Italy
Presenting the Past: History, Visual Arts and the Case of Ferrara
June 8–15, 2008
Itinerary
This 8-day seminar begins and ends in Ferrara and will include trips to Verona and Bologna.
Seminar Fee
CIEE Member: $2,700 Non-Member: $2,900
Academic Content (please note this is tentative and subject to change)
Lectures
- The Contemporary Italian Political Context
- Ferrara as a Renaissance ‘Capital’ (visual arts, urban design, Italian poetry, the Este family, etc.)
- Ferrara’s Jewish history (Jewish Community, the Ghetto, World War II deportations to the present)
- A UNESCO Site: Ferrara as Modern Cultural Landmark
- Ferrara and the Hermitage
- Museums, Cultural spaces and Economic Value
- Ferrara in film
Co-curricular Site Visits & Field Trips
- Guided Walking Tour of Ferrara, ‘The Ideal City’ (includes Este Castle)
- Meeting with City Council
- Tour of the Hermitage Collection if open
- Palazzo Schifanoia and Ferrara’s Renaissance Heritage
- Casa Romei – a banker’s noble residence
- Verona: Guided City Tour and visit to Scaliger Castle
- Bologna City Tour
- Valpolicella Vineyard Tour and Guided Wine Tasting
Rationale
Through a series of lectures by leading academics along with guided visits and a social program this seminar will present the richness of Ferrara’s mediaeval and Renaissance heritage in the context of the needs and concerns of the present. Ferrara is both a wonderfully preserved Italian mediaeval and Renaissance town, and an excellent example of a modern city coming to terms with contemporary economic and social demands. We will look at some of the beautiful things Ferrara has to offer, while at the same time analyzing the highly effective steps this city has taken to restore and modernize its heritage in such a way as to add value for the future. In addition to talks by academic experts in the history of art, we will look at Ferrara’s role as a UNESCO World Heritage Site and at the latest exciting development: the selection of Ferrara as the Italian location for the Hermitage Collection, due to open in March 2008. It is hoped that participants will leave with a profound appreciation of Ferrara; of its history, of its artistic treasures and of what makes it a unique place in contemporary Europe.
Host Institution
The University of Ferrara was founded in 1391 and during the 15th and 16th centuries was transformed into one of the most important cultural centers of the Italian Renaissance. Nicholas Copernicus is just one noteworthy graduate of the university. After the unification of Italy, the University of Ferrara became a free university. Faculties and departments include history, archaeology, philosophy, languages and literatures, education, architecture, physics, mathematics, and natural sciences. There are approximately 12,000 students enrolled with a teaching staff of 600.
Seminar Leadership
Richard Chapman, born in Wales and a resident of Ferrara since 1994, is the Resident Director of the CIEE Study Center in Ferrara. He received his undergraduate degree in history from the University of Cambridge and his Masters in English Language Teaching and Professional Development from the University of East Anglia, UK. He has taught English as a foreign language since 1987 in Germany, Italy, and England. Since 1999, he has taught English in the Department of Languages at the University of Ferrara. Richard is also in the process of writing a series of English language textbooks for Italian secondary schools that coincide with his research interest in the field of language testing.
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