Summer Brief Presentation and Feedback

My Presentation:

Located in the Vatican City in Rome is the Basilica of St Peter the Apostle (one of the twelve messengers of Jesus Christ). The Basilica that stands there today is built on the rite of the old Basilica of St Peter who was crucified. His tomb is beneath the Basilica in the Vatican Necropolis.

This is the view from the top of the lantern of the Basilica. The Vatican City, and the Basilica in particular is recognised as the 'nerve centre' of modern day Christianity, especially because of the home of the Pope in the adjacent Sistine Chapel and of course Rome is also the epicentre of Roman Catholicism.

The dome is the largest freestanding in the world, the diameter of which is 42.34m and the height is 43.2m. You only kind of get the feeling of the scale when you realise that the lantern is 137m from the church floor!

There are around 800 columns that surround St Peter's square, 4 columns deep, with 390 statues surrounding the top of the trapezoidal entrance and oval area of the square.

There's 5 large doors off of this into the Basilica - this is just the 'front porch'! There is one only opened every 25 years called the Holy door. This is to commemorate the Jubilee. It's made of solid bronze.

We're now looking down the nave of the main Basilica, and can see the main dome from the entrance. Other than the main dome there are eight other smaller domes. Each of these are heavily mosaic'd and are decorated with gilt. 

Each of the many features / columns / flooring / walls / statues are made out of marble,   plaster and bronze. There is also a lot of solid gold elements.

There are forty five separate altars inside of the Basilica. The Papal altar, the main altar, stands over the entrance to the Confessio (the Chapel of Confession) which leads downstairs to the original site of St Peter's Grave.

Around the inside of the grand dome reads an extract from the gospel of Mathew in Latin: ' You shall be Peter the rock, and upon this rock I will build my church. To you I give the key to heaven'.

Many Renaissance artists and architects worked on the Basilica including Michelangelo and Raphael. There were a lot of arguments and disagreements because each of the artists wanted their own 'stamp' on the design.

The main thing for me is the Basilica's age. It took nearly 120 years to build and that was 390 years ago - the last stone was laid on 18th Nov 1623.

The sheer beauty and breathtaking size and age of the building makes this an interesting and overwhelming subject to me and 7 million other tourists who visit every year. That's a lot compared to the 1000 inhabitants of the Vatican City!

Although this is the site for many religious pilgrimages, it is highly appealing to many art / architecture enthusiasts, tourists and I'm sure is on many 'bucket lists' from all walks of life, apart from maybe younger children. The scale and grandness is enough to capture the imagination.




After presenting my summer brief to the group, I received a post-it note of feedback. Some feedback was reassuring, but not very helpful but I also received some good, constructive feedback too. I have highlighted the most constructive in italic bold:

Danielle:

• Lots of in-depth research, easy to digest.
• Good to use own photos.

Lizzy:

• Good explanation of structural developments.
• Clear use of images to support research.
• Very interesting and engaging visuals.
• Strong primary research.

Jane:

• Good visual tour of the cathedral with well researched facts.
• You tied in some artists names as well - perhaps you could research artwork from there?

Amy:

• Nice/ own photography, beautiful place.
• Inspired by your own trip, which makes it more personal.
• Made us aware of the giant scale, (which I didn't know) which we couldn't see by the image.
• Obviously (you're) interested in architecture.
• Very factual and interesting!

Jordan:

• Presentation is visually engaging
• Informative facts.
• Primary images used.
• Links to artists.
• It looks like a very inspiring place! You could have mentioned how it interested you creatively.

Joe:

• Good inclusion of facts and stats.
• Like the walkthrough style of the presentation.
• Very insightful!
• Could include relation to modern graphic design styles... could be difficult?!

Melissa:

• A presentation done on a personal visit.
• First hand information and photography made it very interesting.
• Contextual knowledge very good.

3 objectives for Summer Brief from feedback:

1. Elaborate by researching into artists/ architects that worked on the building.
2. Research/find links between my chosen subject and graphic design.
3. Determine why it interests me creatively and elaborate on it.

Summer Research Brief 2013 - People/ Places - St Peters' Basilica, Rome

First chosen option to research - People/ places - St Peter's Basilica, ROME

The Vatican City

The Vatican City is a sovereign State AKA a country within a country. Its' position in this status was quaranteed by the Latern treaty of 1929 and marked by a new road; 'Via della Conzilizione'. 

