Discover Venice: Save Venice! Save Venetians!
Dates: May 9-19, 2027
Course: HST 229: Venetian Society and Culture (Cross-listed CHP 200 and ART 209)
Why does Venice matter beyond its beauty — and can it even be saved? This course uses Venice as a lens for exploring cultural heritage preservation, drawing on history, museum studies, and art along the way. Venice is sinking, flooding, and overwhelmed by tourists — but the questions this raises aren't unique to Venice. They're questions every historic city faces: What do we owe the past? Who gets to decide how a place should look and function? And can "preserving" a place ever really mean keeping it frozen in time? We will study these issues through readings and discussions on campus in the second half of the semester, and then we will stay in Casa Artom for ten days in early May, visiting the Venetian museums, churches, and neighborhoods we have read about. The course includes multiple site visits, guest speakers, and meetings with local experts.
Students who've done the program in the past loved the opportunity to first study a place and then visit it, and many used Venice as a jumping off point for other European travels. One past student commented "The Floating Venice program offered simultaneously a deep and romantic dive into the history of Venice and a critical look into all of the problems Venice is currently facing. Not only did I get to develop a deep appreciation for Venice, but also a deep concern for the preservation of its culture. Definitely one of the best weeks of my life!"
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| Overview |
Why does Venice matter beyond its beauty — and can it even be saved? This course uses Venice as a lens for exploring cultural heritage preservation, drawing on history, museum studies, and art along the way. Venice is sinking, flooding, and overwhelmed by tourists — but the questions this raises aren't unique to Venice. They're questions every historic city faces: What do we owe the past? Who gets to decide how a place should look and function? And can "preserving" a place ever really mean keeping it frozen in time? We will study these issues through readings and discussions on campus in the second half of the semester, and then we will stay in Casa Artom, Wake Forest's property in Venice, for ten days in early May, visiting the Venetian museums, churches, and neighborhoods we have read about. The course includes multiple site visits, guest speakers, and meetings with local experts. |
| Location |
Surrounded by water, Venice is an enchanting city built on 117 small islands. Its magnificent sights are best seen by walking along the narrow streets, crossing the many canals, and meandering through the piazzas. The Piazza di San Marco, Palazzo Ducale, and the Rialto bridge are three among numerous sites that make Venice an unforgettable city. In addition, Wake Forest students may conveniently explore other parts of Italy including Rome, Florence, Pompeii, and Sicily.
In 1971, the University, with the assistance of Graham Martin, Ambassador to Italy and Wake Forest alumnus, leased the building that formerly housed the American Consulate. In 1974, the building was purchased by Wake Forest and named Casa Artom in honor of Dr. Camillo Artom, a professor at the Baptist Medical Center until 1969. His wife, Bianca Ara Artom, taught Italian at Wake Forest for many years and served as the director of Casa Artom during the summers until her death in 1994.
Casa Artom is a magnificent two-story building facing the Grand Canal. It is flanked by the Palazzo Venier dei Leoni, which houses the Peggy Guggenheim art collection, and the magnificent 15th century home Ca'Dario.
Click the following link for pictures of Casa Artom: Casa Artom Photographs. |
| Course |
HST 229: Venetian Society and Culture (3hrs)
Cross-listed as CHP 200 and ART 209
The course is a deeply interdisciplinary enterprise, with overlapping themes of cultural heritage preservation, history, museum studies, and art. We'll explore relevant questions through three big debates about Venetian history and culture:
1. Restore it — or rebuild it? When a historic building crumbles, do you patch it up with what's left, or recreate it to look the way it "used to"? This isn't just a technical question — it sparked real fights. In the 1800s, critics John Ruskin and Viollet-le-Duc clashed hard over how (or whether) to restore the Basilica San Marco. A century later, Venetians and preservationists argued just as fiercely over rebuilding the church of Santa Maria dei Miracoli.
2. Whose Venice is it? Millions of tourists and art lovers around the world want Venice's art and architecture preserved forever. But the Venetians who actually live there need clean water, housing they can afford, and an economy that works for residents — not just visitors. What happens when a global treasure and a living city want different things?
3. Freeze it in time — or let it change? Venice has a motto for rebuilding after disaster: com'era, dov'era — "as it was, where it was." But is that always realistic, or even wise? The 1902 collapse of the bell tower, the catastrophic floods of 1966, and the fire that destroyed the La Fenice opera house in 1996 all forced Venice to confront this same question: rebuild the past, or make room for something new?
