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What shape should a church have, and how should it be decorated? What symbols or scenes from the Bible would you feature, and how would you portray Jesus? What do your answers to these questions say about your understanding of Jesus and theology? Attempting to answer these questions will take us deep into the study of Christian art. 

In this course we will study buildings, paintings, and sculptures in Italy and France that artists over the centuries have created to embody their understanding of the Christian faith. We'll situate the works in various eras of art and architecture, ask what they reveal about how the artists understood the gospel, and consider the influence of these works on our understanding of the Christian faith. 

We will go from studying the earliest Christian art in the catacombs to the radically new way of seeing ushered in by the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists. Our primary texts will include some of the most famous churches and museums in the world: the Duomo and the Uffizi in Florence; St. Peter's and the Vatican Museums in Rome; Notre Dame and the Louvre in Paris. Additional areas of study will be the art of the Early Church (the catacombs and Ravenna), Gothic architecture and stained glass in France (Chartres, Bourges, Paris), the Italian Renaissance (Ghiberti and Brunelleschi) and High Renaissance (Michelangelo and Raphael), and the flowering of the Baroque in Rome (Caravaggio, Bernini, Borromini), besides days spent studying art in wonderful towns like Assisi, Siena, and Orvieto. 

Don't mistake this course as merely a guided tour. A thorough knowledge of the sites and texts will be required on papers and examinations. In addition, each student will design her or his own review of the masterpieces of the Christian faith. Interested? Come to one of the information sessions and learn more about what it is like to explore these cities – including sampling their gastronomical delights and perhaps trying our hands at making some pasta dishes too.

• Thursday, Jan. 1: Depart from SFO
• Friday, Jan. 2: Arrive at CDG (Paris)
  Depart from CDG, Arrive in FLR (Florence)
• Saturday, Jan. 3: Florence
  Visit San Marco & Fra Angelico, The Uffizi (part I)
• Sunday, Jan. 4: Florence
  Climb the dome of the Duomo, Museum of the Duomo

Week 1

• Monday, Jan. 5: Siena
• Tuesday, Jan. 6: Florence
  Visit the Bargello and the Chapel of the Magi, The Accademia
• Wednesday, Jan. 7: Florence
  Visit the Uffizi (part II)
  Some places in Florence you might want to see, especially if we haven’t slipped any of them into our itinerary: Santa Croce; the Palazzo Vecchio; inside Orsanmichele; Santa Maria Novella; San Miniato; the Baptistry; the Duomo
• Thursday, Jan. 8: Depart from Florence, Arrive in Ravenna
  Visit the Arian Baptistery, Sant’ Apollinare Nuovo, and Dante’s Tomb
  Depart from Ravenna, Arrive in Assisi 
• Friday, Jan. 9: Assisi
  Visit the Basilica of St. Francis, Lower Basilica
• Saturday, Jan. 10: Assisi
  Visit the Basilica of Santa Chiara and the Upper Basilica of St. Francis, The Porziuncola in Santa Maria degli Angeli
• Sunday, Jan. 11: Depart from Assisi, Arrive in Deruta
  Visit the riverside town of Deruta where the clay from the Tiber is perfect for pottery, then the hill town of Orvieto where we will study the cathedral and its San Brizio Chapel painted by Signorelli
  Depart from Orvieto, Arrive in Rome
  Walk by Trevi Fountain, the Pantheon, and the Piazza Navona

Week 2

• Monday, Jan. 12: Rome
  Visit San Pietro in Vincoli, San Clemente, S. Ignazio, S. Maria sopra Minerva, Caravaggio walk (S. Luigi and S. Agostino)
• Tuesday, Jan. 13: Rome
  Visit S. Maria Maggiore and S. Giovanni in Laterano, Borghese Gallery
• Wednesday, Jan. 14: Rome
  Papal Audience, Vatican Museums (part I)
• Thursday, Jan. 15: Rome
  Visit S. Pietro, Vatican Museums (part II)
  Evening cooking class at Enoteca Corsi, 6:00 PM where we eat what we cook! Probable menu: stuffed zucchini blossoms; fettuccine al pomodoro; tiramisu
• Friday, Jan. 16: Rome
  This is a great day to visit the Coliseum, the Roman Forum, the Capitoline Museum, and oh, so many more including the nearby Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica in the Palazzo Barberini to the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna on the far side of the Villa Borghese.
• Saturday, Jan. 17: Rome
  Visit Santa Maria del Popolo, S. Maria della Vittoria; S. Andrea; San Carlino
  Group dinner at L’Orso 80, 8:00 PM, possibly followed by a walk by the Piazza Navona.
• Sunday, Jan. 18: Depart from FCO (Rome), Arrive at CDG (Paris), Private bus to Chartres
  Opening tour of Chartres Cathedral – sketching!

Week 3

• Monday, Jan. 19: Chartres
  Visit Chartres Cathedral
• Tuesday, Jan. 20: Private bus to Bourges
  Visit the Cathedral in Bourges
  Depart from Bourges, Arrive in Chartres
• Wednesday, Jan. 21: Private bus to Paris
  Group Lunch: L’As du Fallafel, 34 Rue du Rosiers in the Marais (literally, “The Ace of Falafel,” a Kosher restaurant in the Pietzl or Jewish Quarter of the Marais), Visit the Place des Vosges, Saint-Louis-et-Saint-Paul, Aux Merveilleux du Frédéric Vaucamps (a meringue cake), the Avenue of the Just, St-Gervais-et-St-Protais, Saint-Severin
• Thursday, Jan. 22: Paris
  Visit Saint-Étienne-du-Mont and Saint-Sulpice; We will have a chance to stop back in the hotel for a few minutes as we go from the first to the second church. As with all classes, always bring your Whisper Tech.); The Musée d’Orsay (Perhaps you would prefer touring a few more churches and small museums. Indeed, I would love to explore La Madeleine and Le Petit Palais with you.)
• Friday, Jan. 23: Paris
  Visit Notre Dame & Sacre Coeur, though perhaps La Madeleine and Le Petit Palais; The Louvre
• Saturday, Jan. 24: Paris
  A few suggestions: Versailles; the Eiffel Tower; more time in the Louvre; Sainte-Chapelle; Musée de l’Orangerie (to see Monet’s Waterlilies);  Le Petit Palais; Musée Carnavalet
• Sunday, Jan. 25: Paris
  Visit the Musée Maurice Denis

Week 4

• Monday, Jan. 26: Depart from CDG, Arrive at SFO

Course Fee: TBD
Learn about the Jan Term Travel Scholarship for additional funding.

This fee includes:
Airfare, Local Transportation, Lodging, Excursions (e.g., museums, tours, etc.), Travel Insurance ($35/student - international classes only), Miscellaneous, Not all meals, but many!

Estimated cost outside of course fee:
There currently are no visa costs for U.S. citizens. All admission fees and in-country transportation is included. Indeed, all course-related costs are covered. For meals that aren't included and souvenirs, I have past students advise them, but many suggest a ballpark figure of $50 a day, though it is easy to come in well below that.