Cultural courses

Cultural Courses

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Programme 2012
(formato PDF)

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L’Italiano Porticando offers to its students a wide range of theoretical and pratical courses and seminars on many aspects of history, arts, architecture and traditions of the Piedmont area and of Turin. These courses can be combined with all our courses, from individual lessons to our courses in small groups, to our standard courses. We are convinced that to learn Italian, it is also important to learn about the many cultural aspects which are characteristic for the places you visit or you are staying at. The teaching method requires the students to participate actively in their lessons. Audio-visual media, photos, films, documentation and itineraries in and around the city will complete the theoretical part of the lessons.

Cultural courses are proposed every month if there are students interested.

Topics suggested:

- Architecture

- History of Italian Art

- Religion

- Literature

- Workshop on applied and decorative art

- Wine seminar and Wine tasting or Chocolate tasting

- Cooking classes (professional or at the teacher's home)

Architecture:

The topics of the course will be related to architecture and urbanization of Turin. After a general introduction, the students will have the possibility to choose among one of the following epochs:

Roman Turin: the foundation of the city and the places and monuments which witness
the presence of the Romans in Turin;

Turin capital of Baroque:    the marvellous Royal Residences, witnesses of a time of
                          splendor and reminder of the Savoyan family in Turin. From Guarini
                         Gaurino to Filippo Juvarra, two famous architects who made the city to
                         the capital of the Savoyan State.

Art Nouveau in Turin: Turin at the beginning of the 19th century, the "flower style" of the
villas and buildings of the city's new areas.

Changing Turin: Turin, a city which is changing as far as its urban layout and its
                         architecture is regarded, a city where renowned international architects -
                        like Gae Aulenti and Arata Isozaki - and artists - like Michelangelo Pistoletto,
                        Jannis Kounellis, Giuseppe Penone, Mario Merz and Per Kirkeby - meet and
                        work to create the Turin of the future.

Italian History of Art:

The most important currents in Italian Art: from Byzantine, to Renaissance, to Barock Art and from the tendencies of the 19th century to the avant-garde movements of the 20th century.

The most important artists of Italian Art: presentation of the artists' lives and analysis of their major works.

Schedule: in the afternoon at school
Price: € 15,00/1,5 h (min. 3 people)

Religion:

The course will introduce with photos, slides and guided tours the following topics:

The route of the pilgrims: presentation of the route of the pilgrims of the Middle Ages on
their way to Rome, of the places, the abbeys and the monasteries which
witness the spirituality of the past and of the present.

The history of the Holy Shroud: the course or seminars aims to present to the student one of the biggest mysteries of Christianity: the Holy Shroud, which has been kept in Turin since several centuries. Part of the course will also be a visit at the Museum of the Holy Shroud.

Literature: Italy's and Piedmont's most famous authors

During this course the students will get to know several authors, who were born, grew up and lived in Piedmont and who in their works described and spoke about this region.

Some of those authors have been important for the Italian literature and are, sometimes, also internationally renowned, as for example Alfieri, Pavese, Soldati, Ginzburg, Fruttero & Lucentini.

Corso di letteratura

WORKSHOPS

Applied and decorative Arts:

The school organizes upon request courses in applied and decorative arts, as for example:

Waterpainting:     the course includes a theoretical part on the basic knowledge of
                           colours and waterpainting techniques and a practical part carried out
                           partly in the rooms of the school and partly outside, on Turin's beautiful
                           hillside.

Bandera stitching: an introduction to Piedmont's typical stitching techniques which were
                           used at the Savoyan court during the 17th century. The main topics of
                           the course will be some information on the history of this stitching
                           technique, on the textile materials used and on the main characteristics
                           of piedmontese baroque drawings.

Schedule:           On 2 afternoons, from 14:30 to 17:30 o‘clock
Price:                  € 25,00 (if there are at least 2 people)/person and afternoon
Includes:           - Introduction to the different techniques
                                   - documentation and educational materials

The price does not include the necessary working materials. The participants will have to buy the materials requested by the teacher.

Workshops on wine and cuisine in Piedmont:

The school organises monthly courses on piedmontese wines and cuisine which are normally held in the afternoon. The participants will be introduced by professionals to the wines and cuisine of Piedmont.

Seminar on the famous wines of Piedmont

Schedule:      in the afternoon at school
Price:             € 40,00
Includes:       - Introduction into the famous wines of Piedmont and their combination
                        with typical dishes;
                      - documentation and further educational materials;
                      - tasting of typical wines and products

Winetasting

Visit to a winery in the historic city centre of Turin where you will taste some of the most famous piedmontese wines together with some typical products of the region.

Schedule: late afternoon/early evening
Price: 15-20 € (min. 4 people)

Chocolate tasting and visit to the production workshop of a famous chocolate manufacurer

Visit to the shop of a famous chocolate manufacturer in Turin's historic city centre to taste some of his famous chocolates. On request there is also the possibility to visit the production workshop.

Schedule:         in the afternoon (in September, October, January, February, May and
                        June)
Price:              chocolate tasting € 15,00 (min. 6 people)
                        visit to the production with chocolate tasting 24,00 (min. 6 people)

The gourmet cuisine of Piedmont:

Schedule:         in the late afternoon/evening in a cooking school in the
                        centre of Turin/in a typical restaurant
Price:               € 60,00-80,00 (minimum 4 participants)
Includes:         - Introduction into the preparation and presentation of
                           piedmontese dishes
                        - documentation and further educational materials;
                        - dinner with the dishes cooked

Cooking with the teacher

This course is for all those who want to learn how Italians cook at home. During this cooking class at the teacher's home students will learn to cook italian and piedmontese dishes.

Learn Italian during your cooking classes Schedule:           in the afternoon/evening at the teacher's
                           home
Price:                  € 35-45,00 (min. 4 people)
Includes:           - cooking of italian and piedmontese
                            dishes
                          - documentation and educational
                             materials
                          - dinner with the dishes cooked

Please contact us for more information and prices: info@italianoporticando.com