Final Post - Reflection Journal Summary

While we were in Italy, we wrote reflection journals at each of the locations we visited. These have some cross-over with the already-posted blogs, but include other information as well. At the bottom are over-arching reflections that I had.

Santa Maria Novella

There are too many frescos to count here.  And too many cloisters with too many tombs to count either.  The cloisters are all individually distinct by their architectural choices and their most notable features.  (The Green Cloister has lots of grass and large trees.) 

The Spanish Chapel was surprisingly more austere than the main sanctuary of the church.  The sheer size of the frescos is astounding.  They are all so expertly made and beautiful in an aesthetically pleasing way.  I am sure that I am missing the feeling that the original viewers would have felt.  My perspective half a century away is one of reverence to my ancestors and their religious interest in their contemporaries.  

The main cathedral is in no way a place of austere.  It is incredibly extravagant in tone and filled to the brim with art and other items that merely showcase the wealth maintained by their patron families.  It is in fact, by definition, palatial and that completely defeats the purpose of it being a church in terms of preferred tone of a church.  

The art is beautiful, but it does not inspire feelings of religious reverenceI would expect from a church of the time.  The involvement of the Medici and other contemporaries of the time is also exceedingly confusing.  Maybe this church was meant for those who were already aristocratic and the artwork was meant to be an ego boost for themselves.  

Fiesole

It is amazing to be sitting in an amphitheater that is over one-thousand years old, and very odd.  The best we could do in the United States as far as man-made materials that old would at most be shattered pottery.  It is also strange to think that this theatre and the pottery found here would be ancient by even Renaissance era standards.  It makes me wonder what archaeologist would have done with these discoveries in the 1400s.

The amount to which the whole hill itself is relatively untouched by human hands is also amazing to consider.  The hill, if it were in America, would have been blasted in order to make the street climbing it easier on travelers.  In Italy, it is treacherous for all parties involved on that road.  In America, we are lucky to find artifacts from previous civilizations, even fragments of those.  The obvious philosophy of building in Italy revolves around the necessity of making a new building instead of conforming to the existing environment.  So many of the buildings in Florence are original to the Renaissance and only slightly later.  In America, we remove the old to make way for the new, whenever possible.

Uffizi Gallery

The Annunciation by Leonardo da Vinci

It took three years to complete, some attributing part of it to his mentor Verrochio but the consensus is that he did it alone.  It is my favorite da Vinci painting and work overall, barely overtaking Madonna of the Rocks.  Its simplicity and depth is surprising if you compare it to other paintings of the age.  To an initial viewer, it will appear to only be a normal rendition of the “annunciation” motif that popularly runs in Renaissance art.  However, knowing that da Vinci was not an expressly a religious man, it calls into question just how deep the religious iconography goes before it begins to be secular under the surface.  Some also speculate to his interest in science being shown here, notably in the design of the angel’s wings closely resembling the wings in his flying machine blueprints.

Accademia Gallery 

David

I was interested in the David when we arrived at the Piazzo della Signoria, seeing it in its original place in Florence.  It did not have the impact it would later have seeing it in the Accademia, but it was amazing seeing it in front of the Palazzo Vecchio. 

Seeing it down the hall in the Accademia was astounding.  It had the greatest initial impact of any sight we visited in Florence.  Most of the time I spent near him was used to watch others walking around him.  I wrote a poem about it (that I am not going to share) that discussed how we as tourists circle around the David today just like Michelangelo did as he carved him.  It also calls to attention that some people pay more attention to him than others, giving him a discerning look that his maker must have had.  I walked around him a few times, interested in how his pose changes based on where you stand, especially in the perceived intensity of his mood.  This is the most fun that I had looking at a piece of art on this trip, if not only for the other people around me.  

Overall Thoughts From the Last Entry during the second classroom meeting:

I will look up.

I will look around at my surroundings.

I will look below the surface.

I will consider the context.

Everything that is old is new again. (This is a quote from somewhere, I just can’t find it.)

Quiet is okay. (I knew this, it just seems much more apparent here than in America.)

