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Blog #11/Jan 14. The New and the Old. A challenge in architecture is how a structure fits within its site & neighborhood. Nimes is a city that is both ancient & modern. From our tour, identify and discuss how modern architects have responded to nearby ancient sites.

- In Nîmes for Matt and Ben’s presentation we were able to see a contrast between a structure that was around 2000 years old next to a structure that is roughly 30 years old. With Mason Carree built long ago, the architect of Carre D’Art had a challenge of whether to continue with the Romanesque design or move to a modern approach. Ultimately choosing a modern approach, they moved to bring a new aspect to the square, but doing it in a way that reflected upon the old. This was done by integrating columns into the front of the facade as well as using a glass facade that reflects the side of the Mason Carree, symbolizing the movement forward while still respecting and reflecting on the past. For Braeden’s structure we were also able to see how modern architecture reflects the old sites. For example, the curvature of the facade was used to represent a toga from Roman times.

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Blog #18/Jan 21. Modern.vs Post-modern. Based on our discussions in Spain and France, summarize the cultural causes for these breaks and the key differences in architectural intentions and elements.

Modernism began in 1920s which follows World War 1. It came with the idea that progress is not necessarily a good thing as a result of tech warfare. So they created a “new world” which led to modern architecture. People began recreating a modern society, masses moving to cities and these cities needed to be redesigned. People in Europe of this time became obsessed with urban design as well as architecture. Where in America, this led to the suburbs and ranch houses, sky scrapers, and office complexes with open floor plans and glass windows everywhere. Modernism focused on using clean lines, letting the materials be the color and ornament for the building. They found perfect form and function of a building, with no importance of culture or history in its space.

However, this led to mass amounts of building looking the same with concrete facades, which led people to reject modernism and made the population question what architecture is and can u be more truthful about how a building goes together by showing its elements. This led to post modernism which focused on many different forms, not clean and straight lines. In their buildings, they used much more color and the utilities were exposed with color coding to show their usage. Doing this allowed for the expression of the building components and its use as ornamentation. These buildings were more playful, taking the building inside out, showing what the building actually needs, such as plumbing, electrical, mechanical, structure, not hiding anything like architects normally do.

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Blog #17/Jan 20. Au Revoir & Adios, Mediterranean! What was your favorite structure in the south of France or Spain, and why? What was you favorite city, and why? Finally, what did you learn about design of cities that helps you think about the type of built environment wjere you want to live? Be specific with your evidence & anecdotes.

My favorite structure is the Madrid Royal Palace. This is my favorite structure for a few reasons, relating the structure itself as well as the cultural aspects. With the structure it is amazing to grasp the magnitude of how big the building actually is, I believe Brad said the buildings square footage is equivalent to 1/3 of Elons campus, that’s crazy! For the Palace to also have over 3000 rooms and be the largest Palace in Europe (aside from Russia), is really cool and adds a special element to the city. Although the group did not get to go inside, the design is very unique and has a very Moorish influence which stands out from all other buildings cities we have seen. From a cultural perspective the Palace stands out to me because the King does not actually live there, the Palace belongs to the people which is a very nice contrast to the British monarchy. Adding religion into it, the Cathedral that is next to the Palace, should have been facing the opposite direction based on Catholic traditions, but despite Spains heavy religious beliefs, they flipped the Cathedral around so it would face the Palace as they did not want a large Cathedral to take away from the importance of the Palace.

I might be just a tad biased when I say this, but Madrid is my favorite city. For the obvious reason, I studied abroad here for a semester and loved the city, but also for some others. I have studied the Spanish language and culture for many years and when in Barcelona I feel as if I am just in NYC, but when I’m in Madrid, I feel I have a culturally enriching experience. I was able to show this a little bid to Brad and some of the guys when I took them for the “Cole Tour” and I took them to Templo De Debod around sunset and you could see hundreds of people in the park just hanging out with friends and family, listening to music, and having a drink. In the warmer months you will also see a lot of live musicians around the city and in the parks which often draw groups of people who all begin to dance and enjoy life.

