HISTORY OF DESIGN VISIT REPORT: EUROPEAN HERITAGE MONTH
Pinacoteca di brera DATE OF VISIT
septEmber 29th, 2019
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REPORT: BRIEF
s a very diverse class, dominated by foreign exchange students; professor Arturo Dell’Acqua made sure that students were exploring on their
own and learning about the country they were going to call home for 6-7 months. This was the first assignment of the semester and the task was to visit any one of the villas in and around Milan during the Europian Heritage month. We had to express our feelings and our experience of this visit in the form of a report and we had complete creative freedom. Considering students were going to travel on their own, the professor guided us and made sure to inform us regarding travel details and ticket purchasing details as well.
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clicked on iPhone XS Max/edited on PS Express
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REPORT: ACKNOWLEDGMENT
Expressing feelings towards design in any form, as an assignment brief was new to me; and I sincerely want to thank professor Arturo Dell’Acqua and professor Eugenia Chiara, for this opportunity and their guidences, to help us learn and explore Milan from a different perspective. I also want to thank my incredible friend Maria Nußbaumer for accompanying me and sharing this wonderful experience with me. I’ll cherish our memories from this day forever. Also, the very kind man who sold me my Polaroid camera for a surprisingly cheap cost, thanksto which I was able to capture the mostmesmerizing images which I’ll cherish
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WHY
Brera? Recollection of the captivating vision of Christ’s Sacrifice- Cristo Flagellato (Scourged Christ) by Donato Bramante, is a true masterpiece. I came acrossthis painting during my preparations for university entrance exams. Amid learning about European art movements and scrolling through their google image searches; the moment I came across this painting- everything stopped. I had never felt so captivated, empathetic, and emotional, all at the same time just by looking at a painting. At the moment, I learned it was in an art gallery in Italy and left it at that. The tragic depiction of Christ somehow gave me hope when needed it the most; that’s why I picked ‘Pinacoteca Di Brera’ for the assignment. But, I didn’t end my visit with just the satisfaction of viewing this painting. This experience somehow reminded me of home and made me feel nostalgic; yet at the same time changed my perspective towards appreciating architecture and its power to change and alter our
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REPORT: INTRODUCTION
rchitecture is an art form where the artist designs something which can control human behavior. When we go to a hospital compared to a library, we automatically act in a certain way the moment we enter the facility. We know we are supposed to maintain silence but, the approach is very different. And the acute similarity in the ways our behavior changes can be experienced. I, being from Mumbai, had the advantage of exploring what Gothic and Neoclassic Architecture lookes like. The rather simplicity within the grandiosity of VT station (now Chattrapati Shivaji Terminal) and the area surrounding it with the fine details, yet from afar seems simplistic in a way which makes you wonder, Am I in India? As the influence of British architecture can be seen around the city of Mumbai, which contradicts with the Indian cultural aesthetic, yet is an inevitable part of it. Similarly the simplicity of Ancient Greek inspired architecture of Pinacoteca di Brera stands out amongst the Renaissance and Baroque inspired architectural structures surrounding it.
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assing through the beautiful sun kissed streets from Lanza Metro station, till the immediate right turn one makes to stand infront of the Pinacoteca di Brera is full of atelier Fashion brands, wine
and dine restaurants- hiding from the sunlight are forever trapped in the vibrant 60s old Hollywood era. The walk feels like a daydream, narrated by Rock Hudson as he looks for his sweet sweet Lisa from 1961’s classic Come September. It’s amazing how architecture can create a specific atmosphere which directly affects human behavior. The second one stands in front of this extraordinary monument, it’s within
unpredictable the
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mesmerizing.
