OUGD502 - Easter Break 2018, Italy Trip - Rome

The third and final stop on our trip around Italy was Rome, Italy's capital city. This is somewhere I have always wanted to visit, particularly due to my interest in ancient philosophy.

On the second day of our visit to Rome, we took a trip to the Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome which sits the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church, and is home to the Pope and famous Sistine Chapel whereby another one of Michelangelo's most famous works is held. Due to the chapel being a holy and sacred place, unfortunately pictures were not allowed to be taken, however this just made me think and appreciate the artwork more. The huge scale of it was like nothing I'd ever seen. It made me realise that we have become so trapped inside a technological bubble that, again, sometimes we simply need to stop, look and appreciate things for what they are without these sorts of technological influences on us.

However, other pieces of design and architecture inside the Vatican were just as amazing. For instance, the highly detailed and decorated gold ceiling which seemed to stretch for hours along one corridor through the museum. I get neck-ache again just thinking about it.

Along with the more historical pieces of design held inside the Vatican, this was also home to various contemporary artworks by the likes of Henri Matisse, Salvador Dali and Fancis Bacon. In learning about these artists during the early years of my art education at school, I have always had an appreciation for their art, therefore it was great to see such work in person.

Other pieces of artwork within the Vatican which I thought had more of a contemporary appeal were such below. The first two images show works by artist Tano Festa who used a process of photographic emulsion and varnish on wood to produce an image. The works are inspired by Michelangelo's frescoes in the Sistine Chapel (part of the Vatican). The colours have been reset through the use of photographic reproductions in black and white, contrast to the red paint also used around the frame. This process gives the work a style similar to that of prints, something which drew me to these artworks since I have always had a love for traditional printing methods of design, the artworks showing an new and interesting way in which an image can be formed.

The piece of work below is called FrontisPiece of the Portfolio "The Lord's Prayer", produced in 1921 by German expressionist and printmaker, Max Pechstein. The piece is a hand-coloured woodcut on paper, a form of traditional printing whereby an image is carved into a piece of wood, layered with ink and then pressed against a piece of paper or other medium to form a print. This method of producing design is something which I had gained an insight into before, previously having the privilege to view works of art held in the Central Saint Martins archive whilst taking part on a short course there. This archive held a range of traditional Japanese woodblock prints and I found learning about the process fascinating. Therefore, viewing the piece below inside the Vatican made me think about potentially experimenting with new forms of print which have perhaps died out now to produce some unique pieces of work inspired by this trip.

Overall, this proved to be a really inspiring trip, allowing me to take a break from work, but also gain new experiences and new knowledge which have become enriching to both my education and my development as a designer. Not only this, but the trip has allowed me to appreciate architecture more, something which I had never been quite fully immersed with before.