When it comes to understanding the built environment for which I want to live, I have learned a few things on this trip. The idea of a 15 minute city has greatly intrigued me as that makes life so convenient and efficient. With that, I also want to live somewhere that has very clean, safe, and efficient public transportation. For example, Madrid is very good with this and as a result you won’t often see traffic inside the city center, however look at NYC where public transportation is rough and it takes one hour to drive two blocks. One thing that is also important to me is green space and water features. This is something that I felt all cities could improve upon, which I know it is challenging when you are in a large city. Sustainability is also very important to me which I thought was really interesting in Milan how there are ways to also bring plant life to buildings, adding multiple benefits. Hopefully these sustainable living opportunities become cheaper so more people can take advantage!

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Blog #16/Jan 19. Great Spectacles. Compare the design of the Bernebau, the Colosseum, and Rhodes Stadium. How are the designs similar and different for the user experience of the fans that attend the Spectacles. Be specific about design choices and elements.

The designs of Bernebau, the Colosseum, and Rhodes Stadium have quite a few similarities despite being build across a 2000 year period. First, all three structures are in the form of an amphitheater with tiered seating surrounding the open floor/field/stage. All three locations also have a common design to accelerate the movement of people. They all have stairs/isles that bring people from their seat rows up and out to a central hallway of sorts which directs everyone to multiple exit options. Specifically looking at the Colosseum and Bernebau, they have processes to lift and move the floors. At the Colosseum they were able to move the floor to lift up the lion or animal for the fight as well as the fighters. At Bernebau, they have a system which separated the pitch to move it to an underground storage facility where they can help provide ideal conditions for the grass to remain in pristine condition. When looking at Bernebau and the Colosseum (many years ago), they both have retractable roofs which help with the preparation for weather or other events that might otherwise prevent the event from happening.

Some of the major differences between the structures result from being built in different time periods. When you compare the Colosseum to the other two, it’s very easy to see the difference in amenities such as concession stands, seats (cushion, cement, plastic), and most important is the bathroom situation or lack there of for the Colosseum. Without bathrooms it forced people to go at their leisure which hurt the experience for other visitors as there was not a sanitary way to remove the waste or smell.

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Blog #13/Jan 16. Contextualizing Gaudi: Identify and discuss three factors that help us understand how something as unique as Antoni Gaudi’s work occurred in this place (Catalonia) and this time (late 1800s-early 1900s).

We see an international influence in architecture in Catalan where the influence is by nature (art nouveau) which is comes from the Gothic style. Some of these Gothic features are tall vertical lines like flying buttresses.

There is also the factors deriving from the political and economic systems. Barcelona was a major trade center at the time where there were a lot of people and ideas flowing in and out. Specifically, the Textile industry (Güell family) was large in Barcelona (Burlington, NC became a large textile manufacturing area). The upper class was also looking to move forward not looking into the past and spent their money in an individual way that showed off their money.

Lastly, we see modernisme which is a variation of modernization that occurred in Catalonia in addition to the Catalan Renaissance. Those from the region have a lot of pride in the community and they wanted to celebrate their pride. This turned itself into supporting poets, artists, ceramics, etc. showing off the skills of the Catalonian people.

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Blog #9/Jan 12. Boundary City: Cultural exchange often happens in transitional spaces like Nice, and this exchange can have profound influences on the built environment. Identify and discuss 3 examples of cultural melding in the built environment of Nice. What cultures were involved and how was the built environment impacted?

As I discussed in my presentation, one major influence in Nice came from the Russians. In the 1800s Nice was a popular winter destination for Russian aristocracy and the Romanov family. With this, the Russians built a church to give themselves a place of worship while also expanding their soft power in the region. The church looks like it is from Russia but has aspects to help it “blend” with local architecture.

At the Promenade, many people of this time wore fancy clothes and women wore long dresses, for which they did not want to get muddy and dirty while walking down along the beach. Due to this there were English investors who came along to build the Promenade as a solution to this problem. As they had the money and influence over this project, the English had the Promenade named after them.

Lastly, in the old town we were able to look at street signs and the two names where the two languages combine with the built environment. For each street sign it has the road name in the native Nice language which gives a street name that is about the destination and the current French names are with a given destination like the street of the Opera House.

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Blog #10/Jan 13. Nous sommes tous des artistes! Take pictures of two of your European sketches to post. [Preferably one from Pont du Gard, but not mandatory]. Discuss how your experiences have been with sketching. What have you learned about the structures, the places, and yourself through this practice?

