Headed out for breakfast and a day of exploring in the breeze and sunshine of Rome. Yesterday’s rain cooled the city down, and it’s amazingly comfortable today. Hoping to get some more sketching in today.
Via dell’Arco del Monte
Penciling in Rome
Category / Cities in Europe
Roman Dreams-Come-True
At the Pantheon
After sketching yesterday morning, I spent almost all of the day editing the article we hope to have published in the Journal of Engineering Education.
I was inspired by emails that Mike Murphy, Eddie Conlon, and I received from the editor of the book we’ve written a chapter for. He emailed us:
The chapter is a very timely, central and relevant chapter for Springer vol II. It would also have fitted nicely into vol I section I. The chapter has a clear, logical, and coherent structure, is well written and very interesting to read. In particular in clarifying the confusion surrounding the engineer and engineering technologist distinction the chapter provides new and useful insights. Moreover there is a good integration between theoretical positions mentioned in the introductory framing of the identity issue and the remaining part. Research problems and methods are clearly stated.
I nearly got clubbed by a Roman!
The chapter is accepted for publication in its present form. Congratulations.
and then the next day:
Your chapter is very good and there is absolutely no reason to change anything. My congratulations to you and your co-authors. Well done.
These messages were a dream come true! They helped keep me focused through many hours of editing yesterday.
At 4:30 PM, I headed out for a tour of the Villa Farnese, a sandwich and ice cream (I hadn’t eaten since breakfast), and a little stroll through the city.
I haven’t shown it here, but I strolled past the site I often use for projects with my Hampton University students. There’s been construction activity on the site for the past two years, because a parking garage was planned. For years, they’ve been excavating here (because there are Roman ruins under the ground everywhere here and they have to study and document them). The signage surrounding the site is now different from it was last summer and last September (when I last visited). I’m hoping this change means someone important decided against installing a parking garage; it would be a travesty to put such a structure on Via Gulia!
From Borromini’s clock tower at Piazza Orologio…
…I headed east for an ice cream at the Frigidarium (2 Euro for two flavors dipped in chocolate!)….
…and I headed onward toward Piazza Navona…
…where I nearly got clubbed by a Roman!
After Navona, I usually continue through the courtyard of San Ivo…
…on my way to the Pantheon (my favorite building in the world!)
UO Studio Review
Taylor, Katie, Daisy, Cody, and me deep in conversation over a design proposal.
On Tuesday, I delivered a lecture to the University of Oregon architecture students here in Rome. Daisy made me feel like a million bucks with her introduction! We worked together at Hampton University from 2005-2010 and got to know each other well. I miss her, but I’m thrilled that she’s doing so well for herself!
In the talk, I shared examples of the research I’ve been doing and discussed the need for architects to expand their research abilities.
After the lecture, three of the students presented their design progress. Daisy, the other students, and I gave feedback and ideas for further development.
A scheme for getting down to the water…
…as seen from the other side of the Tiber River.
Models are great for helping visualize space.
Here’s Cody’s model of the site’s existing qualities…
…and a conceptual sketch of his along with a list of design objectives.
In our group on Tuesday…
…everybody got involved in sharing ideas.
We had lots of interesting work…
…to discuss…
…and contemplate.
Drawing Marcello
Theatro Marcello in Rome
The OU students put the in-studio drawing lesson (that Daisy Williams delivered Monday) to work on site today. We met at ISU’s academic center and headed over to the nearby Teatro Marcello to draw. The students practiced the charcoal and pastel techniques they’ve been learning, while I used the mechanical pencil I had on hand.
The sketch I made in class.
Every one of OU’s study abroad students…
…decided to enroll in the drawing class.
Some of them are art or art history majors…
…others are majoring in architecture.
Today, they all practiced charcoal drawing techniques…
under the towers surrounding Teatro Marcello.
Drawing with Daisy
My former colleague at Hampton University, Daisy Williams, is teaching two different classes in Rome this summer in addition to being the director of University of Oregon’s study abroad program in the ancient city. One is architecture studio and the other is a drawing course, pictured here.
