Archive for March, 2011

24
Mar

The Campidoglio

By lmh94 0 Comments
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Rome has so many sites of ancient importance, both famous and obscure, that it is difficult to pick out just one. But I can honestly say that my favorite location of the ancient city is located on the crest of the Capitoline Hill – the Campidoglio.

Ascending the steps to the Campidoglio

Beautiful in both rain and sun, this piazza was designed by Michelangelo but not finished in its entirety until under Benito Mussolini’s regime. After creating two complementary facades for the opposing palazzos that frame the square (they currently house the world-famous Capitoline Museums) Michelangelo also created a podium for the bronze statue of Marcus Aurelius, located in the central focal point of the Campodoglio as you ascend the steps to the Capitoline. The dizzying oval bands on the pavement form star-shaped intersections and were a part of the original design that was not implemented until the 1930s.The Statue of Marcus Aurelius

I love the Campidoglio because it is the setting of all of Rome’s greatest moments in history. It stands on the foundation of the giant Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, where the empires’s most famous generals celebrated the triumphs of the Roman people. The tribute to Marcus Aurelius is a nod to the late empire, while the adjacent Church of Mary of the Heavenly Altar (Santa Maria in Aracoeli)  is a reminder of the post-Roman world of the early Middle Ages. The Palazzos’ sprawling parlors and luxury that today hold some the the world’s great treasures reveal a taste of the unimaginable luxury of  Renaissance Rome, while Mussolini’s final completion of the Campidoglio is a testament to the triumphs and failures of fascism.
Within its small boundaries, the Campidoglio holds all of Rome’s greatest moments.

23
Mar

The Hidden City of Assisi

By lmh94 0 Comments
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On Saturday, March 5th, Art History Professor Lila Yawn took a group of Cornell Students to the little town of Assisi, north of Rome. After two hours on Cornell’s double-decker bus, our first impression of the famous Assisi was a rainy parking lot and an escalator. Yes, Assisi is so steep that many outdoor sidewalks have been replaced with escalators. Hopping on this moving staircase as the drizzle pelted my umbrella, I began to ask myself just where was this impressive medieval city, the home of St. Francis, that I had learned so much about?

Reaching the sloping plateau of the upper town, we began to wind through the cobbled streets in search of the Basilica of St. Francis, an early Gothic style structure that whose construction begun immediately following the death of St. Francis in 1100s.
Upon reaching the entrance of the Basilica, we found dozens and dozens of shiny new black sedans parked side by side in the portico-lined piazza in front of the church. A wedding? A funeral? We quickly discovered that these were the province’s new taxicabs, which were quickly blessed by a Priest with the transit commissioner at his side.

Inside the Cathedral we viewed the famous fresco cycle that tells the story of St. Francis’ life, the apse artwork, and the entire lower basilica of the church that housed the remains of St. Francis in an impressive stone tomb. Interestingly, Saint Francis was revolutionary in the Christian world as one of the first men to take vows of utter poverty, starting the monastic Order of the Franciscans. So it is a little ironic that this man – who didn’t wear shoes (or anything other than burlap robes) and begged for all of his meals – would be celebrated with one of the most elaborately decorated basilicas built in Italy during the Middle Ages. But the Basilica was made less to memorialize St. Francis, and more as a gift to the pilgrims who traveled long distances just to glimpse the hometown of the famous saint. This “architecture of marvel,” as my professor described it, hoped to instill wonder and awe into the traveling pilgrim.

Leaving Assisi, I realized that while I had been looking for a medieval city, I had found something even more rare. Assisi is not a place frozen in time. It is a city of the 21st century that carries on the legacy of its own history. What I thought was a bizarre escalator entrance to the city, was  actually a simple way to facilitate pilgrims of all ages who wanted to see St. Francis. My favorite part of the trip, the blessing of the taxis, blended the old city and the new city and also revealed the continuity of faith so pervasive in Assisi. The medieval city is still there, all you need to do is look for it.