Sketching has gone fairly well for me, not so sure my drawings reflect that, but the process overall has been good. Through sketching it has allowed me to view our structures in different perspectives and under different interpretations. For example with the Russian Orthodox Church in Nice, when we walked up to the structure we are just looking at a building, we aren’t naturally analyzing it on a deeper level. However, when we sit down to sketch we get to see the building in a different perspective. From my point of view, I was able to see the building from a two-point perspective, capturing multiple sides of the church. Through this it forced me to look at more ornate details that my mind might naturally overlook such as the ornate roof tiles. Also, it has allowed me to further contemplate why spaces r designed in the way they are, such as why some buildings like the Russian Church have you go up a slope then continue up stairs whereas the Pantheon brings u on a downward slope to then bring you up a set of stairs. One of the biggest things I’ve learned about myself is larger than sketching, it’s that often times we are so focused on the destination that some times we should slow down to enjoy the journey as we might miss some things that we would have otherwise enjoyed.

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Blog #7/Jan 10. Sustainable Cities: from our morning session in Porta Nuova, identify & discuss 3 concepts of sustainable architecture and sustainable urban planning that you found particularly promising or compelling as we work towards a sustainable future in our built environments.

Three aspects of sustainable architecture and urban design are water consumption, energy use, and site use. Water consumption is super important as many places around the world have little to no supply and the global water table levels are shrinking each year. I found it really interesting to learn and discuss how we are able to repurpose rain water runoff for land irrigation, like Elon does with the sprinkler system as well as using that water to flush toilets. Also, how we can implement this with our appliances through low flow devices like showers, toilets, sinks, etc, as well as using sensors for sinks and air dryers. With energy consumption we are constantly hearing about the importance of reusable energy through technology like solar panels on buildings, but there are so many more options that conserve energy as well. Within a building we can use motion sensor lights, energy efficient appliances, more windows for natural light (photo sensors to tell u necessary light levels), geothermal system like in Nades at Elon, and temperature zoning in buildings to help reduce unnecessary heating and cooling. For site use, it is also important to understand how this impacts decisions. When planning to build on a site we need to think about using the land around building to collect water to reuse. We can gain more land by making buildings taller. In the permeable surfaces we can take into account things like plant selection to help minimize water necessity. Finally, the location itself is important to help limit necessity of transportation (multi use spaces). We saw this in Milan’s new financial district and the idea of a 15 minute city where the six necessities of a city are all within a 15 minute walk.

I also thought the concept of tactile urbanism was fascinating. The option to have fast cheap participatory from the public is important. If ppl in community have an idea that’s reasonable priced in a reasonable timeline, the city will support the ideas. This should be used in more cities as ideas often do not flow up to the top and the citizens have great ideas!

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Blog #5/Jan 8. Rhythm, balance, and hierarchy: take pictures of 3 facades in Florence and discuss how these 3 concepts apply to each.

In the Florence Duomo we see that there is formal balance. This occurs across a vertical line through the center of the facade, splitting the building in half. As you look up at the statues in the upper third of the facade you can see the rhythm of AAAAAABAAAAAA, the main doors as ABA, and the bottom 2/3 of the facade as ABACABA. Regarding hierarchy, we can see this in the middle of the building through the large center door and ornate and grand entry way.

In the mixed use building, we see that it also has formal balance across a vertical line splitting the building. For rhythm we can see that moving horizontally on a floor the windows would all be AAA…, and this holds true for all aspects of the building, it’s identical on its horizontal plains. With hierarchy, we can see this in the middle of the building through the center wooden door and large over hang which appears to double as a balcony.

In the Santa Maria Novella, we again see that it also has formal balance across a vertical line splitting the building. For rhythm the bottom half of the building can be broken into three vertical sections where we see an ABA pattern. In terms of hierarchy, we can see this in the middle of the building through the large center door and largest arch.

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Blog #4/Jan 7. Ciao Roma, Ciao Firenze! Research cultural differences between Rome/Lazio and Florence/Tuscany, and combine that with your own observations to compare/contrast the cultural differences between the two cities/regions.  