Take care of yourself, others won’t do it for you.

Don’t be afraid to strike out alone.

Be prepared to make mistakes.

Be prepared to be confused.

Be honest with yourself in terms of your opinions.

Ask for help.

Know how safe you are.

Be willing to be ignorant.  (Pretending to be knowledgeable helps no one.)

Be discrete when you are a guest in a foreign country.

Pace yourself.

Think about the history of the very street you walk on every day.

Tuesday- Uffizi Museum

I am now two days behind ... lovely.

We spent the morning in the Uffizi Art Museum, a large building Directly next to the Palazzo Vecchio. It originally, in Its initial days of operation, ACTED as offices for the Florence city government. 

The building is enormous, filled with Hundreds of art from the Medieval Period through the late Renaissance, with possibly Thousands blackberries in storage elsewhere.   The building is single directional, meaning That You have to start in the Medieval section and finish with foreign artists Whose art was bought by the Medici and other Florentine aristocrats.

Sadly, no pictures were allowed in the main chambers of the museum.   This website features many of the blackberries popular / most well-known pieces: uffizi.org. 

Included in the middle of the exhibits were Roman statues Already Considered "ancient" when Discovered in the Renaissance.   There were also, alongside These, contemporary statues to show the distinct similarities between the two distant eras. 

Our assignment for this day was to seek out a piece art Predetermined That we thought was interesting online or from past experience That we had not yet seen in real life.   Also We were to keep our eyes open for our favorite piece in the museum.

The piece is was looking for was the Annunciation by Leonardo di Vinci.   This depicts That story in the bible where the Virgin Mary is being informed of her forthcoming involvement with the birth of Christ.   Da Vinci's concept of the scenery is very pleasing to look at and effortless at the same time.   I have wanted to see this piece ever since reading about it in The Da Vinci Code  The way Mary is reacting to the angel is very different than the vast Majority of other examples of the "annunciation" subject.   The angel is Also very human in comparison to others in the same time period, who tend to be very ethereal Compared to this one.   Just Google it, a photo does not do it justice.   Interestingly, in the same room were Botticelli's The Birth of Venus and the Primavera.  Most of the other patrons in the museum Those works were crowded around and left nearly no one next to the da Vinci, I know I could get a clear view without difficulty.

The Annunciation was my favorite piece, but not by much Compared to others.   There was one large oil painting depicting Eleonora de 'Medici, who is Becoming quite the connecting line for the trip as a whole.   She is shown in an elegant gown holding her young son.   Dr. Martin actually Told us an interesting fact about this dress as we viewed it.   When some of the Doctors were moved to a new location in recent years, it was simple to identify Eleonora two to the repute she was buried wearing the dress from the very portrait. 

Both Wednesday and Thursday will be coming out later tonight after we have our hands-on experience Italian cuisine.

I am very sorry That I am so far behind. It has Been really hard to want to or be Able to get to a computer.   I have wanted to spend every minute of every waking hour out walking around this wonderful city.   It's so full of life and never boring. 

Monday morning started out at the Santa Maria Novella church.   It is home to several distinct, large cloisters with Hundreds of Thousands of people buried between the 1400s to the 1800s.   many chapels It Also Has That are unique in Their own right.   Most notable of These is the Spanish Chapel, named for the entourage That Followed Eleonora de 'Medici, who was from Spain and married into the famous family.   Her husband, Cosimo the Elder, the gave her the beautiful apartments seen on Sunday in the Palazzo Vecchio.   Along with this came the Spanish chapel where her itinerary would worship. 

There are giant frescos on most of the walls, featuring many religious figures and biblical stories as well as leaders in the Florentine community of the day.   Pictures of the chapel are included below.

The cloisters are beautiful and have very descriptive names That can be used to delineated between the individual locations.   These include the Green Cloisters (many trees and grass) and the Great Cloister (very austere and the largest number of graves). 

