Knowlton School of Architecture Rome Program – Architecture and design in the Eternal City

1. For my STEP Signature Project, I lived in Rome, Italy for five weeks through the Knowlton School of Architecture Rome program, studying the architectural sites and designed landscapes. We used sketching as a way of analyzing the layers of Rome and the current built environment. We produced two projects consisting of experiences studied in the field of Rome’s major architectural sites.

2.  While trying to order my first cappuccino, knowing little to no Italian, I realized how insecure and foreign I felt. I realized that the next five weeks were going to be challenging and I would have to step out of my comfort zone in order to interact with my surroundings and embrace the differences. Once I decided not to let my insecurity of being an outsider get in the way of my experience, I noticed that I became more willing to explore and take advantage of my time abroad. I focused on observing the differences in our culture and trying to experience a new way of life. Over the course of five weeks, I grew into a more open-minded and independent individual because I was able to step out of my comfort zone. Allowing myself to embrace the cultural differences and not always compare them to my routine at home.

During my time in Italy, I also saw myself grow as a student and a designer. We visited many architectural sites and landscapes that are very different than what we are exposed to in Ohio. We focused primarily on improving our drawing skills and being able to translate our observations onto paper. We studied these sites through analytical drawings and tried to recreate the space in our notebooks. My sketches improved because I was willing to take risks on the spaces and objects I decided to draw and pushed myself to constantly find new perspectives.

3. One of my biggest fears before traveling to Italy was the language barrier. I had never studied Italian, similar to most of my peers on the trip, and was afraid of interaction and being disrespectful. Simple phrases and greetings that I usually never think twice about, were one of my biggest fears abroad. I was hesitant at first to jump into the language and nervous for the way they would respond. Although servers would often talk to us in English, I pushed myself to try to interact with simple greetings. Once I forced myself to say as much in Italian as I possibly could, I felt even more connected to the locals. Even though my Italian was very minimal, being able to connect and interact with people from a different culture really helped me step out of my comfort zone of feeling like an outsider.

Being stationed in Rome for five weeks and living among the locals really helped me embrace the culture. I passed the threshold of being a tourist and started living as though I were a true Italian. I lived in one of the residential neighborhoods, went shopping at the corner grocery store, commuted alongside the locals on the underground metro, and indulged in traditional cuisine. I am very thankful for the opportunity to live in an apartment and navigate my way through a typical Italian residence. Many things such as the laundry, showers, and sleeping arrangements were very different than what I was used to. Living in these apartments helped me realize the drastic differences there are living in a city versus living in Ohio. My experience was very different than a typical tourist who may have been staying in hotels. This experience helped me understand their daily lives and exposed me to their culture in ways other tourists have not been able to.

In my studio at Ohio State, I often work on the computer and avoid drawing whenever I can. Being able to draw your ideas and communicate them with clients is a very important and useful skill in landscape architecture, but is a skill I never felt confident about. Before this trip, I had never practiced sketching in my free time. I always wanted to become a better sketcher and I think this program really pushed me to constantly practice. We were taken on tours four days of the week, and were required to have our sketchbooks handy at all times.  Although I would get discouraged when my drawings would not come out how I imagined, this trip encourage me not to give up. I realized that my drawing skills are only going to improve with practice and I saw a significant development in my ability to draw by the end of the trip.

4. This transformation was valuable because I became more willing to take risks and interact with situations I am not familiar with. Traveling and studying abroad not only exposed me to very important and significant architectural precedents that will relate to my educational and professional goals, but it helped me grow as an individual. I became comfortable with embracing the differences and similarities in order to understand a new way of life. It is easy to live inside your comfort zone and fall into a habitual routine. I learned that in order to grow as an individual, one must walk a path they are not familiar with to understand differences and look at the world with new eyes. Traveling abroad encouraged me to observe my surroundings in a different way. I think this is important especially in the design world. Being able to walk around sites that many people only have the opportunity to learn about in a classroom was really rewarding. Stepping outside of my comfort zone moved me into a learned zone. A space where new ideas and experiences can be observed, internalized and integrated into new ways of thinking and doing. These are lessons both essential going forward personally and professionally.

 

Project 1 : Piazza Della Minerva analysis drawing

Project 2: Santa Maria in Aracoeli: Cosmatesque

Patterns and Disruptions (hand drawn)

One of my favorite pictures I took during

my time in Rome : The Colosseum