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Sorrento Summer: Experiencing Southern Italy through Painting and Drawing

June 23-July 19, 2013

Experience an incomparable opportunity to live and make art in Sorrento, one of Italy's most enchanting Mediterranean towns. The program focuses on interpreting the landscape and townscape of southern Italy through painting and drawing, while simultaneously integrating the rich artistic and cultural heritage of the area into a meaningful Italian experience. The full scope of creative approaches is possible-from observational landscape painting to personal interpretation based on the unique local imagery. Students will be encouraged to develop a full portfolio of directed work.

Days are spent drawing and painting independently outdoors at a variety of locales around Sorrento, producing work ranging from direct rapid sketches to more detailed, focused pieces. Explore the dramatic cliffs, Byzantine alleyways, bustling markets, Baroque churches, and fishing inlets of this sun-drenched coastline. Reside in a grand historic hotel-a former monastery situated in a botanical garden perched on spectacular cliffs overlooking Mt. Vesuvius and the Bay of Naples.

A blend of slide lectures and individual and group discussions complement outdoor painting and drawing. Field trips to the Capodimonte Painting Museum and the National Archaeological Museum, a walking tour of old Naples, and the archaeologist's tour of ancient Pompeii provide context and background to further inform students' work. A three-day break in the middle of the month allows for independent travel to visit Rome or further explore Capri and the Amalfi coast.

This intensive, four-week program offers 3 studio credits in painting, drawing, or general fine arts with an optional 3 credits in art history-classes may be taken for undergraduate and graduate credit or audit. The program is open to undergraduate or graduate students (rising sophomores to second-year graduate students), and to lifelong learners at least 18 years of age who have completed at least one year of college study. Basic study in drawing and painting (or approval of program instructors), and submission of a portfolio of artwork with the application are required for this program. All students must have a current, valid passport for travel.

This program is open to all majors.

Program Fee

Airfare is not included in the program fees below, which include all accommodations, all ground transportation, site admissions and lectures with the group, breakfasts, and dinners:

  • $5,700 includes tuition for 3 undergraduate studio credits in painting
  • $7,200 includes tuition for 6 credits: 3 undergraduate studio credits in painting + 3 undergraduate credits in art history (as an independent study by special arrangement with the MICA Department of Art History)

Graduate credit is available to qualified students with the approval of the Program Coordinator at an additional cost of $75 per credit. A limited number of merit and need-based scholarships may be available, contingent on the continued availability of gift and grant funding. To inquire about scholarships or request a detailed itinerary or additional information on this and other MICA programs, contact the MICA Summer Travel Intensives program at: summertravel@mica.edu or by phone: 410.225.2219.

Faculty

Ellen Burchenal, coordinator, is an artist who works in painting, drawing, and installation. A faculty member in MICA 's general fine arts program, she has exhibited and lectured in galleries and universities throughout the region. She received her MFA from MICA and her BA from Trinity College in Connecticut. Represented by the C. Grimaldis Gallery, she has received several Maryland State Arts Council Artist Fellowships. She has lived and studied in Italy and maintains a passion for the Italian landscape and culture.

Howie Lee Weiss has been on MICA 's faculty for more than 30 years. He earned his MFA from Yale University and his BFA from MICA . He has been a visiting critic and lecturer at numerous institutions, including Princeton University, Minneapolis College of Art and Design, Vassar College, and the Corcoran School of Art + Design. His work has been exhibited in New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Baltimore, and Washington, D.C., as well as in Italy and Japan, where he lectured in conjunction with an exhibit of his work. He is a two-time recipient of MICA's Trustee Fellowship for Excellence in Teaching.

For more information on any of these summer programs, please contact us.