Oil Painting Restoration (Video)

XV Century Fresco Restoration (Video)

CHARTER Program : Ancient Italian Art Conservation

Spend the month of June 2008 with one of Italy's most renowned art conservation programs and learn the special techniques used to restore and preserve many different types of ancient art production. From oil paintings to frescos and from pottery to sculptures, learn firsthand how professional art conservationists work their magic and help generation after generation enjoy productions that are hundreds and even thousands of years old. Each week, conservation theory of a specific material will be taught and then applied on real pieces of ancient Italian art under the guidance of professional restorers in Cesma's state of the art conservation laboratory. Our students have restored everything from a 15th century fresco (video link) discovered in a nearby castle to a 17th century oil painting (video link) damaged during a 20th century attempt at modernization. This one month introductory course in the techniques of art conservation is a taste of the one year degree program that Cesma offers to Italian students enabling them to become professionals in the field. The program is offered to students as well as the general public and qualifies for university credit in the United States through a partnership with an accredited state university.

You will live and learn in the quaint village of Cuorgnè, which is nestled in the foothills of the Italian Alps on the outskirts of Torino (Turin), and take guided tours of the surrounding mountains, valleys, castles and churches studying the art, history, and culture of Northern Italy. You will visit Milan with its magnificent Duomo and Leonardo's famous painting of "The Last Supper" as well as the northern lakes of Orta and Maggiore which are full of ancient history and beautiful Italian gardens respectively. For those interested in deepening their knowledge of the art and history of Medieval and Renaissance Italy and experiencing the "must see" places in the country, we offer two fantastic, but optional, guided tours that take you on long weekend journeys to Venice and Padua as well as Florence. Alternatively, you can spend these free weekends on a self-guided adventure to the Italian Riviera or Piedmont's famous wine region or just relaxing in your newfound home of Cuorgnè soaking in La Dolce Vita like a true Italian.

Click here to see a slide show from the Summer of 2005, our inaugural year for this activity.