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| The Spanish quarter |
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| Aboard the funicular in Capri |
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| Capri |
CASTELLAMMARE:
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| Corin under the oculus of a dome in Stabia |
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| The peak of Vesuvius |
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| Emily on the roof of the hotel in Castellammare |
Saturday, April 9, 2011
Southern Italy (Sweaty Steve style) - words that come to mind: beautiful, hot, sunny, blue, nice, peaceful, gorgeous, breezy, bright, happy, carefree...
As you can see, I couldn't have enjoyed the trip south more. It stood out among the three as the trip where I actually observed a real sense of fun and even "giddiness." It is this feeling- the morale- that was missing partially or all together in the last two trips. I could tell when we all arrived in Naples that this trip was going to be different. The first indicator was the most obvious: the weather. It was completely beautiful weather every day of the trip. And this is where the trip south differs the most from the others. Everyone is happier when it is nice out. Even if it's dark and raining at the most famous building in the world, you're still not going to have as good of an experience as you would if it were warm and sunny. And Southern Italy was both. Naples felt like Florida (aka heaven on earth). Once we got down to Capri and Castellammare, the weather was so nice that no one could feel even the most remote negative feeling. It was one of the best experiences of my life.
Why? Well, because of a lot things. Too many things to write down here. But I can give you some examples. The first day in Naples we had a sketching assignment where we had to observe and document street sections in the Spanish quarter and the Naples Gallery. Not only was this assignment fun to do, it was enlightening. I forget to look up sometimes in dense cities. Really paying attention to what's happening with facades and conversation between buildings makes a large difference. It was interesting to study the difference between the exterior, small-scale street and the interior, large-scale one. The second day we went to one of the most amazing houses I have ever seen. Perched on a cliff on the island of Capri, Curzio Malaparte's house sits. Before arriving, I had heard about the house and its panoramic views. To be honest, I never really thought much about it. I certainly wasn't expecting anything phenomenal. Casa Malaparte is the sort of "poster" for Southern Italy and the Rome program. I didn't think it was going to be that great. But when I walked down the steps and through the front gate I was immediately entranced. The house is just existing, at peace with the world, amongst heavenly landscape. It is part of this landscape. All around it the sea extended - one big horizon line with the most beautiful blue. The place has a magical aura. Three hours sketching there went by in what seemed like an instant. And, for the first time on this trip, I seemed to reach a point where I was at peace with it. Meaning, I was just sketching. I was just putting lines down in my sketchbook and loving it. And it came out great (maybe the best composition I have ever sketched). Looking back, it may very well have been one of the happiest times in my life. Just me, my friends, and the wide open sea. The next day, we all went to Pompeii (which was also phenomenal) and afterwards, had the afternoon to do what we wanted. I chose to climb Vesuvius with a few other people. We had to take a bus to a point about 1000 meters up the side of it and then walk the rest of the way. As the bus ascended, we were met with great views at every break in the trees. But the walk up was the best. Standing at the mouth of the crater, looking out over everything - the slightly smoking crater, the trees, the rock, the city, the people, the sea, the sky, the sun... I felt that feeling that you only feel when you're truly happy. I can't put it into words. The islands in the distance looked like they were clouds because the sun was shining so brightly, the light overtook the horizon line. The quiet was so peaceful that I could feel the distance between myself and the foot of the volcano. I wrote my initials on a wooden sign and walked back down.
Coming back to Rome, I could only wish that I had a few more days in the wonderland that was Southern Italy. The semester is almost over now and everyone feels it. But it's not over yet.
As you can see, I couldn't have enjoyed the trip south more. It stood out among the three as the trip where I actually observed a real sense of fun and even "giddiness." It is this feeling- the morale- that was missing partially or all together in the last two trips. I could tell when we all arrived in Naples that this trip was going to be different. The first indicator was the most obvious: the weather. It was completely beautiful weather every day of the trip. And this is where the trip south differs the most from the others. Everyone is happier when it is nice out. Even if it's dark and raining at the most famous building in the world, you're still not going to have as good of an experience as you would if it were warm and sunny. And Southern Italy was both. Naples felt like Florida (aka heaven on earth). Once we got down to Capri and Castellammare, the weather was so nice that no one could feel even the most remote negative feeling. It was one of the best experiences of my life.
