New study abroad trip highlights art in Italy

09/01/2026

When SUNY Cortland senior Michael Annunziata reflects on his summer break, he sums it up in four words, thinking back to a 10-day study abroad experience exploring art across Italy.

"Trip of a lifetime," said Annunziata, a communication studies major. "It left a mark on me, and it's something that I've really thought about every day since."

The university's Arts of Italy course brought a brand-new SUNY Cortland study abroad opportunity to 20 students representing many different academic majors. Developed and led by Assistant Professor of Art and Art History Wylie Schwartz, the immersive trip explored the cities of Florence, Verona and Venice to provide an inimitable, up-close look at the rich artistic history of central and northern Italy.

Italy is the most popular study abroad destination for U.S. students, according to the Institute of International Education's Open Doors Report, and it's now home to one of SUNY Cortland's 40-plus faculty-led travel programs. More than 600 study abroad options exist across the SUNY system.

And while the country itself was an initial draw for many students, the course content deepened their appreciation for art and broadened their worldview.

"There was a real mixture of (academic) majors who took this because they wanted to go to Italy and they wanted to expand their cultural horizons," said Schwartz, a well-traveled art historian whose research focuses on post-World War II collaborations rooted in northern Europe. "I feel like for every student involved, every single one would say they were completely transformed by the experience."

That much was true for Annunziata, who grew up in Tuckahoe, N.Y., and saw the opportunity as a way to explore his heritage. In Florence, he attended a Catholic mass at the Basilica della Santissima Annunziata, a Renaissance-style church that shares his family's name.

"That was a really special experience for me," Annunziata said. "I was so excited to embrace that moment and tell my parents and my grandparents about it."

Schwartz led the trip alongside Allison DeDominick, lecturer of art and art history, with support from Martine Barnaby, professor of art and art history. It took years of planning to craft the 10-day itinerary and keep costs reasonable for students. Even though Schwartz had visited all of the sites previously, she said the course was a highlight of her teaching career so far - mostly because many students were traveling abroad for the first time.

"Being a guide and the impetus for many students having their very first international travel experience was incomparable," she said. "It was so gratifying being able to watch students not only encounter these historic and beautiful sites - the art ranging from ancient to contemporary - but also see them navigate foreign cities, pick up some of the language, try new foods and express an interest in art and culture."

Of the trip's 20 students, 17 represented SUNY Cortland. Schwartz credited them for building bonds quickly, which she said created a collaborative and inclusive learning environment.

The opportunity will continue for other students thanks to an international partnership that Schwartz helped establish with the University of Verona in Italy.

Daniela Baban Hurrle, the university's director of international programs, said the program has the potential to open minds and change lives - just like it did for Annunziata.

"This program is a wonderful example of faculty innovation, interdisciplinary collaboration and the global learning opportunities available to our SUNY Cortland students," Hurrle said. "It also creates exciting new opportunities for students to study in Italy while further strengthening our international partnerships for years to come."

On the very first day in Italy, the group pushed through jetlag and took a very short walk from its hotel to the Cathedral of Santa Maria del Fiore, also known as the Florence Duomo - an experience that helped set the tone for the trip.

"Being able to walk down there soon after we landed and take in this breathtaking, incredibly rich work of architecture - to see their faces when they realize how spectacular this is - that was really special," Schwartz said.

That feeling continued in Verona, where students attended an authentic Italian opera in an open-air arena among thousands of other people. They also toured the Biblioteca Capitolare, the world's oldest continuously operating library since 517 CE, where they learned about rare books and manuscripts at the same site where Italian poet and writer Dante frequently visited.

There was free time for gondola rides and cooking classes in Venice, along with meaningful opportunities to appreciate art. The group attended the Venice Biennale, a well-known international exhibition of contemporary art that takes place every two years, dating back to the 1890s.

"It's like Disney World for contemporary art," Schwartz said, explaining that advanced installations are displayed uniquely across indoor and outdoor spaces to reflect ideas and commentary about the state of the world.

Annunziata, who began the course with limited exposure to art, pointed to it as a pivotal moment in the trip.

"It really gave me such an appreciation for the world, for individuality, for creativity and imagination," he said. "It's easy to forget when you get lost in your everyday that people are so creative and so unique."

On the last day of the trip, the group returned to Florence. Schwartz made arrangements to visit the studio of Adam Miller, an American artist who lives in Italy and constructs contemporary paintings in the style of monumental Renaissance work - addressing current topics such as artificial intelligence, technology and the environment in a style from centuries ago.

"(Miller) was able to speak to us about his influence in the way that the Italian Renaissance artists tried to bridge art in life," Schwartz said. "So everywhere you go - your homes, your civic spaces - the emphasis was not how to build something cheaply, but how can we make this the most beautiful celebration of the human experience possible?"

Schwartz called that conversation "the perfect ending to the trip" - a way to see how contemporary artists continue to build on ideas that were first introduced in Renaissance Italy.

"That discussion really left people feeling like they didn't want to leave the studio," she said.