Reims, France

The making of…

Rome was the first city I visited in Europe. As a teenager, I barely paid attention to the monuments or the rich history surrounding me. Instead, I was captivated by the cultural differences and the incredible food.

With time, I’ve come to realize how knowledge can completely transform the way we experience a place. Each visit to Rome since then has been an entirely different journey. I spend hours wandering through its streets, rising before sunrise to find the piazzas deserted. It’s during these quiet mornings that I sit, sketching while listening to the city slowly come to life.

I’ve only sketched this church a few times, and while it might not hold the same historical significance as Rome’s ancient landmarks, it felt right to make this my first Italian building in the collection

Quick Facts:

  • Built between 1507 and 1575

  • The design is attributed to Antonio da Sangallo the Younger, with later contributions by Jacopo del Duca, a student of Michelangelo.

  • The church is famous for its octagonal dome, which is an intricate and beautifully designed Renaissance feature.

  • The facade is made of travertine, a type of limestone commonly used in Roman buildings.

  • The interior houses impressive altarpieces and frescoes, including works by Pompeo Batoni.

  • The church was commissioned by the guild of bakers and stands as a symbol of their influence in Renaissance Rome.

  • The church honors the Holy House of Loreto, which, according to legend, was transported by angels from Nazareth to Loreto, Italy.

  • The church stands just a few meters from the Trajan’s Column, creating a striking juxtaposition of Renaissance and Imperial Roman art.

  • Legend has it that when the nearby Santissimo Nome di Maria al Foro Traiano was built in the 18th century, there was a friendly rivalry between the two churches.

 

Standing in front of Santa Maria di Loreto in Rome, you’re faced with a remarkable timeline of European history. The church, though incredibly beautiful, feels so small against the backdrop of the monumental architecture that surrounds it. It’s primarily a Renaissance church, but it has some Baroque influences due to contributions made during its later stages of construction.


To one side, there’s Trajan’s Forum with the first true shopping mall, and a celebratory column, intricately carved, that tells the story of Trajan’s victory over the Dacians (modern-day Transylvania). Not too far away, you can see the medieval Tower of Milizie, built 1,100 years after Trajan’s departure from this world.


The ruins of Hadrian’s Auditorium, still being excavated, are barely noticeable at the feet of lavish Renaissance palazzos and the grand marble monument dedicated to Italy’s first king, Victor Emmanuel II, marking a key moment in the nation’s unification. The same monument would later serve as a backdrop for Mussolini’s fascist regime parades.


In this corner of Rome, beneath the shade of Italian cypresses, you can stand still and, without taking a single step, engage with layers upon layers of history — seeing places that once were the heart of so many communities over the centuries.

 

Get a little piece of France

Here are some of the formats that I’ve made this image into.

The Original

Reproduction

Sticker

Dive a little deeper

Books set in France

  • The Painted Girls by Cathy Marie Buchanan

  • The Widow Clicquot: The Story of a Champagne Empire and the Woman Who Ruled It by Tilar J. Mazzeo

  • The Lady and the Unicorn by Tracy Chevalier

  • Suite Française by Irène Némirovsky

  • Travels with a Donkey in the Cévennes by Robert Louis Stevenson

Books about France

  • The Man in the Red Coat by Julian Barnes

  • Judgement of Paris by Ross King

  • The Burgundians: A Vanished Empire by Bart Van Loo

  • A Bite-Sized History of France by Stephane Henaut

  • Let’s Eat France by François-Régis Gaudry

French Artists

  • Eugène Delacroix (1798-1863) - Look into his Moroccan Travel Diaries and watercolors

  • Elisabeth Vigee Le Brun (1755 – 1842) Rococo + Neoclassical portraiture

  • Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901) painter, printmaker and illustrator

  • All the well-known Impressionists

  • Marion Bretagne - contemporary artist