You can take the class for history, CHP, or art credit, and your individual research project will reflect the way you are taking the class.
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| Faculty |
Dr. Monique O’Connell
Professor of History
Tribble B-104
336-758-4711
oconneme@wfu.edu
I visited Venice for the first time as an undergrad on a study abroad program, and that visit changed my life. I fell in love with the city, returned as a graduate student studying Venetian history, and it is now a great pleasure for me to introduce students to Venice by leading study abroad trips. My scholarly expertise is in the culture and politics of Renaissance Venice, and I have written books and articles on economic exchange, early print culture, political communication, classicizing rhetoric, clerical conspiracies, and the history of botany. On campus I teach courses in medieval European history, the Italian Renaissance, and Science Magic and Alchemy in Medieval Europe. |
| Accommodation |
Casa Artom can typically accommodate twenty students. The house has bedrooms, a library, classrooms, a dining room, a living room, two kitchens, a patio, and an open courtyard. Modern kitchen facilities are available, and students often prefer to cook their meals together in the house. The house is wired for Internet access and students should bring their laptop computers. The Resident Professor has a suite upstairs consisting of two bedrooms and a bath. Washers and dryers are available in the laundry room.
Click the following link for pictures of Casa Artom: Casa Artom Photographs. |
| Excursions |
In Venice, we will do walking tours of the Rialto Bridge, the Ghetto, Napoleonic Venice, the Biennale and African Venice. We will visit the Doge's Palace, the Correr Museum, the Guggenheim, the Accademia and the Scuola di San Rocco. We will also take a day trip to Padua to see fortifications and the Anatomical Theater and hear from experts in Cultural Heritage Preservation at the University there. We will also hear from experts in history, art history and from Venetians involved in the future of their city. |
| Selection |
The Resident Professor is responsible for the selection of each group based on the following criteria:
- Academic suitability
- Social and emotional maturity
- Seriousness of the student in pursuing the academic and cultural aims of the program
- Applicability of the program to the student's interests and studies
Majors in all disciplines are eligible and encouraged to apply.
The selection process requires an interview and permission of the instructor. Interested students should email program director Monique O’Connell (oconneme@wfu.edu). Please put in the subject line “Venice.”
Interviews will take place during the fall semester. |
| Costs |
The total cost of a spring short-term study abroad program can be broken down into three categories:
Program Fee - Usually covers room, in-country travel, excursions, some meals and other costs associated with the program.
Airfare (estimated) – Varies per location. Students are responsible for their own airfare unless otherwise noted.
Personal Expenses (estimated) – These will vary depending on the students' spending habits, cost of living in the destination country, and the number of meals included in the program fee. This may also include visa fees, vaccinations, academic supplies/books and other miscellaneous daily expenses.
Program Fee - $2,655
Airfare (estimated) - $1,700
Personal Expenses (estimated) - $760
Estimated total cost - $5,115 |
| Scholarships |
Scholarships are available through the Center for Global Programs and Studies. |
| Visa & Passport |
Passport Information
Students need to check their passport's expiration date and ensure that it will be valid for at least 6 months after the program's end date.
Students going on a spring short-term program need to make sure their passport is valid through at least late November of the same year.
US passport holders who need to renew their passport should visit the U.S. Department of State's passport website for information on this process.
Non-US passport holders who need to renew their passport should refer to their home country's passport office.
Visa Information
If you are a US citizen, you most likely will not require a visa for your spring short-term abroad program. If you do, details will be shared with you by GPS. Non-US passport holders should check with their host country's embassy or consulate to find out if a visa is required for their program or not. |
| Contact |
Dr. Monique O’Connell
Professor of History
Tribble B-104
336-758-4711
oconneme@wfu.edu
Dr. Lisa Blee
Professor of History
Tribble B-110
336-758-6695
bleelm@wfu.edu
Claire Tynan
Study Abroad Advisor
Center for Global Programs and Studies
336-758-4072
tynanc@wfu.edu
House Address:
Casa Artom
Dorsoduro 699
San Gregorio
30123 Venice, Italy
Phone: 011-39-041-522-2709
Fax: 011-39-041-522-0277 |
| Testimonials |
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