Why? Well, because of a lot things. Too many things to write down here. But I can give you some examples. The first day in Naples we had a sketching assignment where we had to observe and document street sections in the Spanish quarter and the Naples Gallery. Not only was this assignment fun to do, it was enlightening. I forget to look up sometimes in dense cities. Really paying attention to what's happening with facades and conversation between buildings makes a large difference. It was interesting to study the difference between the exterior, small-scale street and the interior, large-scale one. The second day we went to one of the most amazing houses I have ever seen. Perched on a cliff on the island of Capri, Curzio Malaparte's house sits. Before arriving, I had heard about the house and its panoramic views. To be honest, I never really thought much about it. I certainly wasn't expecting anything phenomenal. Casa Malaparte is the sort of "poster" for Southern Italy and the Rome program. I didn't think it was going to be that great. But when I walked down the steps and through the front gate I was immediately entranced. The house is just existing, at peace with the world, amongst heavenly landscape. It is part of this landscape. All around it the sea extended - one big horizon line with the most beautiful blue. The place has a magical aura. Three hours sketching there went by in what seemed like an instant. And, for the first time on this trip, I seemed to reach a point where I was at peace with it. Meaning, I was just sketching. I was just putting lines down in my sketchbook and loving it. And it came out great (maybe the best composition I have ever sketched). Looking back, it may very well have been one of the happiest times in my life. Just me, my friends, and the wide open sea. The next day, we all went to Pompeii (which was also phenomenal) and afterwards, had the afternoon to do what we wanted. I chose to climb Vesuvius with a few other people. We had to take a bus to a point about 1000 meters up the side of it and then walk the rest of the way. As the bus ascended, we were met with great views at every break in the trees. But the walk up was the best. Standing at the mouth of the crater, looking out over everything - the slightly smoking crater, the trees, the rock, the city, the people, the sea, the sky, the sun... I felt that feeling that you only feel when you're truly happy. I can't put it into words. The islands in the distance looked like they were clouds because the sun was shining so brightly, the light overtook the horizon line. The quiet was so peaceful that I could feel the distance between myself and the foot of the volcano. I wrote my initials on a wooden sign and walked back down.
Coming back to Rome, I could only wish that I had a few more days in the wonderland that was Southern Italy. The semester is almost over now and everyone feels it. But it's not over yet.
Sunday, April 3, 2011
I went to Berlin this past weekend. I had some expectations about the city, but all of them were shattered. Berlin is one of the strangest cities I have ever seen. It is eccentric. And this eccentricity seems to be what makes it thrive. People love being weird there. Riding the U-Bahn and the S-Bahn (the most confusing but utterly best public transportation system in the world), I got to see some of the weirdest people. For example, I saw one guy who was wearing a trench coat made entirely of denim pockets sewn together. Another man had a pink mohawk and a pierced cheek. Berlin seems to me like a city that is trying to move on from the past (the Berlin Wall, Hitler, etc.). It has a feeling of youth and life that just can't be ignored. There were so many young people out and about everywhere that I had to feel this energy. Architecturally, this feeling comes through. There were not many old buildings because of the bombings during World War II. With so much newer construction, the city had a feel that I had never experienced before. There were modern additions resting on top of or inside historic buildings. There were gigantic glass complexes. There were abstract public art exhibitions on the boulevards. Berlin wants to be big. Each wide avenue said so. Spaces like Potzdamer Platz said so. Berlin is a city that is living in the 21st century.
One of my favorite public spaces was the Sony Center at Potzdamer Platz. It has a giant gallery surrounded by commercial space - offices, ground floor restaurants, and a movie theater. The office space cantilevers boldly the entrances and giant steel trusses fly over the mass of the buildings. Everyone who goes in that space has to look up at the system of sun shades enclosing the gallery. The closest thing I could compare it to would be Milan's gallery. I took it was a sort of modernized form of this. Just down the street was another great public space. Just south of Renzo Piano's Kollhoff Tower, there is a park. This park is really just a manmade hill set at about a 30 degree slope. But it is a great green space because it acts like a giant public bench in that people stop and rest there. Nothing was more enjoyable then to lay down in some sweet-smelling grass after walking the city all day. Another highlight of the trip was stumbling upon some of the coolest art exhibits I have ever seen. I was fortunate enough to see Kunsthaus Tacheles, a World War II-damaged warehouse in the Mitte district. Going in, I entered a different world. The walls were covered in graffiti, some years old. I walked up many flights of stairs, stopping at each floor to view works of collage, metal, and paint. It was one of the coolest/strangest experiences of my life.
Ultimately, Berlin was a great experience that me see that even after a city is wiped out, it can back and become one of the most lively places on earth.
