Some Images from Siena

Duomo interior, Siena

Duomo, Siena

Duomo, Siena

Duomo, Siena

Duomo, Siena

Duomo, Siena

Aesthetics of Decay - Part 3

Just across the piazza from the Duomo is the 1,000 year old hospital, Santa Maria della Scala. Incredibly, it functioned until 1998, when it was turned into a museum. The history and archeology of this site is deep and rich, and the building itself is fascinating. Here are just a few images from some of the oldest frescoes in the building.

November in Italy is wonderfully free of tourists. One gets a much better sense of the scale of the spaces when they are not packed with people. And the light is beautiful.

Piazza del Campo, Siena, November 20, 2010

Aesthetics of Decay - Part 1:Walls of Italy

The surfaces of Italy are seductive beyond imagination -- an ultimate collaboration between human construction and natural elements, seasoned and intensified by time. Although usually the product of futile attempts to stave off decay, the layers of history inevitably merge and continue to accumulate. It's easy for a painter to think they do this just for us!

Note: no color enhancement was used in these images.