Headline »

April 10, 2013 – 7:00 am | 4 Comments

It seems cliché to speak of reawakening after a long Winter, but with the amount of rain we got this year, putting England to shame, even a slight glimpse of Spring is extremely welcome. Easter came early this year and for a few hours on Sunday morning here in Maremma, the skies cleared, the sun …

Read the full story »
Expat Life

Living in Florence as an integrated import… a unique viewpoint on the experience!

Florence

The past and present of life in Florence, from art and architecture to current events.

Tuscany

Art, sea, mountains, islands, shopping, hiking, culture… Tuscany has it all.

Italy

Italy’s diverse regions merit lengthy exploration. And I’ve vowed to see it all.

Europe

Florence is a central place from which to explore Europe: follow me on my long weekend trips.

Home » Archive by Category

Articles in student work

May 30: Cellini-Tornabuoni student fashion show experiments with new forms

May 20, 2012 – 8:30 am | One Comment

I go every year, and I’ve posted about it before – the Istituto Cellini-Tornabuoni in Florence’s end of the year fashion show is a real entertainment opportunity and the students really blow me away with their talent.

Free student fashion show at Teatro Verdi, May 31

May 28, 2011 – 10:10 am |

In past years I have always posted announcements of this student fashion show and everyone is always so impressed by the quality of work that these Florentine students produce. Each year the location gets more prestigious and the pieces more elaborate! Last year was the Salone del Cinquecento in Palazzo Veccchio; this year it’ll be …

The silk road – student costume exhibit

December 13, 2010 – 6:30 pm |

Students of the Istituto Cellini Tornabuoni fashion high school – whose beautiful historic costumes pleased many last year in the same location – are back at the Galleria dei Medici (via Cavour 5) this year from December 15-17 2010.
The costumes on the theme of the silk road were presented a few months ago at a …

What is a wall? Student photography exhibit (May 15-22)

May 9, 2010 – 6:36 pm |

From May 15-22, 2010: Mostra fotografica “i muri”
Walls have always been an unregulated area for communication, visible to all, on which people have written (in florence, sadly, perhaps too much). Now with internet, there are virtual walls that one has to have access to. Walls allow one to express anonymous, sometimes transgressive thoughts.

History of the Palazzo Vecchio (funny video)

December 27, 2009 – 11:07 pm |

This video was made by a Syracuse University Florence student, Remi Evans. It was her final project for a course called Masterpieces of Renaissance Art, a favourite of students for many years, taught by the legendary Prof. Rab Hatfield. I was teaching assistant for this course back in 2000 and 2004!

Student contest winner: Piazza della Signoria’s Dueling Statues

November 17, 2009 – 11:15 am |

This is the contest winner in the Student category. Garret won a copy of The Food Lover’s Guide to Florence so that he can get in a good meal every once and a while!
Hello, my name is Garret Tufte. I recently came to Florence to study creative writing, and, having graduated from the University of …

Miriam’s Market in Metals

July 9, 2009 – 8:30 am | One Comment

This is the story of how Miriam’s study abroad experience inspired her to create a series of necklaces based on the display of goods in Italian open-air markets. Thank you Miriam Rowe for contributing your wonderful photos and story to arttrav!
I knew I needed inspiration.  Athens, Georgia, where I had been for almost four years, had …

Dr. Jesse Voigts provides advice for study abroad students

June 11, 2009 – 9:00 am |

Studying abroad can be an exciting time for students.  Intercultural experiences are exciting, sometimes frightening, transformative, and often life-changing.  You are now living in a new culture, with norms that are entirely different from what you’re used to at home. Maybe gender roles are different in your new culture, or food, or transportation, or you …

Book review: Susan Vreeland’s Artemisia

June 4, 2009 – 9:00 am |

The Assignment: Fact check Susan Vreeland’s art-historical novel The Passion of Artemisia. Vreeland appears to present a balanced and factually correct version of Artemisia Gentileschi’s life, without focusing entirely on her rape and its consequences. How correct are the various art historical facts, like the dating of paintings (as far as we know), the people …

Female artist biographical film project

April 26, 2009 – 4:29 pm | 2 Comments

Students in my advanced seminar on “Women and the Arts in Early Modern Italy” have been assigned the production of a short film biography on a female artist of the Renaissance or Baroque period.

Made in Cortona: Arturo in Letto, “Ciao Marco” video

April 26, 2009 – 3:00 pm |

The hot new American pop star Arturo in Letto [sic!], aka A.J. (Douglas) Weiss, has chosen Cortona, Italy as the inspiration behind and set for his latest video “Ciao Marco”, which is exploding to the top of the charts on YouTube right this minute. We who “knew him when” hope that the fame won’t go …

Elisabetta Sirani (female artist biographical film)

April 24, 2009 – 4:43 pm | One Comment

The Funerary Procession of Elisabetta Sirani
Summary: Elisabetta Sirani was a 16th century female painter from Bologna. She exceeded the expectations for her sex by painting scenes atypical for a female artist. Unfortunately, not much is known about her; what is known is that after her tragic death at age 27 Bologna held a lavish funeral …