Before I begin, I would like to welcome you to my artist blog. Here, I will be writing weekly entries, along with images of my portfolio, artist statement, and biography (You may find these below.) for a three-part purpose: sharing my artwork and profession, sharing experiences, and writing short essays about the conclusions I make from my studies, work, or daily life. These essays will comprise the more formal portion of this blog, and will act as a way to offer opinions or simply share research on the development of my art, practices in art education, history, art history, and any other subjects which I might be able to intertwine with my art. I describe this dynamic fully in my artist statement. If you read on, you will find my first entry which summarizes my experiences of travelling from the U.S. to Florence, Italy, and my first week here. Naturally, it is long as it recounts many events over an entire week that I've been unable to write about yet (It is divided into three parts though!). For the next three weeks, the duration of my study abroad in studio art arranged through Indiana University of Pennsylvania (IUP), made financially possible by the Robert E. Cook Honors College (RECHC) and IUP's Office of International Education (OIE), and led by faculty member Professor Steve Loar, I will offer four weekly essays (The first one will be composed in the next day or two!) on conclusions in regards to my studies in Renaissance Art History and Drawing or Urban Plastic Sculpture inspired by it. So, without further a due…
II. In Transit from the States to Italy
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| From Left to Right, Myself, Students Ana, Liz L., Liz R, Megan H., Megan S., Laura, Professor Steve Loar, & Student Hannah at Pittsburgh International Airport before check-in. |
On May 24th, 2011, myself and seven other art students departed from Pittsburgh International Airport with our professor and took a short flight to Chicago to then take an overnight flight to Zurich, Switzerland. From there, we flew to Florence. This was my first time flying, and also my first time leaving the country, let alone my time zone on the east coast of the U.S. However, I have found travelling to foreign, non-English-speaking nations to be easy, and enjoyable.
Upon the brink of leaving Pittsburgh, I was sucked into the positive atmosphere that the other going on the trip had created. Our professor, Steve, was enthusiastic to speak to all of us about our thoughts or plans for the trip, and even introduced me to a parent who was from Italy and whose father lived in the town around Cassino Abby in Italy during the Battle of Monte Cassino in World War II, the battle that
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| The full group makes it's way through the underground, moving walkway in Chicago's massive airport. |
virtually opened the road to Rome for the Allies’ capturing. Due to my interest in military history, I had begun making plans to visit this city and was excited to hear what amounted to an almost-primary source on the topic. Generally speaking though, the group seemed happy to see each other and be working together, a topic that Steve considered greatly in selecting his roster. We had all worked together in his course, 3D Design, and had done so successfully for the most part with an enthusiastic dynamic between us.
Airport check-in and security was much less rigid and worrisome than I’d expected from reading strict guidelines, and I found flying to be enjoyable. The first and last flights were short flights, and the middle an overnight flight. However, I had little trouble keeping busy or remaining comfortable. All flights were relatively luxurious in their service, especially for an economy class seat. My confidence in flying and travelling abroad had already grown greatly by the time of the second flight.
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| My six colleagues who survived waiting for Professor Graham Carson of Rocherster Institute of Technology to arrive and let them into their apartment in Florence. |
The only mishap in the actual transit surrounded the forced leaving behind of Steve and Megan in Chicago. We only had a two hour or so layover, and after one and a half hour of navigating around the airport that had to have been ten times the size of Pittsburgh’s, we were told that we have an hour until our flight boards. Only when another Megan thought to check did we realize, five minutes before the plane was to board, that our flight was indeed at 7:15, no 7:45. We thought we would make it when we were checking in and getting through security at 7:15 smoothly, when Megan discovered that United Airlines had only issued her a receipt rather than a boarding pass for the Chicago-Zurich flight. As the last two to check-in, Steve was forced to let the 7 others go on without them and continue the journey ourselves. Fortunately, we arrived safely on Friday the 25th mostly due to the shared travel experience our group members (except for myself) had, and Steve and Megan arrived one day late on Saturday after staying overnight at a Steve’s relative and taking the overnight flight the following night to arrive almost exactly one day late.
III. First Impressions on Italian Culture
After a week I would say that I have nearly completely adapted to Italian living, short of only language, gestural, and courtesy issues. I have enjoyed Italians’ more relaxed activities, and don’t mind taking my time with things. I no longer mind Italians’ surprisingly pushy nature. In the U.S., I would think it rude, but here I actually accept it like their driving, cycle-riding, and walking habits. Generally, they seem to simply understand each other’s’ desires to get where they’re going. Sometimes it is impossibly loud in crowded squares and markets, and communication like the common ‘permesso’ (Can I have permission to pass?) and ‘scuzi’ (Excuse me.) are impossible, so people just go through each other. As mentioned, their driving and bike-riding methods are similar, are seems to always be far less than a foot between cars in traffic as well as between the people crossing or walking on the road and the cars. Cutting others off seemed acceptable in my taxi ride from the airport and bikers squeeze through every nook and cranny in the traffic or crowds. Our tour leader, David Renfrow of Art Research Tours and International Studios (ARTIS), even made sure that we followed him when he crossed the street, so that oncoming traffic would not hit him and rather would stop to avoid hitting too many people. Ambulances are very commonly heard, so it makes one wonder if this traffic issue could be the cause.
