Wednesday, November 12thA water main broke down our street so we had no hot water this morning (and as I am writing this entry several days later, I can tell you that our street has been a mess of construction, on a really bust street, with irritated drivers… kind of funny really).
Breakfast this morning was fun, as I was awarded a sticker from Chad for my miraculous save of catching a jelly packet. He bought some fun stickers and is awarding them to people for various ‘achievements.’ That’s right… I got the first one. :)
Anyway, I had history this morning and once again, despite being a rather long class, I enjoyed it. Rachael and Colin had to perform a dramatic dialogue, and we got to go through some slides of paintings too. We talked a bit about Henrich Ebsen, who wrote ‘A Doll’s House’ and ‘Enemy of the People,’ which Mike and I read in our political theory class. The overall topic of discussion today was women’s suffrage, with discussion on Josephine Butler, Florence Nightingale, in addition to a few other suffragettes.
After class, I decided to go to the Victoria and Albert Museum since I didn’t have the chance to do so the day of Carmina Burana as planned. The museum is filled with obscure collections of the royal family from every country and era you can imagine. As if the front façade wasn’t impressive enough, the viewer walks into a huge front gallery, with full marble arches and columns, and a giant glass piece hanging from the ceiling. The entire museum is huge and very impressive, even beside the artifacts inside.
I went through some more of the oriental exhibits since this is something I have not really explored all that much as of yet. I went through the Islamic, Japanese, and Chinese galleries, among several others. It was really cool seeing some of these very different styles, and getting ideas for my own artwork through their influence. I also got to see Samuri armor and swords, so that was pretty cool.
There is also a huge hallway filled with classical sculpture. I did a bit of life drawing here, and studied sculptures by Bernini, Giambologna, and many others. I cannot stress enough, how amazing it is to have studied these artists and historical aspects for the past few years, and to be able to see my life long interests and passions in person, studying from the masters themselves.
Later, I got to go to the gallery with al kinds of obscure musical instruments from the Baroque period and others. It was interesting how intricate some of them were, with such detail painted and carved into them, and how much these instruments have evolved over time. I saw harpsichords, clavichords, and spinetts (all relatives to the piano), with such delicate detail, and some even had classical paintings on the top. Other stringed instruments had beautiful carved details, and the horns were twisted into all kinds of contortions and variations different than today.
As I was walking out of this room ready to leave the museum, my eye caught a room that said ‘Raphael.’ I made my way downstairs to check it out before I left, and wow, I am glad that I did not miss this.
The room was filled with ‘cartoons’ of his work for the tapestries decorating the Sistene Chapel in Rome, ‘Acts of St. Peter and St. Paul’ 1515-1516. ‘Cartoons’ are from the Italian word ‘cartone,’ which means a large sheet of paper. ‘Cartoons’ are full size preparations for other media, in this case, the tapestries. They were absolutely HUGE and the I really enjoy his detail and style. It is very similar to that of Perugino, which I later discovered he studied under- so that would make sense.
The tapestries were commissioned by Leo X for the Sistene Chapel. (I was so excited to see work for the Sistene Chapel, as I was hoping to go to Rome on this trip, but will be unable to do so. At least I got to see this, and will be able to appreciate the work that much more when I do visit in the future). The tapestries were to be displayed on special occasions and contain scenes from the lives of St. Peter and St. Paul, the twin founders of the Christian Church. The tapestries also contain scenes of the patron, Leo X.
Raphael lived from 1483-1520 and studied under Perugino, as I mentioned before. The cartoons were acquired by Cardinal Grimani for his private collection in Venice and then bought by the Prince of Wales in 1623. in 1699, Hampton Court Palace claimed possession of the cartoons and remodeled for the purposes of Sir Christopher Wren, upon request of William III. Now, the paintings are in possession of the Queen, and are on loan to the Victoria and Albert Museum, where I saw them today.
As I walked outside back to the tube, it was just getting dark. I walked past an ice rink that had skaters everywhere and the trees were lit up with lights, all getting set for the Christmas spirit. I am really excited to see the city begin its Christmas festivities!
I am really enjoying this trip… can you tell?
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