French Peer Review

Haley: She did a good job of organizing her information.  I liked how she talked about decorators and how they came about.

Holli: She did a good job of comparing French architecture with Italian architecture.

French

Most countries interior design depended on religion or political history.  France focused on what the Royals preferred.  France was centered around Romanesque and Gothic style.  The decorator's job wasn't always easy.  They had to design rooms that flowed well together.  This position required the person to be able to explain to the client what their design idea was.  The decorator had to supervise the others involved in the project to make sure their design idea was carried out correctly.

The Chateau de Chambord is one of the most famous chateaux in the world because of its French Renaissance design.  It is the largest chateau in the Loire Valley.  It was built to be a hunting lodge for Francis I.  It was altered many times during its construction.  Francis showed off his wealth by hosting his old archrival, Emperor Charles V.  During the French Revolution some of the furnishings were sold and timber was removed.  The building was abandoned for a long period of time.  During the 19th century attempts were made at restoring the chateau.  During WWII art works from the Louvre and Chateau de Compiegne were moved to the Chateau de Chambord.  To this day the chateau is open to the public for viewing.

Current Applications

Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Te8u5B2vLts 

Spanish Renaissance Peer Review

Madelyn: I think she did a very good job describing the interiors and the furniture from this time period and her pictures tied well with her information.

Lisa: She did a good job of talking about who/what influenced the design of the interiors and furniture.

Spanish Renaissance

The Alhambra is located in Granada, Spain.  It was originally constructed as a small fortress in 889 on the remains of Roman fortifications.  It was ignored until the ruins were renovated and rebuilt in the mid 13th century by the Moorish emir Mohammad be Al-Ahmar.  It was later converted in 1333 into a royal palace by Yusuf I, Sultan of Granada.  In 1492 in became the Royal Court of Ferdinand and Isabella and the palaces were decorated with a Renaissance taste.  Then in 1526 Charles I and V converted it to a better fitting Renaissance palace for the Holy Roman Empire.

The La Mota Castle is a reconstructed medieval castle.  Its may have gotten its name because of its location on an elevated hill.  It was a castle built by noble Christian families.  The foundation is based off of the Moorish.  It has more castles in Spain than any other European country.  It was built out of concrete faced with brick.  The castle has a trapezoid floor plan.  

Current Applications

Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8O6p3DyjBXw

Italian Renaissance Peer Review

Angie: I thought your videos were great and they really went into good detail about what kind of furniture they had.

Katie: I thought she did a good job of explaining in detail every aspect of the Italian Renaissance and how architecture influenced art.

India Peer Review

Rachael: I like how one of your videos showed that tips on how to design Indian interiors.

 Alex: I liked how you described the stone temples and how some of them were built in caves.

Italian Renaissance

The Renaissance began in Florence, Italy.  There was an increased attention to buildings that were open to the public.  They started to move away from absolute rule to democracies.  The city and buildings started to move towards participatory government.  The Palazzo Davanzati was a transitional house between the Middle Ages and the Renaissance.  It supports the first Renaissance interior.  The roof has an ope gallery.  A string course delineate each floor.  The ground floor is shops.  The residential floors are above the ground floor.  The most important floor is the piano nobile.  The floors then start to decrease in height.

 Santa Maria della Consolazione is the closest incarnation of the Renaissance.  Leonardo da Vinci was an architect, painter, and inventor.  He was the painter of the Mona Lisa.  He painted several fresco cycles throughout his life.  Donato Bramante was the architect of St. Peter's.  Some works are included in the Renaissance because they are transitioning into the Renaissance.  Many artists encountered design problems and then came up with brilliant answers.  Michelangelo did this on every single of his projects including his work in the Campidoglio.

Current Applications

Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PEE3B8Fsuc0

India

The stupa is a facing mound of earth with permanent material.  Some stupas are more elaborate like the one in Sanchi.  Visiting a stupa relates to a diagram that tells followers of Buddhism understand themselves, their place on Earth, and Earth's place in cosmos.  Stupas have been built throughout India for centuries.  Throughout the centuries they have become more elaborate.  The dome is sometimes emphasized with a pole at its apex, further the thrust of the structure.  One way for them to do their rituals was attaching a banner to the chattri, which draws more attention to the stupa's highest point.

One if the more elaborate stupas is the caves at Ajanta.  The caves of Ajanta provided a larger space to house multiple devotees and formed the basis of Buddhist temples with rectangular halls.  Some caves are a combination of found configuration and carved architectural compositions.  Over time statues of Buddha were placed in front of the stupa.  A mandala is a circle within a square.  The circle is the heavenly realm and connection of Earth to cosmos.  The square represents the domain of humanity.

Current Applications

Extra Credit: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ws8Ox8tqzbk