Jun
23
2010
Michelangelo Buonarroti was born on 6th March 1475 in Italy. When he was a baby his mother became Ill, so he was looked after by a Stonemason’s family. Later he often told people that this was why he was so good at Sculptures out of stone.
Michelangelo trained as a painter but he loved Sculpter best. He studied sculpture at Lorenzo de Medici’s fabulous palace in Florence.
In 1506 the Pope asked Michelangelo to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome. The huge, Curved ceiling is about the size of a tenis court and he had to work on scaffolding 15 metres high. He held his brushes above his head. It took him 4 years to finish the Ceiling and by the end his neck was so stiff that he could only read things by arching his head back.
Michelangelo used what the fresco technique when he painted walls and ceiling. Fresco means fresh in Italian. The artist paints directly onto the wet plaster. As the plaster dried, the paint bonds to it. He had to work quickly to get the right results. The main panels of the seiling show scenes from the book of Genesis. Also shown are portraits of prophets and Sibyls who foretold the coming of the messiah. There are also pictures showing Jesus’ ancestors and stories around are smaller figures of cherubs and nudes. Altogether there are more than 300 painted figures on the ceiling.
Amazing facts
- Michelangelo was left – handed.
- Michelangelo was a poet as well as an artist. He wrote one poem about how painful it was working on the Sistine Chapel.
- Michelangelo didn’t care about his appearance and wore cheap. boots without socks. While he worked on the Sistine Chapel he wore the same boots for months not even taking them off when he went to sleep!
Jun
22
2010
We’ve been learning how to say the days of the week in Italian. Listen to our attempts below;
Italian days of the Week
lunedì: Monday
martedi: Tuesday
mercoledi: Wednesday
giovedi: Thursday
venerdi: Friday
sabato: Saturday
domenica: Sunday
Jun
22
2010
We’ve been learning how to say some colours in Italian. Listen to our attempts below;
Italian_colours
bianco: white
giallo: yellow
arancione: orange
rosa: pink
rosso: red
marrone: brown
verde: green
blu: blue
viola: purple
grigio: grey
nero: black
Jun
16
2010
In Masquerade balls people wear masks to cover their face and eyes so they cant be recognised. In the olden days carnivals went on for days. Many places celebrate their local day by carrying a statue in a procession around the town.
In Venice they have a carnival called the Carnevale di Venezia. It begins two weeks before Ash Wednesday and lasts until Shrove Tuesday.
This image is taken from Wikipedia
Jun
15
2010
Ferrari’s were first made in 1929. The first Ferrari road car was made in 1947.
Alberto Ascari gave Ferrari its first drivers championship. On a Ferrari it has a horse sign on it. It is called a prancing horse.
Lamborghini has a bull sign on it. Lamborghini’s were made in the 1950s. Lamborghini started off as a tractor maker and then made sports cars. Lamborghini’s are very fast and they are very popular now.
A Lamborghini Murcielago
Image taken from Wikipedia
Jun
15
2010
The Ponte Vecchio is the oldest bridge in Florence. It links 2 art galleries. They are called Uffizi and Pitti. There are houses on the bridge.
This image is taken from Wikipeida
Jun
14
2010
One of the most famous pieces of artwork in the world is the Mona Lisa – painted by the Italian Leonardo Da Vinci.
The Mona Lisa can be seen in the Louvre museum in France, but if you cannot get there children in class 6 have been creating their own Mona Lisa’s;
Mona Lisa 1 | Mona Lisa 2 | Mona Lisa 3 | Mona Lisa 4
Jun
11
2010
Raphael was born in 1483 and died in 1520 (age 37). His real name was Raffello Sanzio Da Urbino.
His most famous portraits are a portrait of Elizibeth Gonzaga in 1504, a portrait of Pope Julius 2 in 1512, a portrait of aldassare Castiglione in 1515 and a portrait of Bindo Altoviti that is below and made in 1514.
Jun
10
2010
A feature of Italian gardens is the lack of flowers.
One of two matching ‘Palazzinas’;
The Cardinal’s Table;
The Fountain of the Giants
These pictures are all taken from Garden Aesthetics
Jun
10
2010
The Italians have very big gardens & houses. This garden is considered to be Italy’s most biggest & most posh garden , and it was built by architect Vignola, who built the garden in the mid to late 1500′s.
It has water as the main theme. There is a change from the forest and wild life at the highest level to the lower terrace.
In 1971 the garden was acquired by the Government.
This picture is taken from Garden Aesthetics