It is the smallest state in the world, with only around 1000 inhabitants. It is considered the nerve centre of Christianity for all the world and is home to the Pope. It houses 11 Vatican museums and more than 8 Basilicas/ Papal Chapels:

• St Peter's Basilica
• St John Lateran
• St Paul outside-the-walls
• St Mary Major
• Redemptoris Mater Chapel
• Vatican Necropolis
• Sistine Chapel
• Pauline Chapel

Total area of the Vatican City: 0.44 sq km

Currency as of 2013: Euro

Religion: Roman Catholic

Map of the Vatican City:

View from the top of the lantern of St Peter's Basilica:

St Peter's Basilica

Built on the old site of a church of the same name dating back to 324AD, when Roman Emperor Constantine the Great declared that Vatican Hill to be the resting place for the apostle Simon Peter, the cornerstone for the new cathedral was laid on 18th April 1506. The Basilica was not finished until 18th November 1623. In the nearly 120 years in it's construction, it saw the reign of no less than 20 Popes and several famous artists in the designing seat.

First to start the designing was Donato Bramante, until his death in 1514. Raphael took over until his death in 1520, followed by Antonio da Sagallo and Baldassare Peruzzi.

Progress on the cathedral was slow until 1546 because of disagreements between the artists, as each wanted their own stamp on the work. In 1547, Pope Paul III entrusted the then 72 year old Michelangelo to finish the building, and he did so until his death in 1564. He asked for no money for the project, but to only have his signature style in the building. Pope Paul III agreed to this, and yet constantly opposed and challenged his designs, leading to great arguments between the two.

My own photographic research:

Upon completion the Basilica bores the largest free standing dome in the world, the diameter of which is 42.34m and height of 43.2m! The colossal size of the cathedral is realised when you know that the lantern on the top of the dome is 137m above the church floor! 

Other than the large dome and 8 smaller ones, the cathedral boasts 800 columns and 390 grand statues, made of travertine, marble, plaster & bronze.

Visitors enter through a huge bronze door, next to the Holy door, only opened every 25 years.

There are 45 separate altars inside the Basilica.

The Papal Altar stands over the Confessio (the Chapel of Confession) on the supposed original site of St Peter's grave.

The tomb Pope Alexander VII. The Pope is pictured praying on the top of the piece, while the skeletal figure holding an empty hourglass rises up from the entrance.

Around the inside of the dome reads part of the Gospel of Matthew in Latin: 'You shall be Peter, the rock, and upon this rock I will build my church. To you I give the key to heaven.'

Inside the Basilica is many famous artworks by Renaissance artists, including Michelangelo's Pieta, the only piece he ever signed. He completed it in just under a year when he was just 24 years old.

Source(s): '100 Wonders of the World, from man-made masterpieces to breathtaking surprises of nature' & 'Rome in a day' (walking tour).

Why is it interesting? 

The sheer beauty and breathtaking size makes this extremely of interest to me, and to know that it was built 390 years ago is simply astounding and very impressive.

What other target audiences exist for it?

Although this is the site for many religious pilgrimages, it is highly appealing to many art/ architecture enthusiasts, tourists and on many bucket-lists from all walks of life. The scale and grandness is enough to capture almost anyones imagination -except for maybe young children.

The Vatican Necropolis:

Five- twelve meters beneath St Peter's Basilica lies the Vatican Necropolis, a large ancient cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments dating back to Imperial times. It is the original site of the original Basilica -the tomb of Peter the Apostle.

Sistine Chapel

The Sistine Chapel is probably one of the most prominent landmarks inside of the Vatican City other than St Peter's. It is the official residence of the Pope and features many famous paintings on the murals of the interior; inlcuding 'The creation of Adam' by Michelangelo.

The interior

The Creation of Adam by Michelangelo is on the ceiling:

The Creation of Adam depicts the great moment when Adam is created by God and the breath of life is transferred through a single touch of the fingertips. The gap between their fingers leaves the audience in awe as the suspense of one of the greatest moments in the Christian history is left in limbo.