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standing in-front of this entrance; the alignment of Antoni Canova”s “Napoleon in veste di Marte Pacificatere” to the Ancient Greek inspired Pillars marked with darkness, frames the statue beautifully and creates a lovely picturesque moment for everyone to admire. Upon entering the structure, one gets to experience what a traditional English symmetrical front yard feels like. The rock pebbles in shades between grey-white, covered floor instead of greens of grass is a perfect fit, as it maintains the monochromatic aesthetic of the structure and calms and soothes everyone experiencing it. One might come across a running kid and a married couple in the midst of their photoshoot, yet it never disturbs the calmness at site. As of for me, it felt like, everyone was watching their movements, trying to avoid making any unessariy noice which not only happened while exploring the exhibit, but also the structure in general. For me it was an excellent example of how a structure, directly or indirectly controls the human behavior. As the front structure has been built symmetrically; walking up the stairs is also an experience, as one might expect to see sculptures carved on the pillars surrounding the stairs or some resemblance to the late Renaissance and Baroque Architecture.
It doesn’t, yet it creates an experience where
you either constantly look around exploring, expecting to see more or look forward to what the way leads up to for the exploration to begin.
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clicked on Original Polaroid 600 camera
clicked on iPhone XS Max/edited on PS Express
After actually reaching the first floor, one passes through the Roman numeric Wall Clock, atop the entrance of the gallery. What surprised me about that clock was that, it makes one look at it, rather than just a glance. It appears to be a part of the structure, so to assure that it is the part of the structure- like an accessory- a grand addition; one has to stop and observe. It genuinely feels like something which should be there, as even from the entrance one can spot it, exactly atop the brass statue in-front. Once done with the basic formalities of purchasing the ticket near the information desk, one can’t move towards the actual exhibit until they walk past The Biblioteca Braidense. This library is decorated with magnificent Bohemian crystal adorned Chandeliers. Observing the rows of book racks full of over 40,000 books conserved from 16th-18th century divided into categories which really ignited my curiosity. And frustrated me at the same time, to find out that it was closed for public visits. To top it of, once one reads that there is a mesmerizing portrait of Empress Maria Theresa (1717-1780) which dominates that room, is hidden by the positioning of the chandelier. The way it’s arranged is, that one can see about 50 percent of the bottom of the painting, but to view it in it’s entirety, one must be present in the room. Moving on from this view is frustrating as one doesn’t gets to see the whole picture. This wasn’t the only thing that frustrated me as I moved towards the exhibit. As I was carrying my newly acquired Polaroid camera; I was clicking pictures with all my might. Without realizing that I had used my 8 frames already, and had to feel extremely disappointed and embarrassed as people around me witnessed the stupidity of a foreigner in front of Lorenzo Costa’s La adorazione dei Magi (The adoration of the Magi) But that actually helped me to shift my focus from finding good angles for a polaroid frame to, historic art treasure in front of me. A maze of 38 rooms awaits following that view, where every room is numerically coded. The specific manner in which rooms are colored; entering a new room becomes a dratic experience. With the placement of roman numbers on top of the painting in view of the room about to be entered, which fits perfectly in the center of the open entrance,
creates anticipation to proceed ahead to discover more. The use of royal blue and crimson for the rooms to purely emphasize the painting in a draker setting, which creates an emotional bond or a moment with the painting. And the more open spaces had grey-ish colors on the wall to create a monochromatic space to focus on the wall long paintings. Another thing which stood out, was the fact that the lighting is arranged in a manner where, one can differentiate between a canvas and wood painting. To be honest, it took me over 2 weeks to finish this report, as articulating my experience into words was difficult- as I had never experienced anything like this before. The sheer feeling of comfort while being amongst some of the most precious art works of the world was simply out of body experience for me. After spending over three hours within this beautiful maze, the exhibition ended with viewing of The Palazzo Citterio. So one question remains,
how to truly encapsulate this experience?
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As in the beginning I mentioned that I’ve had the opportunity to roam around the structures built with Neoclassical and Gothic style in mind; but never did I experience the feeling of being on autopilot where, I didn’t feel my knee injury getting worse or my thirst; I just followed the path till I entered the cafe at the end of the exhibit and finally realizing that I had spent almost 3 hours just exploring it.
“We spend 87% of our lives inside buildings, how they are designed really
affects how we feel, how we behave” is a quote by Ilse Crawford, a talented Interior Designer. When we think about it on abroad perspective it’s true but to actually experience that feeling was an eye opener. And this particular quote came to my mind when I actually stepped on road after exiting this structure, which was truly liberating, as I knew I had lived through that quote for the last 4 hours.
