Project Three... The Urbane Building

Project three was the design of an urban space in Rome (I worked with Mary D'Errico on this part) as well as an architecuture, dance, or art school on the site. I chose to design a dance school. The goals of the project were to create a successful urban environment as well as beautiful architectural spaces in the building...
You can access my final boards for project three here: http://picasaweb.google.com/sheila.cahill87/BloggerPictures?authkey=Gv1sRgCJTns_TQp9r23wE#5330509477775859714

Project Two... Design of Urban Space

Anna Cero and I worked together for project two, the design of an urban space in Rome...
I had trouble uploading the files on here, so you can access project two here: http://picasaweb.google.com/sheila.cahill87/BloggerPictures?authkey=Gv1sRgCJTns_TQp9r23wE#5330507548482894850

Easter Break... all of the Cahill's invade Rome

My Mom and Dad and my brothers Chris and Conor came to Rome for Easter break and it was soooo great to see them. I had my own vacation in Rome, going to see some things I haven't been to before, and I was also able to show my family around to some of my favorite places. The best part was all of the restaurants we ate at (the perks of having the family here haha). I was able to break away from my cereal for dinner and panini diet for a little bit. We got a tour of St. Peter's by Brother Michael McAward, who used to teach at my brother's high school back home and is now working at the Vatican. We also visited the Vatican Museums, seeing the Sistine Chapel and the Raphael rooms. Amazing! We got to see Castel Sant'Angelo and the Colosseum all lit up at night which was very beautiful. On another day we went into the Colosseum, saw the Arch of Constantine, walked around the Palatine Hill and the Roman Forum, went to the top of the Victor Emmanuel Monument, and went to the Campidoglio. We attended Easter Mass in St. Peter's Square with Pope Benedict XVI. I have never seen so many people gathered into one spot. My Uncle Jim and Roger arrived on Easter Monday. Unfortunately I am here for school, so I couldn't join the family for their tours and sightseeing ventures during the week, but I got to eat with them each night (always a treat). My Mom, Dad, and brothers left on Friday, so I took my Uncle Jim and Roger to all of my favorite churches in Rome, including St. Ignazio di Loyola, Il Gesu, San Carlo alle Quattro Fontane, and Santa Maria Maggiore before they left on Saturday morning. Overall it was a wonderful Easter break and it was great to see my family and immerse them in my home away from home for the past three and a half months.

Sistine Chapel

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Castel Sant'Angelo

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Colosseum and Arch of Constantine

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Dad and I in the Colosseum

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Palatine Hill

Auditorium Parco della Musica Roma

For sketching class we visited Auditorium Parco della Musica Roma by the architect Renzo Piano. On the way we stopped into Palazzetto dello Sport by Pier Luigi Nervi and walked past Zaha Hadid's MAXXI (Museo Nationale delle Arti del XXI Secolo) which is still under construction. The Renzo Piano building was completed in 2002 and consists of three auditorium of various sizes and an area for outdoor performances. We got a tour from our very own professor, Marina. After this we went to Il Girasole, a building by Luigi Moretti.

Auditorium Parco della Musica Roma by Renzo Piano

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inside Auditorium Parco della Musica Roma

MAXXI by Zaha Hadid

Palazzetto dello Sport by Pier Luigi Nervi

Il Girasole by Luigi Moretti

Capri... my other future home...

Marina Grande

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Upon arriving in the Marina Grande, I knew that I was going to love it in Capri. It was absolutely gorgeous. The island is made up of towering cliffs, rocky beaches, and turquoise water. Our hotel was built into the side of the cliff and we had a great view of the Faraglioni, the famous three rock formation in Capri. The first evening we had some free time so some of us went to the main square of Capri for dinner. Afterwards most of us hung out down on the water and relaxed. We had a lot of laughs, since some people decided to jump into the freezing cold water...

view of the Faraglioni from our hotel

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On day two, nine of us went to Casa Malaparte. The house was built for Curzio Malaparte in the late 1930's, the original architect was Adalberto Libero, although it is now believed that he was fired after he drew the original plans. Malaparte finished the house on his own. One of the great things about the house is that he placed his windows based on certain frames of view. The windows in the great room have huge moldings, so the scenery beyond them look like paintings. Spending the day here goes on my list as one of the best days I have had. We got to sit and relax, and had the whole day to complete one sketching exercise. I moved around and sat in many different places, including the roof. To access the roof of the house you climb up a reverse pyramid staircase. You reach a white "sail" on the roof which blocks your view, until you go around it and have an unending view of the sea and the horizon. It was incredible. Unfortunately it was not allowed to take pictures of the house while on site, so the only pictures I have are from the approach to the house.

Casa Malaparte

On Saturday we went walking around Anacapri on the other side of the island and went into the Blue Grotto! We all got into tiny boats and had to lie down in them in order to get into the grotto. Once inside, we saw the amazing blue color of the water.

the small opening of the Blue Grotto

inside the Blue Grotto

After the grotto we went back up to Anacapri and visited Villa San Michele. It had very beautiful gardens and an amazing view of the water. The villa is built into the cliff-side.

Villa San Michele

We also took the chairlift up to the highest point of the island. WOW! The view was, of course, incredible. We hiked (yes, I mean hiked) to another peak on the island, and then zig-zagged our way down back to Anacapri. Mary, Anna, and I also got flip flops made here! So now I have my own pair of custom made flip flops from Capri.

on top of the world

flip flops!