10
Mar

Pier Vittorio Aureli Lecture

By svh22 0 Comments
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This past Thursday, Cornell University was happy to welcome lecturer Pier Vittorio Aureli to our campus in Rome. His talk, entitled ‘City as a Practical Form’ was a detailed look into the effects of five discreet historic architectural interventions on urban fabric, both the specific city in which they were implemented and the notions of city organization from that point on.

Aureli broke his argument into five examples ranging from Rome in 1508 to Paris (1604), Berlin (1823), Vienna (1919) and finally ending with London in 1960. Each example establishes a new typology of organization and priorities within the modern city and, more importantly, demonstrates a shift in the notions and motivations of government. This is due, in part, to the choice of projects. They are all large scale, state sponsored (with the exception of the Fun Palace in London) building initiatives in the urban center and as such are all manifestations of the governing bodies that initiated them.

I will not go into detail outlining Aureli’s argument, partly because I would then have to voice my objections to it, but mostly out of fear of making a mess of what was otherwise a very succinct and thought provoking lecture. Additionally I would like to say how happy I was to see a lecture dealing with these topics at a Cornell campus. Despite being the college of architecture, art and planning there is very rarely any discourse that bridges the divide between the college’s departments, a somewhat disconcerting notion if you consider their relevance to one another.

Aureli has taught at Colombia University in New York, the AA in London, as well as the Delft University of Technology and the Berlage Institute. He is also the co-founder of DOGMA with Martino Tattara. If you are interested in learning something more substantial about Aureli he has several books including “The Possibility of an Absolute Architecture” (March 2011) and “The Project of Autonomy: Politics and Architecture Within and Against Capitalism”(July 2008) to name two. You can also find an article written by him for Log in pdf format (below) or, if you speak french, a lecture he gave a the Centre Pompidou in October of 2009 (also below).

http://www.uni-weimar.de/cms/uploads/media/Aureli__Pier_V_–_Log_3_–_who_is_afraid_of_the_form_object_02.pdf

http://metropoles.centrepompidou.fr/intervenant.php?id=1

10
Mar

Gnocchi Night

By lmh94 0 Comments
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In general, I find that my culinary taste is rather simplistic. In my mind there are very few delicacies that can surpass a well-made PB&J, or my other favorite, ants-on-a-log. Add popcorn and apples to the grocery list and I’m happy for weeks. But last Friday, Cornell in Rome hosted an event at Palazzo Lazzaroni that made me rethink my fear of any kitchen device that’s not a microwave.

At Gnocchi Night, our very own administrator Anna-Rita Flati taught a lucky group of students the secret to her authentic gnocchi recipe. Starting with 10 kilograms of boiled potatoes (peeled and grated), she encouraged us to add flour and eggs. For the next half hour the group of 25 wrestled this resistant mixture into a friendly ball of dough that was then rolled into cords and cut into inch-long pillows. After boiling, the gnocchi were served in many different preparations: traditional tomato sauce, red pepper and pesto, sage butter and olive oil, artichoke and almond, salmon and roasted tomatoes, and cream sauce with mushrooms and peas. After stuffing myself with six different kinds of gnocchi, I miraculously found the energy to try a traditional Italian bundt cake called ciambellone.

These gnocchi dishes are so amazing, I might think twice next time I pull out that jar of peanut butter.

Anna Rita’s Gnocchi
1 kg potatoes
300 grams flour
1 egg

Boil potatoes with their skin on. When potatoes are tender, drain, remove skin, and mash. Let cool. When cold add the flour and eggs and mix until a soft, elastic dough is formed. In sections, roll dough into cords that are about 1 centimeter thick. Slice into 2 centimeter long sections. Buon Appetito!

-LH

Photography by Susan Yue

Photography by Susan Yue

08
Mar

The All-American Girl

By lmh94 0 Comments
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Having completed two semesters of Italian before coming to Rome, I was looking forward to practicing my new language skills with native speakers. I found, however, that the Italians are even more eager to practice their English. I repeatedly walked into gelato shops preparing my Italian request in the back of my mind (always hazelnut) only to be met with a confident “what do you want??” from the young woman behind the counter.

