ARC500.2: When in Rome...it's impossible to outdo what the Romans already did.

The day we spent in Rome was life-changing. Not only had my friend and I visited the Colosseum, Musei Vaticani, St. Peter's Basilica, and the Pantheon all in one day, I was also surprised to find my notoriously lazy self sketching like a maniac. The spaces themselves demanded more attention than just photographs, I think. I sketched like a madman until my fingers were numb, and until I felt pain in both legs from awkwardly standing for hours.

I can never wrap my head around ancient Roman architecture, and how many of the people who took over after the Roman Empire had disintegrated (the Saxons in London, for example) seemed to go back to antiquated approaches of building, because they were also too perplexed by Roman engineering to know what to do with these magnificent concrete structures.

A Pantheon-like space in the Musei Vaticani.

Gah! I can't tell what's relief and what's painting!

Bramante double helix staircase in the Musei Vaticani (Giuseppe Momo, 1932)

On towards St. Peter's Basilica. This sketch was particularly difficult because we started at the left side of the line wrapped around the basilica, and quickly moved across to the right (and therefore changed perspectives).

The colossal monstrosity that is St. Peter's Basilica. Seriously, you can't even begin to imagine the scale of this until you come up to it and realize the column bases are taller than you. (Michelangelo, Donato Bramante, Carlo Maderno, Gian Lorenzo Bernini, 1626)

And, even though it's larger than human comprehension, it's also easily the most ornate and detailed building you'll ever encounter.

Climbing the cupola. How weird that there are renovated stairs with modern dimensions...

The view from the top of the cupola. I'd like to believe that we were so high up we could tell that the Earth is round. (But most likely it was because of the camera's distortion.)

On another note, can someone tell me where I can get some of these Roman trees? They's so poofy and perfect for renderings.

Some sketches of the Pantheon. We saw the oculus change from its daylit mode to its night-time mode, which was fun.

Obligatory touristy photo to end this post. We didn't have enough time in Rome (we did all this in a day!) to get into the Colosseum, but even the exterior is awe-inspiring. I still can't believe they used to flood the stadium for naval battles. Is this real life?