Deposit deadline: March 14
Registration deadline: April 8
Rhode Island School of Design
Two College Street
Providence, Rhode Island 02903-2787
This summer, Rhode Island School of Design offers nine creative and cultural immersions in nine destinations worldwide—from illustrating Irish myths and legends, to bicycle design and making in Tokyo, to cooking and printmaking in France’s Loire Valley.
Credit: Each RISD global summer programs course offers three transfer credits.
Space is limited; early registration is encouraged.
Rome: Posters, A Visual Manifesto
June 6–24
The word for “poster” in Italian is “manifesto.” In the same way that a written manifesto is distinctly assertive, a poster’s imposing scale and strength of form states a strong position. Students research a selected neighborhood’s history, and its relationship to the city, and create a series of posters visually presenting that neighborhood’s “manifesto.”
Denmark: Seminar on Scandinavian Design
June 13–July 2
Denmark’s unique relationship between its culture and design manifests in the lifestyle of its people and the things they produce. Students explore Denmark’s connection to furniture design and how it relates to architecture, graphic arts, lighting and textiles. Centralized in Copenhagen’s Danish Institute for Study Abroad, this course is an immersion into the world of Scandinavian design.
Ireland: Illustrating Myths + Legends in the Burren
June 18–July 16
The rich mythos of Irish oral traditions incorporates fantasy, reality, myth, folklore and history. Based in the studios of the Burren College of Art (BCA) in beautiful western Ireland, students explore Irish myth and legend as fodder for illustrated work. The Burren Mountains, the Irish countryside and wildlife, its charming people, and their stories and artistic traditions serve as inspiration.
Nuremberg: Purposeful Play + Toy Design
June 19–July 10
Nuremberg, with its rich history of art, toy making and child’s play, is the backdrop for our exploration of the toy design and manufacturing process. This intensive course nurtures critical making, thinking and innovation skills through instruction, prototype construction, group critique and playtesting.
Argentina: Hi/Low Tech, Material Hybrids
June 25–July 23
Latin America’s unrivaled history of hybridity has given Argentina a cross-cultural context forming the basis for many heterogeneous narratives and aesthetics. Working at the Espacio Nixso makerspace in Buenos Aires, this immersive experience into material culture is deepened through making with electronics and physical computing.
Rome: Discovery Through Drawing
June 27–July 22
This course is a comprehensive overview of the topographical, architectural and urban history of Rome, while encouraging a habitual practice of freehand drawing, en plein air. Students build their skills incrementally through exercises that engage both representational and analytical qualities of the critical sketch.
France: Gastronomie + Printmaking in Richelieu
July 3–30
The Loire Valley’s town of Richelieu is a cultural center for art, fashion and food, and the Loire itself holds tremendous resources for wine and gastronomy. Sessions alternate between kitchen and print shop in this course that explores concepts of judgment and artifice. Students build judgment in “taste”—both gastronomic and aesthetic—and in cooking and printing skills.
Berlin: Through Your Lens
July 4–30
Berlin’s architecture, public art and cutting-edge galleries make the city an important contemporary art destination with a rich history of photography and photographers. This course provides a serious engagement with photography—whether one prefers to use Instagram or traditional photography—informing a single, personal project inspired by the cultural landscape of Berlin.
Tokyo: Bicycle Design + Making
July 16–August 6
Japan is one of the world’s most influential art and design cultures, the fundamentals of which are influenced by Buddhist culture. In a state-of-the-art bike building facility at Tokyo College of Cycle Design, students have hands-on instruction in traditional Japanese bicycle frame design and build techniques.