During our time in Rome we visited a lot of Ancient Roman sites such as the Colosseum, the Roman, the Pantheon, and many more sites. Through these sites and our explorations, we could see the details of columns, roman arches, domes and more. Once we got to Florence we were able to see the city which is famous for Renaissance architecture. At sites like the Santa Maria Novella we studied the facade where we discussed the important aspects like proportions, scale, symmetry and more. Culturally the two areas differ for multiple reasons. In Rome we see many more cars and chaos through the city center where you are also reliant on transportation to get from end to end, where in Florence we were very easily able walk from end to end of the city, especially without constant dodging cars and busses. Florence also seems to be a city which reflects on the beauty of its city through its history and updates where Rome appears to be stuck in the past. Roman culture places a focus on its ancient structures like the Colosseum and Pantheon, where Florence takes larger pride in their art works such as the David.

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Blog #3/8th Wonder? The Pantheon is a testament to human ingenuity. Make an argument for the Pantheon to be included as the 8th Wonder of the World. Discuss both the feat of engineering and the design intentions of the structure.

- One of the most interesting aspects of the Pantheon is that it is made from concrete, including the ceiling. This is extremely astonishing as we often know concrete to be a very dense and heavy material used for building. However, the Romans were able to develop and use a lighter version of concrete via a mix of powder from volcanic ash, water, and some other substances. This allows it to keep its solid structure but also keep it light that the roof will not cave in. Another unique aspect to it is that the concrete mix is able to absorb water and reharden without and changes or resulting problems to the structure.

- The walls of the pantheon our in a circular formation which are very unique and give people the ability to have an open minded experience relative to a square room. What also makes the pantheon so unique regarding the circular formation is that they built a dome on top of it.

- Another aspect to the Pantheon that gives a reason to be included in the list is that it has an opening in the top center part of the dome that has a diameter of 27 feet, which is crazy considering this was built almost 2000 yeas ago.

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Blog #2/Jan 5. Ancient influences: Our modern cities in the western world are strongly influenced by ancient Roman and Greek "classical architecture" and urban design. Identify and discuss 3 specific examples of how what you've seen in Rome are reflected in Elon's campus or places you've been in the US. Think about yesterday's tours at the Colosseum and Forum in addition to today's sites.

- During todays tour at St Peters Basilica we saw the columns and how they are uniquely used through a color pattern with the facade of the church to make the columns stand out and make it look like they are separated from the building. The columns are also shown in many buildings (or ruins) in the Roman Forum. These buildings are seen in many places in our lives, but we see them most frequently in Elon in Nades around the quad.

- Throughout Rome there are a lot of statues for former important people in history, whether kings, emperors, religious people, or other. This is also something that we see all around the USA. In Washington DC we have a lot of statues of former presidents, at Elon we have the Phoenix statue, and in many towns around the country there are statues of many local, national, and worldwide people of importance. This is an interesting way of honoring someone by putting up a statue to remind you of who they were, but often times years down the line people do not understand who they are or what they did unless they were very very influential.

- At St. Peter’s Church we see the massive dome that is in the center of the church. These domes are very popular in Rome and we have greatly influenced some extremely important buildings in the US. For example, the US Capital building has a massive dome, which helps make the building so iconic and recognizable. After doing a little Googling, I read something that says the Capital Dome is actually inspired by St. Peter’s.

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Blog #1/Jan 4. First impressions: identify and discuss 3 distinct cultural differences and/or elements of the built environment that are different between Italy and the US.

- One of the first cultural differences I noticed is how people respect their environment. In the United States people have no problem littering and moving with the mentality that it is someone else’s problem and not their own. From what I saw today, everywhere we went was clean, especially the Metro which you cannot find that anywhere in the US.

- I guess this may be a combination of cultural and built environment, but there are almost zero public restrooms in Italy while they are everywhere in the United States. This is something that I do not know how people adjust to because sometimes you just have to go and there are not options.

- When we think of US history we often think about wow 250 years wow that’s so old, but here in Italy we are talking about things that are 2,000 years old. This greatly shows in the differences in the built environment. For example, in Italy they have columns with different classical orders, however these are the original that are 2000 years old. Yes, we do have these in the US, with say the White House or Elon Colonnades, but these locations just utilize the ground work that was put in place thousands of years ago to help shape todays architecture.