One of my favorite public spaces was the Sony Center at Potzdamer Platz. It has a giant gallery surrounded by commercial space - offices, ground floor restaurants, and a movie theater. The office space cantilevers boldly the entrances and giant steel trusses fly over the mass of the buildings. Everyone who goes in that space has to look up at the system of sun shades enclosing the gallery. The closest thing I could compare it to would be Milan's gallery. I took it was a sort of modernized form of this. Just down the street was another great public space. Just south of Renzo Piano's Kollhoff Tower, there is a park. This park is really just a manmade hill set at about a 30 degree slope. But it is a great green space because it acts like a giant public bench in that people stop and rest there. Nothing was more enjoyable then to lay down in some sweet-smelling grass after walking the city all day. Another highlight of the trip was stumbling upon some of the coolest art exhibits I have ever seen. I was fortunate enough to see Kunsthaus Tacheles, a World War II-damaged warehouse in the Mitte district. Going in, I entered a different world. The walls were covered in graffiti, some years old. I walked up many flights of stairs, stopping at each floor to view works of collage, metal, and paint. It was one of the coolest/strangest experiences of my life.
Ultimately, Berlin was a great experience that me see that even after a city is wiped out, it can back and become one of the most lively places on earth.
Sunday, March 27, 2011
Friday, March 25, 2011
"Look thou upon me, and have mercy on me; for I am alone and poor.
The troubles of my heart are multiplied: deliver me from my necessities.
See my abjection and my labour; and forgive me all my sins.
Consider my enemies for they are multiplied, and have hated me with an unjust hatred.
Keep thou my soul, and deliver me: I shall not be ashamed, for I have hoped in thee."
Psalm 24: 16-20
Saturday, March 19, 2011
I went to 5 pm mass at the Pantheon today. I observed several things there. When I arrived, the scene was a typical one: hundreds of tourists (mostly American) milling around, looking up. It was loud, everyone was talking - I could make out several different languages as I made my way towards the few rows of pews. I found a spot in the pews amongst the tourists resting there. As I sat with Billy waiting for mass to begin, I looked at the bank of pews to my right. There I saw a young girl (maybe 16 years old) and her friend. She was brushing her hair. At first I took it as just another strange occurrence (of which I have had many here in Rome). After she finished brushing her hair, she knelt down on the kneeler and had her friend take a picture of her "praying" in the Pantheon. Good picture, right?
A lot of people forget that the Pantheon is a church. It was a temple to all the Roman Gods before it became a church, and it is a feat of structural engineering. These things often overshadow the fact that it is considered holy ground. But today, I saw it transformed from landmark to holy space. A few minutes after the girl had taken her picture (received her false token), several women came through the crowd and started clearing the tourists out for mass. They asked us three times if we were here for mass. I was amazed at how quickly everyone was herded out and made to stand behind barriers directly outside the entrance. I could hear the immense mob outside in the piazza, but it had become significantly more quiet inside. It was then that I noticed two things: there were only 25 people or so there for mass, and the space is much more impressive when it is empty. It was depressing to see that out of the 400 or so people packed into the Pantheon earlier, only a handful had stayed to celebrate mass. But at the same time, I got to see one of the most dynamic spatial transitions in the world. During the mass the Pantheon felt completely different. The smell of incense gave me mystic feel while every once in a while I would look up to see the sky slowly darkening through the oculus. The cantor didn't even need a microphone for his voice to be heard throughout the entire space. And all the time the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world loomed above, glorious. The mass ended and I walked past the swarm of yelling tourists, a smirk on my face.
A lot of people forget that the Pantheon is a church. It was a temple to all the Roman Gods before it became a church, and it is a feat of structural engineering. These things often overshadow the fact that it is considered holy ground. But today, I saw it transformed from landmark to holy space. A few minutes after the girl had taken her picture (received her false token), several women came through the crowd and started clearing the tourists out for mass. They asked us three times if we were here for mass. I was amazed at how quickly everyone was herded out and made to stand behind barriers directly outside the entrance. I could hear the immense mob outside in the piazza, but it had become significantly more quiet inside. It was then that I noticed two things: there were only 25 people or so there for mass, and the space is much more impressive when it is empty. It was depressing to see that out of the 400 or so people packed into the Pantheon earlier, only a handful had stayed to celebrate mass. But at the same time, I got to see one of the most dynamic spatial transitions in the world. During the mass the Pantheon felt completely different. The smell of incense gave me mystic feel while every once in a while I would look up to see the sky slowly darkening through the oculus. The cantor didn't even need a microphone for his voice to be heard throughout the entire space. And all the time the largest unreinforced concrete dome in the world loomed above, glorious. The mass ended and I walked past the swarm of yelling tourists, a smirk on my face.
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