Written by Joey George
The city streets are quiet early on a mid-May morning. Beams of sunlight saturate the Tuscany hues. The walk to Via dei Pandolfini is already familiar, the Accademia D’Arte a few doors down from our everyday classroom.
The three hours went by quickly, the painting complemented by Dr. Bilec treating Group 1 to coffee and treats, living like a true Renaissance artist, painting and enjoying life’s little joys.
I am grateful we conducted this experience in this first week, which gave me a newfound appreciation for the effort and expertise of Renaissance artists. Creating single colors was strenuous, requiring engineering level precision.
Challenging appears to be an appropriate word used to describe this exercise, at least for me. Wired from the caffeine, boosted from the crostatina’s glucose, I felt like I was using a different side of my brain, an underdeveloped cortex shadowed by the demands of undergraduate engineering education.
In a way my work was humane, flawed. Irregular blotches of color, unkempt lines, beautiful in a twisted way. I hope my mother enjoys the belated Mother’s Day present.
Swanson School of Engineering 