On the final day, all of us took a boat tour around the island. Some of us (not me) thought it was a good idea to go swimming, although the water was still freezing cold. Our guide drove us through the natural arch in the Faraglioni and into some other cool grottoes. The tour was about three hours, and was definitely the best way to end our time in Capri. I think I will definitely be back here. I had the most amazing and relaxing weekend.

on the boat tour

in one of the grottoes on the boat tour

New Photo's Page

I had to create another photo page because I ran out of storage space on the other one! You can access both pages on the Links box on the blog. Here is the link for the second set of photos: http://picasaweb.google.com/scahill87

Ostia Antica... Rome's "Pompeii"

For our sketching class, we went to Ostia Antica, about a 30 minute train ride outside Rome. This was the harbour city of ancient Rome and is in ruins today. The most interesting aspect to see was the intricate brick work. If you are pressed for time to go see Pompeii, I suggest going here... it is easy to get to from Rome and is just as breathtaking...

Last Stop on Trip Two... Basel, Switzerland

Basel was the last stop on our trip. We took a day trip here from Zurich. We got to see parts of the old city, including the original town hall. We stopped in front of the Bank for International Settlements by the architect Mario Botta, and we also saw two buildings by the architect Renzo Piano: Universitatsspital Basel and Fondation Beyeler. Fondation Beyeler is a museum exhibiting the collection of the Beyeler family. This is possibly one of the most amazing museums I have been in. I had no idea that this museum housed some of the great works of art by many famous artists. I have never seen so many Picasso's. Artists include: Pablo Picasso, Henri Matisse, Georges Seurat, Paul Cezanne, Fernand Leger, Jackson Pollack, Andy Warhol, Roy Lichtenstein, Joan Miro, Mark Rothko, Piet Mondrian, Paul Klee, Henri Rousseau, Vincent van Gogh, Claude Monet, and many more. Later in the day we stopped into the Architecture Museum and we also stumbled upon a Richard Serra sculpture. This day was certainly a good way to end our second trip. The next day we spent eight and a half hours on the train back to Rome.

Original city hall of Basel

Bank for International Settlements by Mario Botta

Fondation Beyeler by Renzo Piano

Universitatsspital Basel by Renzo Piano

sculpture by Richard Serra

Zurich

We spent the last three nights in Zurich, Switzerland. Day one here took us to Stadelhofen Railway Station by the architect Santiago Calatrava. This was so awesome to see because of its engineering. We spent some time sketching here. We also saw the Heidi Weber Pavillion by Le Corbusier. Despite the rain, it was still great to see a building by such an influential modern architect. Day two took us to see the Reitberg Museum by Alfred Grazioli and Adolf Krischanitz. The best part about this museum was the pattern design of the glass. The entry looked like a jewel box coming out of the landscape. After this Anna, Mary, Christina, our two professors, Vyt and Marina, and I went to the Kunsthalle Museum, a modern art museum. After this we wandered around the old city of Zurich and stopped into a few shops... one of the best things about Zurich, the chocolate!

Stadelhofen Station by Santiago Calatrava

the underground of Stadelhofen Station by Santiago Calatrava

Heidi Weber Pavillion by Le Corbusier

the glass pattern at the Reitberg Museum

Swiss chocolate shop

Vals, Switzerland and Peter Zumthor's Thermal Baths

We took a private bus ride from Como in Italy to Vals in Switzerland. Vals is a small town at the end of a valley in the Alps. The bus ride alone was amazing because of the views. We drove through the mountains for the entire journey. We reached the snow about half way there, and it was incredible. Some parts were scary because we were on narrow roads hugging the mountainsides and looking down was a bit nerve-racking. We reached Vals and went strait to Peter Zumthor's Thermal Baths for the day. You enter through an underground tunnel, and reach the baths, which consist of baths for the five senses, a humid bath, a cold bath, hot bath, and a few lukewarm baths, as well as an outdoor bath. The outdoor bath was incredible because there was snow falling on us. Some of us tried to get massages, but unfortunately they were all booked on that day, yet this was still the most relaxing (and much needed) day of this trip, let alone this whole semester. We had a group dinner that night (delicious!) and the next day we headed off the Zurich.

on the drive to Vals

inside the Thermal Baths

Peter Zumthor's Thermal Baths


Peter Zumthor's Thermal Baths, the Alps in the background

Vals, Switzerland

Lago di Como... my future home...

So I have decided that I am going to move to Lake Como when I am older. It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever had the pleasure of visiting. This was the third city on trip two. We saw two buildings by Giuseppe Terragni: Palazzo Novocomum and Casa del Fascio. We also saw the Monumento ai Caduti. At sunset, Anna, Mary, Dean, and I took the tram to the top of one of the mountains looking over the lake. It was an incredible view! You could see the snow capped Swiss Alps in the distance and the town of Como below. It was so nice to be able to realx and watch the sunset in such a stunning place. This was definitely a highlight of this trip.

Palazzo Novocomum by Giuseppe Terragni

Casa del Fascio by Giuseppe Terragni

panoramic of Lake Como

Lake Como at sunset

Torino

Torino was the second city we went to visit. We took a day trip here from Milan. Stops included Piazza San Carlo, a modern building called the Palafuksas (which was unfortunately abandoned, and in a creepy part of town), the Duomo, Chiesa di San Lorenzo, and Mole Antonelliana (in which we went to the top). The Duomo holds the Shroud of Turin, which is believed to be the cloth that Jesus Christ was wrapped in after his crucifixion. The guide in the church gave a very detailed and interesting explanation on the shroud.

Piazza San Carlo

Mole Antonelliana

view from the top of Mole Antonelliana

a copy of the Shroud of Turin (you can see a faint image of a face)

the dome of Chiesa di San Lorenzo by Guarino Guarini