Italian Art Colleges

Fine Art

• Rembrandt is only one of the many artists that students focus on at The Florence Academy of Art.Photos.com/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Painters and sculptors attend the Florence Academy of Art. Established in 1991, the academy's founder, Daniel Graves, was determined to found a school that was grounded in discipline with an emphasis on the realistic paintings of the Old Masters. Art courses focus on cast painting, portraiture, clay molding and still life paintings. Classes are offered in art history where students study Rembrandt, Velasquez and Michelangelo. Examples of previous lecture topics include "Greek Sculpture and Its Influence" and "Leonardo's Art and Science."
  
  Located in Milan, the Nuova Accademia Di Belle Arti also teaches various visual art techniques. This school's primary focus is on contemporary art and its function in society, and students major in fashion, theater design, graphic design and visual arts via undergraduate or graduate programs. Samples of courses include artistic anatomy, history of modern art, aesthetics, sculpture and cultural anthropology.
  
  

Fashion and Design

• In addition to offering courses in fashion, the Istituto Europeo Di Design also has classes in interior design.Jupiterimages/Photos.com/Getty Images
  
  Polimoda International Institute Fashion Design and Marketing in Florence focuses on training students who are passionate about fashion and want to explore such fields as marketing, production and commercialization. New students begin with courses such as orientation classes in fashion design and shoe techniques. More advanced sessions include luxury management, fashion brand management and fashion-trend forecasting.
  
  With locations in Milan, Florence, Cagliari, Rome, Venice and Turin, the Istituto Europeo Di Design is another fashion-oriented school that lets students get bachelor's or master's degrees in either visual communications and management, fashion or design. The schools offers three-year programs, summer programs and continuing study programs. Course selections include fashion marketing, visual merchandise and fashion communication. Students interested in design can sign up for classes in interior design and light design. Note that class selection varies based on city.
  
  

Summer Art Schools

• At Studio Art Centers International, art history classes are often held as you roam Florence.Jupiterimages/Pixland/Getty Images
  
  Affiliated with Bowling Green State University in Ohio, Studio Art Centers International in Florence lets students choose to study for a semester, a full academic year or just during the summer. Courses include studio classes, including ceramics, digital animation and Italian fashion design, and academic classes such as high-Renaissance art history, Italian language and history of the opera.
  
  In the hillside town of Montecastello di Vibio in Umbria, you will find The International School of Painting, Drawing and Sculpture. The student populace is diverse, ranging from professors to undergraduates. Drawing is the primary emphasis. Classes range from 3- to 4-hour sessions, four days a week, which allows time for students to work on their own. The school offers 24-hour-a-day access to the studios. In the evening, students can attend lectures, while Fridays are reserved for field trips to nearby cities to absorb and study past artistic movements.
  
  

Culinary Arts

• At Apicius, the Culinary Institute of Florence, students can sign up for classes on wine appreciation.Stockbyte/Stockbyte/Getty Images
  
  At Apicius, the Culinary Institute of Florence, both professionals and amateurs can choose from weekly programs or workshops to hone their skills. While some group courses focus on Tuscan cuisine, others study wine appreciation. The school also offers classes in the Italian language. An example of a workshop session is the "gusto workshop" where students can take 14-hour group classes coupled with 10 hours of individual study.
  
  Organic Tuscany caters toward tourists who want to learn while they travel. The school offers a course that lasts a week and visits organic farms. The school itself is between Siena and Florence, and classes, which are taught in English, teach budding chefs how to make cuisine such as egg pasta dough and artichoke risotto. Accommodations are typically in restored villas, manors or cottages amid vineyards and olive groves.