Study Abroad: Design and Context in Europe: Rome, Paris and Amsterdam

Application Deadline: March 1, 2017

The Design School at Arizona State University offers this program in Italy, France and the Netherlands to allow the participants to study the relationship between context and design in three of the greatest European cities: Rome, Paris and Amsterdam. All cities are relevant referential points to all contemporary disciplines of design. The program structure, with guided field trips, seminars, in depth on-site analysis, and individual documentation of findings and reflections through sketchbooks will broaden the participants' perception of design as an active and dynamic part of larger cultural issues.

Rome (May 15–May 19)

The trip begins in Rome, thus creating the foundation of a study from antiquity to present time. In the eternal city our group will study how design has contributed to shape the environment over centuries. The focus of our visit will be the exceptional monuments of the empire, the Vatican, the Baroque treasures, and contemporary work by Roger Piano and Zaha Hadid, among others.

Paris (May 20–May 25)

At the French capital, the focus of our explorations will be several exceptional museums, among them: The Louvre, D’orsay, Pompidou, The Picasso Museum, Quai Branly and Vuitton Foundation, as well as the detailed study of major works by Le Corbusier, including the seminal Maison La Roche and Ville Savoye. The group will have ample opportunity to discover other relevant aspects of contemporary design in this city, including a visit to La Promenade Plantée, the inspiration for New York City’s the Highline. A field trip to Versailles is also included.  

Amsterdam (May 26–May 29)

After the grandeur of Rome and Paris we will conclude our program in Amsterdam, structured around canals. This unique city flourished in the 1600s during the Dutch Golden Age in The Netherlands. We will visit the recently expanded Stedelijk Museum, with a particularly important collection of XX century design; the Van Gogh Museum; and the Rijksmuseum, recently restored, to see some of the most relevant works by Rembrandt and Vermeer. We will also study the Voldelpark and other contemporary relevant landscape examples. 

Eligibility

This program is open to undergraduate and graduate students from all the majors at The Design School, the Herberger Institute for the Design and the Arts, and other related disciplines. The program is open to non-ASU students. Application deadline is March 1, 2017. Early applications are encouraged. 

Academic Program

The six-credit component will consist of a seminar, lectures, field trips, and object-context analysis. Each participant will select and explore a topic(s): tectonic and materiality, innovative practices, furniture, street graphic, a particular artistic movement and its relationship with society, the work of a particular designer, or other related issues, and will develop sketches, and notes interpreting what is seen and experienced. Relevant questions and findings will be discussed in seminars.

Students will be required to participate in all seminars and field trips and to keep a sketchbook with daily entries and sketches from all the sites visited. 

INT 494 A Design and Context (3) Seminar/field trips (Required for all students)
INT 494 B Contemporary Design Issues in Europe (3) 
INT 594 A Design and Context (3) (Required for all graduate students)
INT 594 B Contemporary Design Issues in Europe (3) 

Cost:

ASU tuition for 6 credits, hotels, buffet breakfast, airline ticket from Rome to Paris, group transportation from hotel in Rome to airport and transportation from Paris airport to hotel, train from Paris to Amsterdam, and transportation to the hotel in Amsterdam, entrances fees and health insurance. Not included: Round trip airfare from Phoenix to Rome and return from Europe, and transportation to hotel from airport in Rome when arriving and to airport in Paris when departing. ASU student fees, additional meals, and personal expenses. 

More info: 

Study Abroad Office
Jose Bernardi, Jose.Bernardi@asu.edu
Paul Coseo, Paul.Coseo@asu.edu