The actual painting only took around 3 to 4 weeks, with Adam himself only taking 3 days!  It was completed in 1511. The styling of Adam was most probably inspired by Lorenzo Ghiberti's Adam on the Doors of Paradise if the baptistry of Florence:

Summer Research Brief 2013 - People/ Places - Louise Fili

Second chosen option to research - People/ places - Louise Fili

Louise Fili is a famous American Graphic Designer born in Orange, New Jersey on 12th April 1951. She is most widely known for her 11 years as Art Director of Pantheon Books (Random House) creating over 2000 book covers there.

As the daughter of two Italian schoolteachers, Fili was instantly inspired by her parents' homeland upon her visit there when she was just 16. She is addicted to all things Italy - in particular Italian 1930s typography and design. 

As a graduate of Skidmore College, she began work at Alfred A Knopf from 1975-'76 designing special project books. She then worked for Herb Lubalin from '76-'78 before joining Random House. In 1989 after leaving Random House and many awards and treasures behind, she opened 'Louise Fili Ltd' - the foundations of the company being typography, food and Italy!

In around 1990, she turned her interests to Restaurant design and food packaging. The first customer was the restaurant across the road - 'Prix Fixe'. As payment for her design, she was given an unlimited tab. Some of her customers for her restaurant design work include; Picholine, The Harrison, Noche, Artisanal and Metrazur.

She has been the instructor at the School of Visual Arts for over 20 years. She has also taught at the New School, New York University and the Cooper Union. She also teaches at the SVA Masters Workshop every summer in Venice and Rome. 

Fili has authored and co-authored many books with her husband, Design Historian Steven Heller. A list of her books include (via Wikipedia):

• (With Steven Heller) Italian Art Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1993.
• (With Steven Heller) Dutch Moderne: Graphic Design from De Stijl to Deco, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1994.
• (With Steven Heller) Streamline: American Art Deco Graphic Design, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1995.
• (With Steven Heller) Cover Story: The Art of American Magazine Covers 1900–1950, San Francisco: Chronicle Books (San Francisco, California), 1996.
• Logos A to Z (self-published) 1997.
• (With Steven Heller) British Modern: Graphic Design Between the Wars, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1998.
• (With Steven Heller) German Modern: Graphic Design from Wilhelm to Weimar, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1998.
• (With Steven Heller) Typology: Type Design from the Victorian Era to the Digital Age, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 1999.
• More Logos A to Z (self-published) 1999.
• (With Steven Heller) Design Connoiseur: An Eclectic Collection of Imagery and Type, New York: Allworth Press, 2000.
• (With Steven Heller) Counter Culture: The Allure of Mini-mannequins, New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2001.
• Logos A to Z Three, 2002 (self-published)
• (With Steven Heller) Euro Deco: Graphic Design Between the Wars, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2004.
• A Designer’s Guide to Italy. (self-published) 2004.
• (With Steven Heller) Stylepedia: A Guide to Graphic Design Mannerisms, Quirks, and Conceits, San Francisco: Chronicle Books, 2006.
• The Civilized Shopper’s Guide to Florence, New York: The Little Bookroom, 2007.
• (With Lise Apatoff) Italianissimo: The Quintessential Guide to What Italians Do Best, New York: The Little Bookroom, 2008.
• (With Steven Heller) Scripts: Elegant Lettering from Design’s Golden Age, London: Thames and Hudson, 2011.
• Elegantissima: The Design and Typography of Louise Fili, New York: Princeton Architectural Press, 2012.

Her list of awards include: Gold and silver from the New York Art Directors clubs & Society of Illustrators, The Premio Grafico from the Bologna Book Fair and she has also been nominated 3 times for James Beard. 

In 2004 she was added to the Art Directors Hall of Fame. She is also an elected member of the Alliance Graphique Internationale. The list is endless!

Some of her designs:

 This is one of the copyright & acknowledgements pages from one of her books - very creative!

Why is it interesting? 

It's interesting to me because almost all of my pictures in my design inspiration folder can somehow be traced back to either Fili or inspired by one of her designs. She re-ignited the art deco type style in a modernist world and has countless rewards and achievements to show for it. My other favourite designers are also fans of hers - her work is beautiful yet functional. 

What other target audiences exist for it?

Target audiences for Fili include anyone who loves type, good food, good wine and a good time. Her work seems to be everywhere in NYC and she is the inspiration and idol of typographers all over the globe.