Thank Art for the Renaissance!!!

My name is Courtney Manriquez Bucknor, I am a Junior at Sacramento Charter High School. I have always wanted to go abroad and expand my knowledge of the world. I have only traveled once to New York and that is as far as my traveling resume goes. With that Experience I grew a love for traveling and experiencing new places. That’s why when I heard of an opportunity to go to Europe I jumped on it right away. It was very nerve wrecking and exciting coming into the first seminar class. I knew that this was the official start of the competition and this is what proves that you are worthy to be given such an honor to go represent your school and explore Rome! Traveling is something that I have a huge yearning for. I've always wanted to go beyond the United States to Europe. Rome has been on my bucket list since I first started learning about its history in middle school and when I started to learn about Catholicism in Sunday school. I want to experience Rome for its Art, History and Culture. Wanting that, I knew all I had to do was work my hardest in the seminars and prove myself worthy. I went to the class excited and ready to work HARD! In the class we learned how to make a blog ours, without making it sound too "Dear Diary". Ms. Canady explained to us that we must make our personal experiences come through to grab our readers and keep them interested in reading our blog and to make them want to keep coming back for more. Sharing and giving a clear picture of our experiences is what makes a blog a good blog. Our Assignment was to write about our first experience with this scholarship process, which for me, I thought, was the interview process, but it was our timelines. The “Timeline” happened to be very challenging for me, because it tested me and made me ask myself was I giving it my all? The Computer and I became one as I spent hours researching and gathering information for the timeline. I believe that the hardest thing was finding reliable sources and correct dates. I eventually just decided to go to the library and kidnap all their books on Rome that I could find and READ. I found important events and then matched them up with dates that I found online or in other books. I don't think I have ever worked that hard before. I even gave up on sleep for about two weeks. However the timeline was beneficial in the end for me because I was so proud of myself and I felt good about how hard I was working on it. My favorite part of the timeline was the Renaissance I love art and the history of art. I learned that if it weren't for the Renaissance there would NOT be many artists that go outside the box and set new limits. The Renaissance gave birth to the most famous and legendary artists like Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo. There is no one in the world who doesn't know of the Mona Lisa or the beautiful ceiling in the Sistine Chapel. The Renaissance was a revolution and turning point of art in Roman history and in all history. Personally as an artist I look back on these pieces and artists for inspiration. I love to sketch people - not as well as Da Vinci but I attempt to capture not only their looks but who they are as well as possible. I learned that I am truly grateful for the Renaissance. If it hadn't happened there would be no Leonardo Da Vinci... How can you live without Da Vinci?!!! - Courtney Manriquez B.