Disappointed, I began to wonder how everyone seemed to know that I was an American before I even opened my mouth. For the next few days I spent time in Roman parks, museums, and restaurants (and shops, of course) trying to figure what set me apart from native Romans. What resulted was the following list of traits that had me blending in, in no time.

Wear your coat. Romans will wear heavy down coats and furs even when the thermometer reaches into the balmy 60s. For those of us from Ithaca, this was particularly difficult, as we have been conditioned to break a sweat anytime it’s warm enough to melt snow.

Look people in the eyes. At first, I interpreted this Roman quality as hostility. I quickly learned that making direct eye contact with total strangers on the street is actually polite. I myself am more familiar with the sunglasses-on, ipod-in, eyes-on-the-floor mentality of the NYC subway, so I found this extended eye contact extremely uncomfortable. But with a little practice, I am now able to stare down the best of them.

Shhhh! Italians are much, much quieter in restaurants than Americans are. I also have yet to hear any Italians burst out laughing. So that’s how they know I’m American…

Never mix your fruits with creams. An ancient cashier at my favorite gelato shop gave this helpful hint to me. In world of gelato, Italians NEVER mix fruit flavors with the creamy flavors. Dead giveaway.

These tactics, in addition to my nondescript black wardrobe and large sunglasses, have helped me blend into the Roman ways of life. While these are largely generalizations and not absolute truths by any means, I have enjoyed taking a moment every now and then to observe a culture totally different than my own and give a new experience a try. Today a young Italian woman asked me for directions- in Italian! It looks like my hard work has been paying off.

Photography by Taylor Chew

Photography by Taylor Chew

07
Mar

Internships for BFA Students Begin at Cornell in Rome

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For the first time in its history, the Cornell BFA department started arranging internship positions for Fine Arts majors in the Cornell in Rome program (yeah!!!). With the enormous efforts of Professors Shara Wasserman and Stan Taft, different types of internship positions were arranged for those who had applied.

Internship places vary according to each student’s interest: individual artists, art galleries, artist residencies, the American Academy in Rome, and so on. Although English is spoken in all the places, it definitely provides a good opportunity to learn more Italian, too.

Every Monday, students attend a one-hour internship meeting session with Professor Wasserman to share their experiences and to discuss questions/concerns they may have about any aspect of the internship. Students are also required to keep a journal regarding their experiences to be submitted at the end of the semester. It has been about a month since most people have begun with their internships; everyone seems quite satisfied with their jobs.

I have been interning at Spazionuovo, a contemporary art and design gallery newly opened in Rome last year. The gallery promotes emerging artists from Europe and Latin America, and introduces modern design furniture as well. Two experienced gallerists, Guillaume (who is French) and Paulo (Argentinian) run the place; naturally, I am exposed to a lot of spoken and written Italian, French, Spanish, and English.
image
At the gallery, I do various types of general administrative work such as greeting guests, advertising the gallery, and communicating with collectors, institutions, and the press. My major responsibility is to create press releases and catalogs for each show; translating and proofreading texts written in English is another task of mine. It has been quite busy these days because we are also preparing for the Milan Image Art Fair, an art fair specially dedicated to fine art photography. I will probably attend the art fair with Guillaume and Paulo in May. Due to their big interest in American artists, I do lots of research on the American contemporary art market as well.

I work about 10 hours a week, but recently I have been spending more time there as I find the working process quite enjoyable. The extensive amount of research I do has been very helpful for expanding my scope of knowledge in art. These two energetic and fun gentlemen have interesting backgrounds; just being able to hear their perspectives and views about the world is one of the most precious experiences I gain day by day. It is pretty amazing how none of us are Italians and communicate to each other in a language that is not a mother tongue for any of us.

-Sunny Kim

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