- From what I have heard today, stone and marble were extremely common in the building of structures in Italy many years ago, and many of these structures still stand today because of this. In the US, we have very few buildings that are over 150 years old, and these shows from the materials and style we use to construct buildings.

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Alamance is my favorite building on campus for a few reasons. To start, it holds deep history within Elon’s campus which is instilled in us from the day we step on campus. The Alamance building was built in 1923 following the fire that took out the main administration building. From a design and architectural perspective, it has many appeasing features like rhythm, balance, a landmark, triangulation, paths, spatial organization, and more. Following our first night at Elon, we have freshman convocation Under the Oaks. As part of this tradition, we are brought through the center of Alamance to a point of triangulation, the Elon bell (as seen in the picture). To get into Alamance we have to use a series of paths that are made by none other than Elon bricks. These paths strategically take us to the building without stepping on the Elon grass! With the large number of paths around Alamance, we can easily get to it from any side of the building (shown in pictures). One of Elon’s most marketed paths is from East Haggard Ave because it not only draws your eyes towards Alamance, but it brings you to a major landmark on campus, the Alamance fountain. As you have now followed this path and are standing in front of the Alamance fountain, you have a perfect view of the building. From this angle your brain can fully appreciate the visual appeal of it. Not only does the building have rhythm (ABCBA pattern), but it also has formal balance (symmetry). You can see this symmetry through the specific rhythm, plus the stairwells and the symmetrical covered archways extending out both sides of the building. As you move closer and enter the building, you will also notice the spatial organization. All three floors of the building are arranged through linear organization with a central hallway with classrooms and hallways on either side. Again moving back to the outside, there is seating strategically place on the right side and the back of the building allowing students to congregate before / after classes or even sit alone an enjoy some peace and quiet. Overall, Alamance is a great building and has a lot to offer from a traditional Elon sense and an architectural point of view.

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My Personal Goals - January 2025

One major goal that I am setting for myself will to be able to learn a word in the language of each country that we visit. Although I want to be able to learn how to say hi, thank you, please, etc., I want this word to be something that is relevant to daily life. For example, while in Madrid I learned about how waiters will automatically bring you bottled water when you ask for water with your meal since they are able to charge for bottled water. I very quickly learned how to say “agua de grifo” which means tap water. This allowed me to not only save money, but also not put as large of a tourist label on me since I knew how to order like a local.

Although I have some dietary restrictions, I am rather adventurous when it comes to trying new foods and one goal that I am setting for myself is to try at least one new dish in each city that we visit. This will allow me to really dive into the culture more and not try to pick a dish that is as close to my American dishes.

While we are abroad, I would also like to continue expanding my knowledge of European history. When I studied abroad in Spain, I took a class that focused heavily on Spanish history, and this increased my desire to learn about other nations history. In class growing up, we learn mainly about US history, and I feel that the more knowledge that we can obtain, will make us more well-rounded citizens and allow us to better function in society.

At Elon, we often find ourselves sticking to our own bubbles / groups of people. On this trip I would like to be able to learn about as many people as possible and connect with new people. There are also a number of students on this trip who I know and would say am friendly with, but it would be great to get to know them even more. Just because I already have an established group of friends, it doesn’t mean I can’t make more, and I think that the closer we can become as a group, the more each of us will get out of this trip.

I am a very structured person, and I like to have set in stone plans, so one goal that I have for myself is to become better at being more flexible. This will be a great opportunity for me to work on this as it is a large group setting where I am not the one making the plans. I think this will become an asset for me in other aspects of my life as well since I won’t always be the one who is dictating my schedule, within the next 7-8 months, I will have a boss who essentially dictates my time.

I was always comfortable being uncomfortable, but when I studied abroad this past spring, I became very accustomed to this idea and way of life. My goal on this trip is to continue working on this because it has suited me very well and I think it will be in the future. Specifically, on this trip I plan to do this by doing my best to fully immerse myself in the local culture as much as I can on our short visits. This may be uncomfortable as I won’t know the language or culture, but in the end, I will reflect on the time and realize how much more I gained from this trip than if I chose to just be a traditional American tourist.