Summer courses

A beginner course of Italian at the A1 level (according to the Common European Framework), covering the basic language functions for simple and effective communication in the Italian language. Lessons focus on providing the skills necessary in order to use the Italian language in a variety of contexts such as meeting people, doing groceries, ordering in a restaurant, moving around the city, asking for help or directions, and so on.
At the end of the course you will be able to make positive and negative statements, present people and things, introduce yourself, request and understand basic personal information (age, work, address…), use prepositions and location, describe habits and daily activities, express date and time, possession and quantity, and more. Classes will be made up of no more than 20 students.

Duration: 2 weeks, 30 hours
Dates: June 30th - July 11th
Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Water, Art and Archaeology", "Venetian Art History", "Geopolitics and Geostrategy"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

This course provides an introduction to Italian art history within the context of the history of Venice. Through lectures and visits to the city’s main sites of interest such as Ca’ Rezzonico, Palazzo Grimani, Basilica dei Frari and other important monuments, the course will focus on the analysis of Venice’s most meaningful works of art and the vicissitudes of its famous artists, and will gain a better understanding of what has come to constitute the myth of this enchanted city.

In particular, the course, moving between the 15th and 18th centuries, intends to explain how art evolved in the lagoon between the Renaissance and Rococo periods, reading works of painting, sculpture and architecture in relation to the social and cultural context in which they were created, in order to discover how State, Church and private citizens concurred in shaping the image of the Serenissima Republic through the centuries.

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours
Dates: July 7th - 11th
Schedule: Monday to Friday in the morning

You can combine it with: "Water, Art and Archaeology", "The Environmental Humanities: A View from Venice", "Critical issues in tourism", "Italian language for beginners", "AI, Cyberthreats and Cyberspies"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

This course provides a site-specific introduction to the Environmental Humanities, a cross- disciplinary field that examines how humanistic knowledge, in dialogue with the natural and social sciences, can interpret and address the unprecedented environmental challenges facing our planet. Our lens is Venice, a city uniquely positioned at the intersection of ecological resilience and vulnerability. Once an ancient republic that thrived in harmony with its lagoon ecosystem, Venice is now a global tourist destination grappling with sea-level rise and climate change. At the same time, the city serves as a vital laboratory where science, art, and culture converge to research environmental impacts and propose innovative future scenarios.

The course begins with an overview of the Environmental Humanities as an evolving discipline, exploring its key concepts, methodologies, and relevance to contemporary crises. Using Venice as a case study, we will examine how both historical and contemporary art contribute to our understanding of ecological challenges. Specifically, we will engage with three iconic Venetian institutions—the Gallerie dell’Accademia, the Querini Stampalia Foundation, and Ocean Space—to investigate the role of art in: Offering unique perspectives on environmental crises; Cultivating awareness and inspiring action; Building new imaginaries for a sustainable future; Providing aesthetic and emotional responses to ecological threats. Through museum visits, critical discussions, and interactive case studies, this course highlights how art and culture can be powerful tools for fostering environmental understanding and resilience.

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours
Dates: June 30th - July 4th
Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Water, Art and Archaeology", "Critical issues in tourism", "AI, Cyberthreats and Cyberspies", "Venetian Art History", "Geopolitics and Geostrategy", "From documenta to Biennale"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

This course will delve into the most pressing and significant critical issues that have emerged in contemporary tourism theory and practice. By drawing on the latest and most relevant research in the field of tourism studies, the class will thoroughly explore the current trends within the tourism industry and critically assess their far-reaching impacts on cities and regions. We will examine the sustainability of the tourism sector, considering its environmental, social, and economic implications from a multifaceted perspective.

A key focus of the course will be the in-depth study of the city of Venice, where we will engage with both theoretical insights through lectures and hands-on learning experiences through fieldwork activities. This comprehensive approach will allow students to critically engage with the real-world challenges of one of the most iconic tourist destinations in the world.