The church proper Has too many features to discuss in this one post.   In it are many chapel dedicated to the aristocratic families of Florence in the Renaissance.   For me, the most special was a very small and unadorned tombstone dedicated to Jacopo Peri, who was the creator of the work.   There is a picture of it below.   In all of the pomp and beauty of the church and the fresh and the gilded carved choir seats sat this small graven stone remembering the life of the man who changed the musical world.   The pictures of the rest of the sanctuary are included, but all of them pale (to me) Compared to this Particular features.

That afternoon, after eating in the Central Market and a very good meal, we spent the afternoon in the outlying village of Fiesole.   It is home to beautiful Roman ruins including an amphitheater and some extant structures.   The acoustics of the theater were wonderful and obviously expertly made ​​for the performance process.   After perusing a large collection of pottery and relics, we Climbed up a very large and steep hill to a great view of Florence proper. 

It's only the second day here, but I am willing to say That I will be coming back here when i can move at my own peace and appreciate things in the way That I need to.

Wednesday's post (for Tuesday's activities) will cover the gigantic Uffizi art museum.  There was not another location-based trip today, but the museum will truly take a lot of space to post.   Sadly, no pictures were allowed except in the first couple entrance rooms.

Palazzo Medici-Riccardi

A real whirlwind of activity

So, yesterday afternoon's post obviously never came.   This is Mainly two to the repute immediately after posting That morning, we were off again to the second trip of the day: the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi.   This palace housed, initially, the first few generations of the Medici line (Cosimo, Piero, Lorenzo, etc.). before they moved into a new palace suitable for blackberries Their new nobility status. 

The building was designed by Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, who designed the Palazoo Also Strozzi (another aristocratic Florentine family).   Built between 1444-1484, a gigantic palace still used as Florence governmental offices. 

An original design produced by Filippo Brunelleschi was turned down by Cosimo the Elder but some aspects,: such as the integration of older and Renaissance design into the facade, were picked up and used by Michelozzo.  

Older:

- Stone loud mixture of sandstone and cement, giving the stone a very smooth finish. Lasts longer than other techniques.

- Rustication: Purposeful roughening of external rocks to give raw impressions.

Renaissance: 

Loggia: That Existed open walkway under the bulk of the building, like a porch That is recessed.

Internal courtyard: central courtyard viewable from the street. Gave this the lower status people a taste of what was inside, but it was still very low in tone.

The design is simple externally while housing a palatial interior. This mirrors the Medici, at That Time led by Cosimo de 'Medici. They gave the public a very simple face in Their direct actions and dealings, but Contributed to the cultures of early-Renaissance Florence many pieces of art. in fact, it is reported That Brunelleschi's proposed design was refused purely on the basis of it being "too lavish and magnificent." The Doctors Wished to Work Within the shadows. Those allowed into the building would be smacked across the face with many works of art and decorative constructions built only for the Medici.

  

After the main structure was completed, Cosimo's children were respinsible for furnishing and decorating the inside.   As Mentioned above, many works were completed purely for this task.   Most famous is the "Magi Chapel" featuring a large, three-walled cool That depicts the Magi's travel to see the newborn baby Jesus.   An interesting thing to note Is that many members of the Medici family were painted into the fresh as if they were Accompanying the Magi On Their journey.   Sadly, photography was not permitted inside the chapel. Here is a link discussing the work and the easter eggs hidden within it: 

http://www.palazzo-medici.it/mediateca/en/Scheda_Cappella_dei_Magi

In 1659 the Medici sold the palace to the Riccardi family, another aristocratic family in Florence who had married into the family.   By this point, many changes to the facade had taken place two to a changing political climate in Florence and Tuscany at large.   Once the Riccardi were in possession of the building, they made ​​many internal renovations in order to keep up with the fashions of the times at That point.   They also massively expanded it, actually taking over another building immediately next door, and included That in Their redesign. 

To honor the legacy of the Medici family, they commissioned a large ceiling fresco depicts That the major players over the years carousing with mythological figures (Neptune, Apollo, Venus).

These were the main points of the palace That I will go into great detail about, but there are pictures of several of the other rooms featuring works for and about the Physicians Throughout Their reign.  

I will condense this day's (March 3) adventures into one post That I will make later (my time) tonight, with pictures included.