Behind the beautiful facades of Florence

One of the benefits with studying architecture is the fact that you can do it anywhere, and the advantages of doing it are many. Experiencing new built environments, that may look a lot different from home, could bring your mind to new approaches to architecture. You just have to look at the fact that many great architects through the years have travelled for this purpose to understand the importance of doing it. And by the way, they usually ended up in Italy. In addition, the best place to do this is doubtless in an architectural office.

That’s why I became really happy when I found this short course in Florence.

Florence, a great city to study abroad

If you ask me, Florence is the perfect city to study abroad architecture and interior design in if you want to do it in Italy. The city has wonderful opportunities to offer, and yet the small size enables you to walk everywhere. Even though the city has a very historical centre it has a modern touch. Florence feels very international but without loosing the Italian impression. All these things make it easy to live, and you fell like at home in Florence! Well... except from the heat during summer if you’re from Sweden..!

As I come from the North of Europe, my favourite thing about Florence is the use of the public areas. Particularly the piazzas where you can observe people and the remarkable churches that often surround them.

A phenomenon you can’t experience in Sweden, which makes Florence more alive.

Student's Life: discovering Liguria and Tuscany.

Another great benefit in Florence is the city’s location. Just a few hours away with bus lines you'll fin Liguria region with its coastline known as "Le Cinque Terre". The five fishing villages may be known as a tourist trap, but I really enjoyed the hiking trail between Corniglia and Vernazza, which wasn’t too crowded. Ending the day with swimming in the sea at Monterosso wasn’t so bad either.

While living in Tuscany, I also wanted to experience the well-known landscape. Therefore, I went on a trip that included a hike in Chianti hills, ending with a lunch at the Sassolini Family Villa. Here we also got to try some of the wines they produce.

Studying Architecture on a real project.

First of all, taking a course at an architecture-firm in Italy may sound rather intimidating. Not only being in a different country with everything involving that, but also in an office and not the environment you’re used to as a student. That feeling disappeared however very quickly thanks to the welcoming atmosphere at Studium Architecturae and the teachers’ interest in you. In addition, the lectures given really appealed to me. Some of the approaches to architecture presented opened my eyes. They made me understand the meaning of what I’ve read earlier about architecture history. The lectures also gave me tools to further analyse buildings, but also cities and paintings etc., as well as valuable knowledge about colour. Furthermore, the real advantage of studying at a firm is of course the opportunity to work with a real project. Something you can actually touch and gives the exercises a unity. This has given me new ways to deal with problems and helped me to improve my Sketchup 's skills.

Drawing workshop: Florentine Architecture in my hands!

During the drawing workshop I got the opportunity to develop a better understanding of proportions by drawing facades and elements from historical buildings in Florence. I’ve understood the importance of drawing to obtain better comprehension of the reality I'm living, since it requires another level of observation. Drawing sections and facades of Renaissance Florentine buildings have been an helpful exercise to comprehend better history and composition of architecture . And of course, sketching in such important environments, in the history of architecture, has added a lot to my personal experience.

My wonderful experience at Studium Architecturae

Taking this short course in architecture at Studium Architecturae Florence Design School has been very rewarding in different ways. It has given me an insight in how it can work in an architecture office. The lectures have been based on the fundamentals of architecture, which has been very useful for me since I’ve never gotten them presented as thoroughly. They have also given me new points of views. Getting to practise what you’ve learned with support from the teachers has of course likewise been an important part of the learning process. Finally, studying architecture can sometimes feel a bit intimidating. That’s why I think you should take every chance you can get to learn more and widen your perspectives. By doing this, you realize more and more that the tools to use are many in order to understand the built environment and advance any problems relating to architecture. But above all, it makes architecture increasingly more interesting and fun to study. I'll recommend you!