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours

Dates: July 7th - 11th

Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Water, Art and Archaeology", "Venetian Art History", "Geopolitics and Geostrategy", "The Environmental Humanities: A View from Venice"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

Water plays a crucial role in shaping human civilizations, acting as both a life-sustaining force and a destructive power. It serves as a symbol of both division and connection, influencing cultures, economies, and environments worldwide. The course Water Art and Archaeology explores water’s function as an ecological mediator in art, architecture, and archaeology through a global comparative approach. Using Venice and its Lagoon as a case study, students will analyze the interplay between water and human creativity, including site visits to cultural landmarks and artists' studios. Archaeological perspectives will examine how geography and material culture shaped settlements, myths, rituals, and religious practices, from indigenous communities to the ancient Greeks and Romans in Italy. In the arts, the course traces representations of water as an ecological mediator from Antiquity to contemporary art, emphasizing how artists address environmental concerns and the dynamic relationship between water, society, and artistic expression. Particular attention will be given to the aesthetics of iridescence, exploring how artists have captured water’s shifting, reflective, and ephemeral qualities to evoke its transformative and mediating role across diverse cultural and historical contexts. Through interdisciplinary analysis, at the end of the course students will gain a deeper understanding of water’s cultural significance, developing critical skills in interpreting material culture, visual representation, and ecological dynamics and fostering a comprehensive perspective on the ways water shapes human experience across time and space.

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours

Dates: June 30th - July 4th

Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Italian language for beginners", "Art History", "Geopolitics and Geostrategy", "The Environmental Humanities: A View from Venice", "AI, Cyberthreats and Cyberspies", "Critical issues in tourism", "From documenta to Biennale"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

This course maps the changing nature of geopolitics and geostrategy over the past century to consider how traditional understandings of war, conflict and risk more broadly have been fundamentally transformed. In a moment in which ‘everything is geopolitical’, we will assess what that term has meant in practice, and how different approaches to geopolitics shape understandings of risk and insecurity – and the strategies designed to counter them.

The module begins with an overview of the histories of geopolitical thought from colonial times to the present day, with a focus on the histories of seapower and its transformations. We will critically assess the distinction between ‘grand strategy’ and ‘geopolitics’, since the two are often (mistakenly) used as synonyms, and then move on to explore the different scales of geopolitics – from the international to the domestic, including the ways in which insecurity enters our daily lives as ‘geopolitical anxiety’.

This course is organized and co-taught by lecturers from Ca’ Foscari, Warwick University and the Italian Naval Staff College (ISMM). Some of the course will be held at the ISMM building in the Arsenale. 

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours

Dates: July 7th - 11th

Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Italian language for beginners", "The Environmental Humanities: A View from Venice", "AI, Cyberthreats and Cyberspies", "Critical issues in tourism", Italian language for beginners

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

This course examines the digital spaces and actors of risk. We will consider new forms of cyber war, including hybrid and grey zone warfare, and the changing role of AI in national security. We will also look at how AI is transforming cognitive warfare and propaganda, as well as new forms of cyberespionage and surveillance.

The module begins with a consideration of the changing spaces and forms of threats today, including hybrid threats and conditions of ‘unpeace’. We will then examine the role of AI in national security, and the changing nature of cognitive warfare and propaganda in the age of AI. Finally, we will discuss emergent forms of cyberwar and cyberterrorism, and cyberespionage and surveillance.

This course is organized and co-taught by lecturers from Ca’Foscari, Warwick University and the Italian Naval Staff College (ISMM). Some of the course will be held at the ISMM building in the Arsenale.

Duration: 1 week, 15 hours

Dates: July 7th - 11th

Schedule: Monday to Friday in the afternoon

You can combine it with: "Art History", "Geopolitics and Geostrategy", "The Environmental Humanities: A View from Venice", "Water, Art and Archaeology"

Prerequisites: There are no prerequisites for this course.

A two-week full time Summer School that provides students with insight into the history, curatorship, and management strategies of the world's most important contemporary art exhibitions, with a particular focus on the Venice Biennale and Kassel's documenta.

All further information can be found on the dedicated webpage.

Prerequisites: Students must have completed an undergraduate degree, and are required to have studied or be currently studying the following subjects at a University level: Art History; Fine Arts, Design and Architecture; Cultural and Media Studies; Exhibition and Curatorial Studies; Media Studies; Global Studies; Arts and Cultural Management.