Volta Vola

March 5

The Medici class started off at the Opera dell’Duomo. I can now officially say that I’ve seen all three of Michelangelo’s Pietà’s! Also, I have kind of earned myself the reputation of being a “Michelangelo’s fan-girl” over the course of this trip. So being able to give a report about Michelangelo in Casa Buonarroti (even though he never actually lived there), standing in-between the Madonna of the Steps and Battle of the Centaurs, which original figure sketches from the Sistine Chapel in the next room over—no words. Plus, I found a poster of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in the gift shop. Guess what’s going above my bed when I get back to Knox?

Battle of the Centaurs (image found)

March 6

Happy Birthday Michelangelo! But that’s beside the point. The Saints class met at the Bargello, where I gave my next report on the significance of the Madonna Lactans, also known as the Nursing Madonna. There was some tension over the fact that the Virgin Mary’s purity was being compromised with the presence of nudity. However, these images were really methods of subliminal messaging in order to keep women in their place (okay, it’s a little more complex than that, but if I get going then I won’t stop. All you need to know is: feminist art history, my favorite!).

After Italian, most of the group took an optional visit to the Teatro della Pergola, an opera house commissioned by the Medici family. It’s one of the oldest theatres in Italy and we got to see all of the little pieces that helped the show run smoothly: Rain, wind, thunder, and lightning machines, the ramp that the horse climbed to get onstage, the first real telephone, the contraption that raised and lowered the stage, and the chair where Giuseppe Verdi sat.

March 7

Now that the weather is getting warmer, the tourists are beginning to emerge. I’m glad that I chose the winter program, despite the unbearably cold churches. I’d rather freeze than fight the crowds. But I’d fight the crowds at the Uffizi any day to see Botticelli and da Vinci, two of the artists that we learned about today. I realized that if I stay in the Botticelli room too long, I forget how to breathe. I’m going to have to start bringing an oxygen tank to art museums so that I don’t pass out.

Leonardo da Vinci's "Annunciation" (image found)

After Italian, we revisited the Brancacci Chapel with Professor Solberg. I always think it’s kind of entertaining when our classes pick up a couple of tourists. Sometimes they’ll try to be discreet about listening, other times they’ll just join in and follow us around. I mean, I suppose I’d do that too, but I’m not fluent in Italian and that’s beside the point. Gelato as an afternoon snack and pizza for dinner. Gah, I’m going to miss this food.

March 8

Happy International Women’s Day! Celebrated on the anniversary of the Triangle fire in New York…I took a different route to Linguaviva, only to be bombarded by street venders selling yellow flowers for the occasion. I arrived early, printed off my paper (comparisons of the Madonna Enthroned, the Madonna of Humility, and the Madonna Lactans. Carmen and I went to visit a triptych at the Bigallo (a teensy little museum near the corner of the Duomo, which is practically impossible to get into because of their weird times). After a grueling Italian quiz (okay, it wasn’t that bad. I hope. But I keep slipping into Spanish on the essays), we reviewed artworks for the Medici class (I’m so glad that I went to Prato, it helps the puzzle pieces fall into place). I hauled home a stack of books (more Michelangelo!) for my final paper and lamented the fact that finals have to exist in Italy when it’s so gorgeous out.

Daddi's Triptych at the Bigallo (image found)