This Monday commenced the official beginning of Abbey Road’s Florence program!
Thankfully recovering from our cumbersome jet lag, we were whisked out of our apartments to start the major and elective courses we’ll be taking for the next three weeks. I have been anxious to get back into the relaxed atmosphere of studio art that I have grown so accustomed to back at home.
On our first day, the visual arts class headed out to the Zecchi, a local arts store, to gather up supplies. We then went to the Piazza Santa Croce to begin some fundamental drawing exercises to get the novice and experienced artists up to the same level. So far, we have experimented with blind contour and gesture drawings, two techniques that push the artist to capture the raw mass and proportions of an object without constantly glaring down at his or her paper in the process. Although I have already used these techniques prior to the program, it was mainly within classroom boundaries. Here in Firenze, we are given the liberty to capture whatever figures or object that caught our eye, whether it be the Duomo, a horse cart, the alternate David at the Piazza Della Signoria, or even a trash can. I anticipate what our art classes will have in store for the next three weeks and am excited to see what Florentine masterpiece will inspire me next!
After just having gone to the Uffizi Gallery with my art history class this afternoon, I can already see myself trying to incorporate the works of Rafael, Botticelli, Donatello, and Bronzino into my oil paintings in the near future. Their styles and brushstrokes are unmatched, and I am ridden with disappointment after not getting the opportunity to capture these works of art due to the gallery’s no photo policy. Regardless, we still have several more chances to go back to the Uffizi and other galleries around the area, so I am confident the inspiration will still linger strong.
That’s all for now. -Ethan