During the fall 2009 semester, 15 UConn art students fine-tuned their artistic skills in Florence, Italy, thanks to a new University of Connecticut Study Abroad program at the Institute at Palazzo Rucellai.
Florence, known as the birthplace of the Italian Renaissance, is one of the world’s foremost cultural centers.
Students who participated in the study abroad program say their memories of studying in a 14th-century studio, walking to class past a variety of famous frescos, and seeing the Duomo Cathedral daily will last a lifetime.
“You’re never going to get this experience anywhere else,” says Anna Hughes, a 2011 BFA candidate with a concentration in painting. “It is what you make of it and you learn so many things, but in the process, you can’t help learning about yourself.”
Samples of the artwork the students created during their study abroad experience are on display at the Jorgensen Gallery through March 5. The young artists were recognized at a special gallery reception on Feb. 5.
The Florence study abroad program was a first for the Department of Art and Art History. Professor Ray DiCapua, who led the cohort of students, would like to see the program continued in the future and eventually integrated into the curriculum for art majors.
With a small group of students, the program was able to cater to each student’s individual artistic needs, giving each of them the chance to leave behind the large classroom setting for a more personal and intimate atmosphere. The diverse work on display in the Jorgensen Gallery reflects each student’s experience.
Subject matter for the drawing course included architecture, the human form, portraiture, and drapery and still-life studies. The artwork on display in the Jorgensen Gallery is mainly done in charcoal.
“This group of students was wonderful to work with,” says DiCapua. “They seem to have embraced the opportunity fully. Their focus and enthusiasm for the course and their own development created some beautiful drawings.”
While abroad, the students were enrolled in a curriculum that included a drawing course, “Historical and Contemporary Observation,” taught by DiCapua. In addition, the students took an art history course taught by Board of Trustees Distinguished Professor Bette Talvacchia, an art historian and Italian Renaissance specialist. They also took a digital photography course, and an Italian culture and language course, “The Florence Experience.”
DiCapua says taking students out of the typical university setting and placing them in a new country and environment “leads to a focus outside their normal frames of reference and generates a heightened awareness, while suggesting that there are numerous ways to look at and visually respond to the world.”
Kerri Gaudelli, a 2011 BFA candidate with a concentration in printmaking, describes the Florence experience as unique: “We were constantly influenced by our surroundings, cross-referencing what we learned in our classes,” she says.
As part of their program, students were exposed to the Florentine culture, one that is steeped in tradition and is quite different from the American way of life. They say the overall quality of life in Florence and the “pride and appreciation for life in general” were unforgettable. “It’s definitely not a culture obsessed with money,” says Michael Levine, also a 2011 BFA candidate with a concentration in printmaking.
