First thing in the morning was to head to St. Peter's Basilica! Not only was I excited but also had to remind myself to dress in the proper attire of a maxi dress draped with a sheer scarf to cover my shoulders. The Basilica was overwhelmingly decorative as the art I saw the previous day and I love it. I just wish I could see a closer view of the statues and other details at the top of the building and why is there nothing nearly as cool as this in South Carolina?
The Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel had me "ooing" and "awing" at every big or small painting, sculpture, tapestry, etc. Needless to say I loved everything it had to offer. I was grateful for Emily Nickles telling me to not forget to look up because some of the most spectacular artwork was on the ceiling (asides from the Sistine Chapel). I'm surprised my neck isn't sore for looking up majority of the day. I can definitely appreciate and marvel at all the art but it also makes me envious because I cannot create masterpieces such as those. It won't be hard to say that one of my most favorite pieces inside was the frescos in the Sistine Chapel. It's really an eye opener when you think of the process, how long it took, those magnificent details, and how each imagery has a biblical story related to it. On contrary what my old middle and high school art program had taught me, they were wrong about Michelangelo painting on his back but rather he was in a standing position to paint. Either way, I see it being uncomfortable to do for long periods of time. But in the end it was worth it so hundreds of years later we could still marvel and appreciate history. Not to mention, it hasn't been too long ago that the Sistine Chapel had been restored so we got to experience the rich vibrancy of colors that might have appeared during Michelangelo's time.
The Vatican Museum and Sistine Chapel had me "ooing" and "awing" at every big or small painting, sculpture, tapestry, etc. Needless to say I loved everything it had to offer. I was grateful for Emily Nickles telling me to not forget to look up because some of the most spectacular artwork was on the ceiling (asides from the Sistine Chapel). I'm surprised my neck isn't sore for looking up majority of the day. I can definitely appreciate and marvel at all the art but it also makes me envious because I cannot create masterpieces such as those. It won't be hard to say that one of my most favorite pieces inside was the frescos in the Sistine Chapel. It's really an eye opener when you think of the process, how long it took, those magnificent details, and how each imagery has a biblical story related to it. On contrary what my old middle and high school art program had taught me, they were wrong about Michelangelo painting on his back but rather he was in a standing position to paint. Either way, I see it being uncomfortable to do for long periods of time. But in the end it was worth it so hundreds of years later we could still marvel and appreciate history. Not to mention, it hasn't been too long ago that the Sistine Chapel had been restored so we got to experience the rich vibrancy of colors that might have appeared during Michelangelo's time.
Afterwards, we walked our way over to the Borghese Gallery. Unfortunately, they had tight regulations of no photography could be taken so the best I could do was to try to doodle what I saw or have the image engraved in my mind. I really enjoy Greek/Roman mythology so the two all time favorite pieces in the Borghese Gallery was The Rape of Proserpina (Persephone) and Apollo & Daphne by Bernini. The details in the sculptures were so great that it emphasized texture, balance, and movement. The texture is truly unbelievable in The Rape of Persephone where Hades grabs Persephone's leg and the surface really appears as if the marble is made of flesh.
Once we went through the Borghese Gallery, we had free time to do as we pleased so I went to check out one of the famous fountains in the world, the Trevi Fountain. I felt so relaxed sitting on the benches admiring the Baroque fountain and of course taking lots of photos as well as tossing coins in. Then for about an hour or so I attempted to sketch the Trevi Fountain in my sketchbook. It was such a beautiful transition of the sky getting darker as the lights from the fountain lighting up.
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