Download Contextual studies A level Art trip to Florence

Contextual studies A level Art trip to Florence – 19th-23rd February 2016
On 19th February, 19 students and 3 teachers set off on an early start from Heathrow airport and travelled
to Pisa, Italy. After a coach journey through the stunning Tuscan landscape we arrived in Florence at our
hotel for the next 5 days.
Florence, at the heart of the Italian Renaissance, might seem like an open air museum to most visitors.
The Piazzas and building themselves are a testament of the history of architecture and past eras.
Florence’s cathedral, churches and many palaces were designed, built and decorated by many of the most
illustrious of artists of the time, from Brunelleschi to Michelangelo. Florence has so much to offer in terms
of its Art, which is why it is the perfect trip for the Art A level students to thrive, and is also a fantastic
contrast to their trip to Paris the previous year.
The trip enables students to develop ideas for their exam topic, but also to experiment with a variety of
media looking and observing differing viewpoints on the go. From sketching in museums to views across
the landscape.
After checking in and a quick refresh stop, we walked around the corner to ‘Galleria Dell’Accademia’. The
Galleria Dell’Accademia di Firenze, or ‘’Gallery of the Academy of Florence’’, was once a school for the arts,
for artists to study painting and sculpture. Now one of the most famous Art museums in the world, is
home to Michelangelo’s sculpture of David. The sheer scale of David is amazing and the students were
overwhelmed by the detail that Michelangelo carved into this 17ft marble statue. David is a male nude
marble statue that represents the biblical hero David, a favoured subject in the art of Florence. The statue
was commissioned and placed in a public square outside the Palazzo della Signoria in 1504, but was then
moved into the Academia.
After also observing a collection of Renaissance paintings and many other sculptures by Michelangelo, we
left the Galleria Dell’Academia to take an evening stroll through the beautiful city before dinner. You
couldn’t turn a corner without having your breath taken away with a stunning example of Florentine
architecture. The sheer scale of the cities Duomo is magnificent and lit up in the evening made a fabulous
site on route to the restaurant. The smell of pizza wafting through the streets and the tempting view of
copious amounts of gelato certainly got the students excited.
Day 2 was a busy one, with a lot of walking. We were blessed with sunshine which made drawing outside a
pleasure. After breakfast we packed up our art materials and headed to the Bargello. The Bargello
Museum has a remarkable collection of Renaissance sculpture and works of art. Located in the impressive
Palazzo del Bargello, a fortress with powerful embattlements which surround the austere facade. Begun in
1255, the building was the headquarters of the Capitano del Popolo and later of the Podestà and Council of
Justice. Since 1859, the building houses the Museo Nazionale which brings together many important
Renaissance sculptures and masterpieces of the minor arts from varying periods, including masterpieces by
Donatello, Luca della Robbia, Verrocchio, Michelangelo and Cellini. The museum was subsequently
enriched with splendid collections of bronzes, majolica, waxes, enamels, medals, seals, ivories, amber,
tapestries, furniture and textiles from the Medici collections and those of private donors. For Renaissance
art lovers, the Bargello is to sculpture what the Uffizi is to painting.
We then walked up to one of the highest points in the city to visit San Miniato Al Monte – a basilica in
Florence. It has been described as one of the finest Romanesque structures in Tuscany and one of the
most scenic churches in Italy. It is truly exhausting trekking up the many steps, but so worth it once you
reach the top as the views are truly breath-taking. Moving down to the Piazalle Michelangelo, we were
able to stop for lunch, whilst drawing the most amazing views across the city and its surrounding
landscape. A sea of terracotta roof tops and the rich Tuscan landscape was the inspiration for many
watercolour and pen studies; the media of choice to express this vibrancy and depth.
After lunch we strolled down the steep hill and over the Ponte Vecchio to one of the most famous
museums in the world, the ‘Uffizi’. After climbing lots of stairs before the accessing the top loggia and
then entering the Gallery, unveiling its stunning frescoed ceilings and a long labyrinth of amazing works of
art exposed chronologically. This “U” shaped Renaissance building was actually not created as a museum.
Cosimo de’ Medici had entrusted his favorite architect Giorgio Vasari to create a grandiose building to host
the magistrates, the seats of the Florentine Guilds, a vast theatre and judiciary offices (hence the name
“Uffizi” which means offices in Italian). The Uffizi hosts a rich amount of unique artworks and
masterpieces, including some of the most stunning and breathtaking paintings by Sandro Botticelli
Students explored and took a few minutes to simply admire in silence the canvas of the Birth of Venus and
the large panel of the Allegory of Spring, a favorite of many. Other great Italian artists can be seen here
such as Leonardo da Vinci, Giotto, Cimabue, Michelangelo and Raffaello just to name a few. Touring the
Uffizi was one of the highlights in Florence. Entering in the afternoon, when large groups had gone,
students taking their own pace, enjoy glancing at the portraits, the views over the hills, the unforgettable
privilege of walking through “the Medici offices” with patience and respect for timeless treasures – just
fabulous! After a stroll back through the Piazza Della Signoria, we headed back to the hotel to get changed
for dinner.
