Holy Moses...

Here are some photo's from my Rome sketchbook class yesterday morning.

We met in front of San Pietro in Vincoli which meant we had to take the metro from Cipro to Termini; get the free interchange, switch to the B Line, and ride it one stop to Cavour. I think I'm sort of starting to get a hang of the metro here. And the ride from the residence (Cipro) to school (Flamino) is pretty nice whenever it rains or I'm running late.

Anyways, once at San Pietro, we went in and drew from Michaelangelo's depiction of Moses, which is sculpted out of marble. It is this massive sculpture located to the right of the altar and roped off with the red velvet ropes you typically associate with movie theaters and movie premiers.

The statue is pretty breathtaking. And I think I'm getting more used to people coming up and randomly taking my photo while drawing (without asking)... or at least as used to it as I'm going to get.

Overfriendly Faun...

Drawing Assignment: Reinterpret/get inspired by a piece of Italian art.

I chose the Barberini Faun, Caravaggio's "Seven Acts of Mercy", and I think I'm going to add some cherubs from a few prints by Ribera.

Here are some in progress shots so far. I started on the ground because the size is pretty huge, but eventually put it on the wall so that I could work out the perspective. I think it's probably close to 9ft tall. I've been talking to my professor about how I feel like I need to break out of the "completing assignments" role I've gotten into the past couple of semesters, and start actually making art I'm proud of. She suggested I try and get a little more complex in my compositions... I have a lot of work left on it. And crit tomorrow night... wish me luck. Any suggestions?!!!

That's not Tripe...

So Dan and Gang Gang invited me over for dinner the other night. It was absolutely delicious. We had pork chops with pasta and tomatoes with scrambled eggs. I may or may not have mistaken the eggs for tripe (we bought some at the grocery store and I just assumed that's what we were having.) but it all turned out fine. I love how everyone here really enjoys cooking. We've all been taking turns inviting different people over.

Also, I'm super jealous of their apartment. So so so nice.

Ketchup, Catchup...

Saturday I drew giant heads.

Sunday I drew out in the Villa Borghese with Natalie.

Monday I ate gelato.

Tuesday I pulled my first drypoint.

And today I went to the Villa Chigi in Trastevere with my art history class and saw some Beruzzi and Raphael original frescos.

I love Italy.

Drawing Crit...

Had a drawing crit Monday. Went over alright. I got some pretty constructive criticism and feedback, but I'm still working things out in my head as to how I want to continue with this. (If at all.)

Top: Me. Gustavo. Coady.

Bottom: Natalie. Kamille.

Studio Sunday...

It rained today!!!!

Finally!!!

Just some pictures from the studios today...

Everyone's working on drawing, painting, and printmaking homework.

Busy busy busy!

Coady's Studio.

Dan hard at work...

Dan's Chinese Inspired Landscape Drawing.

Kamille's Drawing.

Natalie working on her drawing of a statue from the Villa Borghese.

And the model posing with her portrait.

Oh! And before I forget...

I moved studios so that now I have a huge wall to draw on rather than having to constantly bend down! Soooo nice!

Looking Up...

So I've been feeling a little stuck in terms of what to do when it comes to my studio classes. I guess you could call it a funk, or mind block, or whatever. I don't think my problem is lack of inspiration... more like over stimulation. Everything is just so breathtaking or amazing in its own right that I feel like I have too many ideas and concepts forming in my head that when it comes to putting them down on paper, it just gets lost in translation.

That being said... my drawing assignment for this week is to do a large scale drawing. Totally open. Only criteria is the size... Which normally I would love, except for the fact that I had no idea where to even begin. Enter my wonderful friend Natalie. Who told me to challenge myself... that's why I'm here in Italy anyways. So what's more challenging than people. Particularly portraits.

So here is my work in progress shots thus far...

I'll upload the others and the final product when I finish!

#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

-I'm going to rework the face and try and bring out more tones/greyscale in her features.

I'm also going to duplicate her silhouette and faintly wipe it out.

Edit: This is the finished piece as of right now...

Some of my classmates conviced me to leave it as it is until after the crit.

What do you think?

Any suggestions?!!

Studioooo.

So this is my studio while I'm in Rome. It is absolutely perfect. It's also a little strange coming from a major (printmaking) at Tyler that doesn't have individual studios. You basically get a drawer and maybe a locker. Here I have a WHOLE studio, a drawer for prints, AND a locker!!! I love just being able to come up here and listen to the traffic outside. Do some work. And bond with my classmates.

It's wonderful.

Todi...

So last Sunday we were fortunate enough to visit the town of Todi, located in the region of Umbria. It has been a longstanding tradition at Temple Rome to visit and explore the town in the morning and attend a wedding style Italian feast in the afternoon. First of all, Todi is absolutely beautiful. It is a tiny medieval town located on top of this tiny hill that overlooks miles and miles of farmland. We saw fields of wheat, watermelon, and ironically enough sunflowers; which are harvested and used to create oil. I kept thinking about my mom anytime we’d pass an acre or two of huge yellow and black fields of flowers. There are also tons of sheep, goats, and horses freely grazing throughout the region. We went into a few churches which are filled with beautiful pieces of art. And in the one we walked in to find an orchestra and opera singer practicing for Sunday’s mass. I just sat in the pew for half an hour and listened. The churches here are mind blowing. I could have sat in that church for hours just listening and looking around.

Todi.

Walking through Todi.

2nd church in Todi.

This was one of the most beautiful churches I've ever been in.

It was also the one with the orchestra.

Natalie!

View from the courtyard.

View from the courtyard.

Coady outside in the courtyard.

Alex and Laura!

View from the second floor dining room.

Then the afternoon came and it was beyond describable. Sooooo many courses, so little time in between courses! Soooo wonderful! Everything was served with fizzy mineral water and white, red, and sweet desert wine that are all grown and made right on the property. I slept the whole way home.

First Course were these apertif's that I didn't get a picture of... but out in the courtyard they had blood orange juice (so good) and a variety of small finger-sized pizza's! Sooooo delicious.

2nd course: I'm not entirely sure what each type os meat there were...

But I think it was salami, ham, and wild boar.

3rd course: Cheese Pastry.

4th course: Risotto.

5th course: Wild Boar and pasta.

(My favorite.)

6th course: Venison.

(Way more appetizing than my picture leads you to believe.)

7th and 8th course: Potatoes. Chicken.

9th course: Salad.

10th course: Tiramisu

(My second favorite.)

11th and 12th course: Sweet Desert wine. Biscotti. Fruit.

13th course: Esspresso.