Italy is the perfect example of the role of architecture and design throughout its history. This program investigated the history, culture, and form of Italian architecture and urbanism from the Romans to the present. Field studies and the design studio both began in Rome, with an analysis of the layers architecture throughout time, and a design workshop with faculty and students from the University of Roma Tre. Other travel in Italy included Florence for its Renaissance architecture as well as Vicenza and Venice to study the works of Andrea Palladio, Carlo Scarpa and Terragni. Field studies to Switzerland, France and Austria examined architecture and design in countries whose recent connections to northern Italy were increasingly important to Italy’s design direction for the future. A retreat in Como and Milan focused more on Italian Rationalism and Radicalism and contemporary production in Milan.

Milan and Como in the Lombardy region, where we were based for two months, are the heart of design, graphics, furniture design, and fashion for Europe. Como has the features and appearance of a medieval city but is also the birthplace of Como’s scale and accessibility, along with its proximity to Milan, site of the yearly April furniture fair, Salone Internazionale del Mobile, an element of program study, made it an excellent base from which to investigate both local events and the surroundings of Western Europe.