Alexis Goldsmith, a fourth-year English and dietetics double major at IU, is one of a small group of students headed to Florence, Italy, this weekend.
The Florence Summer Program is an IU-affiliated, six-week study abroad course that began and will run through June 17. The program allows students to choose two of three possible courses, which gives them a total of six college credits upon their completion of the program.
These courses include a multi-level drawing class, where participants and instructors spend the day out in the city drawing, painting and collaging what they see. Secondly, the program offers a 200-level Florentine Renaissance Art History class.
Students learn while standing in centuries-old cathedrals or while in front of works by masters like Leonardo da Vinci and Michelangelo. Lastly, a multi-level Italian language course is available to those interested in immersing themselves deeper into Italian culture.
While in Florence, students stay at the Hotel Villani. The hotel was built in 1986 and is comprised of several shared bedrooms on one floor of a large apartment building. The building is just steps away from the Duomo and many famous museums in the heart of Florence.
The program, though centered around art and language, is open to all IU students. Goldsmith, for example, has no knowledge of Italian and only practices art recreationally.
She said there is a limited selection of programs offered through the English and dietetics departments.
“I was questioning why I would want to spend $10,000 to go to England and read the same things that I would be reading in my major here,” she said. “I really wanted something that was outside my comfort zone and outside of my normal academic experience. So I heard about the Florence art program, and I’ve always loved art. Art is like literature in that they are both forms of expression. So why not Florence?”
Despite the country, professors and classmates being a complete unknown, Goldsmith said she is not nervous.
“We’ve all gone off to college, and this isn’t the first time I’ve traveled where I didn’t know anything about the destination or the people who are going to be there,” she said. “I think people in general are pretty nice and willing to get along with you.”
Goldsmith said she has no expectations for her time in Florence. She said she believes it’s best to enter situations with a clear mind that is open to all possibilities.
She plans to travel while in Europe.
Her return flight leaves from Dublin on July 5, and she has a “harebrained scheme to wonder the streets of Dublin until (she) finds Hozier.”
Still, Goldsmith said she is most excited to collaborate and create with her peers. She said she believes “the best way we can love other people is to create together.”