Tomorrow, I’ll join the drawing course for a morning outing… so I’d better hit the sack now!
Daisy’s drawing class in action.
The Library at Iowa State’s Rome center.
The entry stair at Iowa State’s Rome center, where Daisy’s studio and drawing courses are held.
Activating an Embankment
Viewing the site from across the Tiber, with Prof. Daisy Williams.
On my first night in Rome, University of Oregon Prof. Daisy Williams took me to see the site in Rome that her students are using for their architectural design project. It’s across the Tiber River from where we’re standing in the above photo.
The site comes to life in the summer–in a way I’d not gotten to see before. (I usually visit Rome in May, before the walkway becomes active.) I’ve included photos of our visit to the waterfront, so you can join us on our tour.
Prof. Williams has asked her students to re-design the embankment wall in this area, so that it can be used for screening films, and so that it connects street and water-front walkways more comfortably.
You can see from the image above that the walkway often floods. This is an issue the students need to take into account in their designs.
View of the site from street level.
An existing stair down to the river.
In July, the space is filled with bars and restaurants.
These women are getting their palms read.
The temporary restaurants…
…are quite comfortable during evening hours….
…with many person-sized nooks and crannies.
There’s an exhibition of architecture/urban design proposals…
…for a very similar project to the one Prof. Williams assigned.
This is one of the models on display.
It’s a lovely place to be at sunset….
…and an effective use of an awkward space.
Rome-Again Rome-Again Jiggity-Jig
I hopped into a cab at 4:30 this morning, headed for Rome. I’ve been invited to spend a week here as a “Scholar in Residence” for the University of Oregon’s summer study abroad program.
I arrived in the city, moved into a spacious apartment at Iowa State’s academic center in Rome, lunched with Prof. Daisy Williams, and pulled together a presentation for tomorrow. Now, off to see some sights….
Hopped of the bus at Torre d’Argentina…
…and headed for the ISU architecture center, and the apartment where I’m staying this week.
Secret Paris
The book Secret Paris sent me to many interesting but obscure sites nestled off the beaten path in Paris. Not all were open or accessible. But with a little patience, I found my way into some lovely spots that most tourists never see.
This was the first time I felt at home in Paris, and this little book helped a bit. It helped me find some person-sized places. It’s all too easy to see only the monumental scale sites of this city. Paris is about monumentality and uniformity–especially along the boulevards. But he back streets and courtyards are often lively and quaint.
In Paris, sped some time avoiding the monuments. It’s much nicer to take a slow pace and find some nooks and crannies that you can call your own.
Here’s a sketch I made in one “secret” space of Paris… the courtyard of a set of 48 or so apartments northeast of the Opera.
Perusing Paris
Hampton University sketching in Paris, on a rainy day.
Spent a lovely week in Paris, much of it with Hampton University’s architecture program. I’ve attached a few of the pics I snapped with my iPhone. I’m back in Dublin now, and getting around to downloading the photos from my Nikon. The photos will help me reminisce of my travels once I head back to the States. I might even have time to write something meaningful on my blog once again….
For now, pictures will have to do!
Street view
Reflection in Paris
A passage, or gallery, of Paris.
Another passage.
An early map of the world
Teh Louvre, with a dramatic sky.
Hotel de Ville
Hotel de Ville
Reflection in a puddle.
The music festival in full swing.
In the middle of the Seine.
Place de Vouge, the oldest planned squarein Paris. See: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Place_des_Vosges
Baby bottles!?! You just never know in Paris….
DIY in Europe
I encountered some interesting new machines on my recent travels. I love the customer survey device I stumbled upon in the Dublin airport. Was perplexed by the self ordering stand at McDonald’s though….
Satisfaction survey in the Dublin airport.
McDonald’s in Paris (no, I did NOT eat there)…
…do other McD’s have self-ordering machines?
Ireland by Chance 