My Favorite Class So Far

It has a long name, but it really is the best: Visual Literacy: Art Collecting and Museology has captured my heart.

On the first day we tackled difficult (and somewhat stereotypical questions) such as "What is art?" "What is the point of museums?" "How do museums fit into a country's history/culture?" and more.

My teacher's name is Francesca Baldry and she is probably the cutest art history teacher ever. Her English is colored by a slightly British accent (I'm pretty sure that she picked it up from her parents as one is Italian and the other is British). She likes wearing linen and even the way she phrases things is inspiring. I was so inspired that I couldn't wait to start reading my textbooks (hence why you saw one at the beach).

Approximately half of my classes this semester will consist of museum visits. Our first one took place at the Bargello!

My view of the Bargello as I approached it. 

One of the things that I find most interesting about the Bargello is how the building was used before it became a museum. It is known as being the oldest public building in Florence. Between 1574 and 1859  it acted as a prison (yes, executions took place here), as well as police headquarters. It opened as a national museum in 1865.

The purpose of our trip was twofold: 1) to see the layout of the museum and apply concepts regarding location, labels, display, etc. to the space, and 2) to explore the istoriato maiolica exhibit that was there.

The Bargello is known for having one of the biggest (if not the biggest) collection of istoriato maiolica in Florence. What do these strange words refer to? Ceramic plates made in a certain two-firing process that use a white glaze as a base for intricate paintings. The istoriato aspect of them signifies that the paintings relate to mythological and historical tales. Our assignment after visiting the museum was to re-write its introduction panel.

The entrance poster for the exhibit. 

However, we went to the museum for more reasons than this. We looked at the guild crests in its open-air courtyard, we saw Donatello's David, Michelangelo's Bacchus, and door panels created for the Duomo's baptistry.

The Bargello's courtyard. My professor said that sometimes they have concerts here!

The staircase. First you hit the balcony level and find statues of animals that once belonged to a fountain. If you were to go into the left corner of this picture at balcony level, you would enter the Donatello Room. 

Another point of view.

We spent a majority of our class time in the Donatello Room. After getting to sit on the floor of the space for some time (how cool is that?!), we each chose our favorite piece, read the label, and described what it said (as well as why we chose it) to the rest of the class.

My personal favorites were Donatello's Marzocco and his marble Saint George. The piece I chose to talk about, however, was the Martelli Coat of Arms (also by Donatello). The Martellis were also a banking family and patrons of the arts closely tied to the Medici family.

Starting my Wednesdays with a bit of culture is quite nice. I will definitely get used to this.