Day 3, we were off on a day excursion away from Florence to San Gimignano and Siena. After a short
coach journey we arrived at San Gimignano, a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena,
Tuscany. Known as the ‘Town of Fine Towers’, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture,
unique in the preservation of about a dozen of its tower houses, which, with its hilltop setting and
encircling walls form an unforgettable skyline. Within the walls, the well-preserved buildings include
notable examples of both Romanesque and Gothic architecture. Its Tuscan rich colours, beautiful quaint
buildings and amazing views were subject to many drawings of street scenes. Students thrived from a 20
minute drawing challenge, using their media of choice to depict a view across the surrounding landscape.
After a hot chocolate, that was like liquid gold we were ready to set off to hop back on the coach and
travel to Siena.
Siena, another stunning medieval city provided so much inspiration for students to create art work. We
sat in Siena’s heart, its central piazza known as II Campo for lunch. This central fan-like brick pavement
piazza symbolises the Madonna’s cloak which shelters Siena. It is famously known for the Palio run; a
horse race run around the piazza. We then spent some time out of the sunshine inside Siena’s beautiful
Cathedral. The exterior and interior are constructed of white and greenish-black marble in alternating
stripes, with addition of red marble on the facade. Black and white are symbolic colours of Siena. The
cathedrals valuable pieces of art including The Feast of Herod by Donatello, and works by Bernini and the
young Michelangelo make it an extraordinary museum of Italian sculpture. The Chapel of Saint John the
Baptist is situated in the left transept. At the back of this chapel, amidst a rich renaissance decorations, is
the bronze statue of St. John the Baptist by Donatello, a definite must see. We left Siena’s Duomo to rejoin the coach, heading back to Florence.
Day 4 started in a somewhat contemplative mood with a visit literally over the road on the Via Cavour.
One can always find inspiration and deep connection with the beauty of the Renaissance inside the
Chiostro dello Scalzo. Once you enter the cloister, you’ll perceive a very intimate, comfortable
atmosphere. This Chiostro keeps its original peaceful identity and offers a real antidote to larger, crowded
museums of Florence. This little cloister used to be the entrance to the chapel of the Confraternity of St.
John the Baptist founded in 1376. This little hidden treasure features a remarkable fresco cycle by high
Renaissance master Andrea del Sarto. The frescoes depict twelve scenes of the life of St. John the Baptist,
patron of the brotherhood and of Florence, and four Virtues.
After spending some time drawing here we walked to The Medici Chapels, home of Michelangelo’s
sculptures of the sarcophagi, the statues of the Dukes Lorenzo and Giuliano, the allegories of Dawn and
Dusk, Night and Day. Round the corner situates Florence's famous leather and food markets, where many
students were horrified at the site of the many stalls selling tripe!
After lunch on the steps outside the Medici Chapel, our next visit was to the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi, one
of the first examples of what later became known as Renaissance architecture in Florence. The real jewel
of the building is the Chapel of the Magi frescoed by Benozzo Gozzoli in the fifteenth century. It was the
private chapel for the Medici family, here, Benozzo Gozzoli, pupil of the famous Fra Angelico, created a
beautiful series of frescoes depicting the Cavalcade of the Magi to Bethlehem. The fresco's colours and
atmosphere bring to mind Flemish paintings and tapestries and are without a doubt the artist's most
famous work of art.
The afternoon was spent exploring Florence, enjoying the sunshine, sketching outside, tasting the local
delicacies and walking up the exhausting 414 steps up Giottos’s Bell Tower, adjacent to the Duomo we
were able to see the most breathtaking views across Florence.
On the last day, before travelling to Pisa airport, we walked to San Marco, previously a church and convent
which is now a museum. During the 15th century it was home to two famous Dominicans, the painter Fra
Angelico and the preacher Girolamo Savonarola. Fra Angelico’s famous paintings the ‘Annunciation’ and
the ‘Crucifixion’ were inspiration for the students to sit and draw and take in their surroundings before we
had to end our time in Florence.
We packed so much into our 5 day Italian taster, the 12 and 13 Art students were an absolute pleasure to
take away and learnt so much from this trip. Florence is so important to our understanding of Art
throughout time and puts everything into context. It allowed all to flourish and take something for
inspiration into their current exam project. Florence is a really special place and one where the memories
will stay with you forever.
Mrs Arnold