Baroque architecture, San Carlo alle Quatro Fontane.  This small church designed by Francesco Borromini would fit within a single pier of St. Peter’s, but in spite of its small size, this structure is a tour de force!  It is Borromini’s masterpiece, and the quintessential example of the Baroque style in architecture.

As you can see in these images, the exterior facade is a highly sculpted plastic form that blurs the lines between architecture and sculpture, spilling out over the natural boundaries of the site.  This highly sculptural exterior gives way to a beautiful domed interior space defined by the intricate geometric pattern in the main dome.  The tall narrow lantern on the dome creates a hidden light source, adding to the drama and mystery of the space.

Trevi at Night

More from my adventures in night photography.  Here is the Trevi Fountain at night.

OK, I admit it, I threw a coin in.....

Great Streets

Another one of my favorite European travel hobbies is wandering.  I just love to wander and explore the city through the narrow, tight European streets. There is something special about both the scale and character of light on the streets in a dense European city. 

These great streets are also pretty photogenic as well.

San Gimignano

One of the most anticipated destinations of this journey was San Gimignano, an iconic Tuscan hill town.  This walled medieval hill town is known for its impressive array of vertical towers that have survived since the middle ages.  These beautiful stone towers, haphazardly arranged, and bathed in Tuscan light, make San Gimignano the perfect place to explore, sketch and photograph. 

Stone Figures and Poised Pigeons

Today’s images are from the Piazza Navona in Rome, thanks to the well behaved pigeons.

As I mused about in the previous post, Rome is a city where the layers of history come alive.  It is a city where you can experience 2000 plus years of history simultaneously, but Rome is also very much a Baroque city, and the Piazza Navona is a fine example of this.

The focal point of the Piazza Navona is Bernini’s Fountain of the Four Rivers (Fontana dei Quattro Fiumi) which celebrates the four great rivers of the known world in its time, the Nile, Danube, Ganges and Plate.  I am really drawn to this sculpture.  I just love the drama and theatricality of the figures, which of course is typical of the Baroque.  I also like the way the figures in the fountain seem to be addressing the adjacent cathedral façade.  Legend has it that the figures, designed by Bernini, are shielding their eyes in horror from the cathedral façade, designed by Borromini, Bernini’s arch-rival.  The reality is that the fountain was completed before the Façade, so who knows?  Never let the facts get in the way of a good story.

I addition to the very Baroque sculptures, the Piazza Navona is a fantastic urban space, albeit too touristy for its own good.

Bernini's Four Rivers Fountain

Shielding its eyes from the horror of the Borromini Facade.

Fragments of Antiquity

Being in Rome, one becomes extremely aware of the depth of history that lies within this city.  The layers of time, one era stacked on top of the other, is noticeably palpable when visiting this city.  This is probably one of my favorite aspects of Rome, and it always reminds me that great cities are always an accumulation of histories and layers. 

Nowhere in Rome is this idea more evident that in the Roman Forum itself, where the detritus of the Roman Empire lies in a layered pile of fragments from antiquity.  Some of these photos contain more history in one image (hundreds of years) than we know as a nation here in the US.  I guess that is why Rome is known as the eternal city, a city where you can experience two and half thousand years of history simultaneously.

In addition to my fascination with layered cities, I think there is a fundamental beauty found in ruins.  There is something about these fragments of incomplete ancient structures that I find to be incredibly beautiful and poetic.  Perhaps it is the way our “memories” and imagination work together to recreate the missing whole.  Maybe the parts, or fragments of history, are greater that the whole when it comes to our experience of place. 

Imperial Forum

Colosseum column fragments

Roman Forum

Column fragment

Roman Forum

Flower with Corinthian Capital

Roman Forum

Framed Views

I don’t really know why, but I am a sucker for capturing a “framed view”.  I love taking photographs of architecture framed by architecture, especially views famed by arches and windows.  These moments always seem to catch my attention and stop me in my tracks when I encounter them.  I will always double back to shoot a good framed view.  I know it is cliché, but I don’t care.

Here is a series of some of my favorite framed views from Florence, Tuscany and Rome.

Palazzo Medici, Florence

Colosseum, Rome

Courtyard at San Carlo alle Quatro Fontaine, Rome

San Gimignano

San Gimignano

Courtyard at Santa Croce, Florence

Duomo, Sienna

St. Peter's, Rome

St. Peter's (Framed and Reflected), Rome