Further warnings given made us aware of pickpockets and market vendors’ tricks. The pickpockets are told to be well-trained in some sort of institutes, and numerous experienced ARTIS group leaders shared times when they were victims of pickpockets, which could include gypsies, the common ones to be begging for money most likely to observe where one keeps theirs, or others, who utilize a blind (a scarf, bag, book, or a distraction) to get into one’s bag or pockets. They also are said to work in pairs, as in past ARTIS Tours, students have caught pickpockets but been unable to prove it because the pickpocket had handed off the stolen goods within seconds of stealing them. Less threatening are market, train station, or street vendors, who one must always count their change for in fear of being short-changed. These two items make me wary of any financial activity with Italians.
Though women were the focus of the warnings, myself and my four roommates who together make up five of six males on the fifty person trip, have become very concerned about our female colleagues because of the ferocity of Italian men. We are quick to hover around our groups in social places like restaurants, cafes, discoes, or pubs, and certainly are sure to walk everyone home to their apartment however dispersed they are around town. When myself and eleven girls visited Viareggio’s Mediterranean beach for a day, a group of Italians from Milan had engaged the group of girls by the end of the day easily, and were already proposing to them laughably. Fortunately they were the romantic kind of men, unlike other types David described who would either attempt rudeness to gain attention or even simply be violent with their actions. Actually, more troublesome than men were vendors at the beach who stood around our relaxing group almost to the point of harassment before the women learned to simply ignore them. For all of this talk of bad actions, the female students of IUP had their door to their apartment absent mindedly left open by me this evening when we went to dinner, but nothing was taken.
These downsides hardly hurt the Italian lifestyle however. Florence feels like a very safe town, and the group’s local landlords have insisted—in a most non-racial way—that the most crimes are committed by foreigners, especially those from Africa or Eastern Europe. The men myself and the women at the beach socialize with also expressed a dislike for the Spanish, who they implied to be competing with the Italian nature of their culture. I, however, and simply overjoyed to be in Italy. I have adapted quickly to the lifestyle as said early and am confident in using simple Italian vocabulary to shop for food, order at restaurants, find directions and transportation, etc. I have nearly adopted their diet, which consists of an almost nonexistent breakfast of coffee and a croissant early before work or class, a reasonably sized lunch around noon or 1 o’clock, and a multi-course, large dinner late in the evening, between seven and nine o ‘clock. As recommended by a Frommer’s guide to Florence, I have begun to drink mostly wine and water; wine because, simply, it is the drink of Italy (They .began drinking it in the Middle Ages when their water was polluted by their accumulated filth and the ancient technology of the Roman aqueduct forgotten, it required to be cut by some alcohol to kill it’s germs.) and is thusly comparable sometimes in price to more American beverages. Soda /pop seems less common and accepted. Simply put, a diet of water feels more healthy and cost effective while moderate wine drinking allows for some variety and flavor. I have also attempted to adapt to Italian fashion, researching model examples on http://thesartorialist.blogspot.com/, an excellent blog with entries on New York, Florence, Milan, and Paris typically. Surprisingly, dress pants and shirts are not uncomfortable or inhibiting, especially in the city where the combination of narrow streets and tall buildings provide shade in almost all areas.
I know not of the Italian sleeping patterns yet, but I would expect them to begin their day early. However, the social dynamic of our study abroad group and the typical Italian later-dinner requires one to be up late. My colleagues from IUP have taken to afternoon naps, and I occasionally fall victim to them after late nights of reading or studying notes. Still, I almost naturally wake up at 6:30 AM, two hours before our morning art history. This time lends perfectly to the Italian relaxed pace, and helps my productivity usually. My apartment conditions are relatively luxurious despite the small size of my single room. However, because we all are artists, my roommates share our ideal art workspaces well and respect each other’s varied working patterns. Though they are from Texas State University and involved in a rigorous painting course, and I in a 3D Design, plastic sculpture course (More to come on this in my next post!) that has had logistical issues starting to work, the creative dynamic between us is very beneficial, and I find myself connecting to Texas’ some thirty students just as much as those from IUP.
Our social outings are very enjoyable, and professors are just as enthusiastic to share stories and talk about art over dinner. Italians, naturally, are loud and animated, and typically American behavior in restaurants or cafes fits in well. However, I often find that there is a difference in the level of maturity or sophistication between the Americans and local Italians. The Americans are very prone to loud, prolonged laughter over too many simple topics that seems uncharacteristic of and disruptive, perhaps, to locals.
IV. So….
Such are my experiences and observations noted in my written journals over the first several days of my study abroad. After these, I have been thrown headfirst into an intense art history and studio art daily schedule that follows:
8:30 AM-9:30 AM: Art History Lecture
8:30 AM-9:30 AM: Art History Lecture
9:30 AM-1:00 PM: Tour of Art Historical Sight
1:00 PM-2:30 PM: Break for Lunch, Errands, or Extra Sightseeing or Sketching
2:30 PM-5:00 PM: Studio Time for Art Course
5:00 PM-6:00 PM: Opportunity for Extra, Personal Touring before Museums Etc. Close
6:00 PM-Midnight: Free Time for Dinner, Working on Art Assignments, Journaling, or Evening Tours
The difficulty arises when one realizes that art supply shops and art historical sights close soon after the time one is done for the day, and thus one must take time out of their lunch or rush away from their studio to take advantage of them, as I will be doing now that I have settled into my necessities of life, such as acquiring food, personal hygiene, hydration, sleep, working on my studies, research, cleaning, and more. I am truly excited to get into the heart of Florence’s art history and tap the Renaissance’s accomplishments in my own interdisciplinary, or—dare I say—“a Renaissance Man's" artistic pursuits.
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