SUMMER 2023
Dates: APPROX. June 5 - July 18
Application Deadline: April 1
Costs:
6 credits: $TBD
9 credits: $TBD
*A non-refundable deposit of $500 is due within two weeks of acceptance. This deposit is applied towards the program cost and paid to the College of Staten Island.
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Please note that if you see dates or costs for a prior term above, that future terms will have similar dates and costs. We will update info as soon as it becomes available.
Click here to see the robust offering of merit scholarships, grants, and need-based assistance that IAU offers.
Click here for IAU Aix-en-Provence Art Semester Programs
The Studio Art Program in Aix-en-Provence in the south of France is offered at The Marchutz School of Fine Arts, located just outside Aix-en-Provence, near the Chateaunoir where Cézanne lived and worked. The Marchutz School of Fine Arts, founded by German artist Léo Marchutz in 1971, operates under the auspices of the Institute for American Universities (IAU). Provence is one of the most beautiful, varied regions of France, roughly bordered by Toulon to the east, Nómes to the west and Orange to the north. The Mediterranean is the natural boundary to the south.
The Marchutz School of Fine Arts combines studio work, an intensive interdisciplinary art criticism seminar, liberal arts and social science courses for an immersive artistic experience. Excursions to local and regional museums and cities around France and Europe round out the term abroad. Studio work informs the museum excursions, while the seminar discussions and museum study enhance the on-site painting and drawing sessions. An in-depth study of the locations that inspired masterworks by Van Gogh and Cezanne benefits each student’s own way of seeing. All of these activities interweave to give each artist a perception of his or her own contemporary work in relation to the art of the past -- an essential step toward self-discovery.
College of Staten Island, CUNY
Stephen Ferst
Executive Director
Questions? Contact me
studyab@csi.cuny.edu
Tel:(718) 982-2100
This program is sponsored and administered by the College of Staten Island CUNY.
At the Marchutz School of Fine Arts, all courses are taught in English. The Marchutz student body usually consists of individuals with a varied range of experience. As students engage in their individual artistic endeavors, this range of age and experience proves beneficial to the quality of dialogue and capacity for growth. The Marchutz School of Fine Arts takes an interdisciplinary and holistic approach to art education.
The general purpose of the curriculum is threefold: to enhance awareness of the relationship between perception and imagination, to foster historical and critical perspective, and, above all, to develop the student's capacity to see.
Course Offerings
The Marchutz School of Fine Arts in Aix-en-Provence takes an interdisciplinary and holistic-approach to studio art. Painting and drawing, study in museums, and reading/writing assignments encourage students to explore the correspondences between natural and artistic forms. In the studio, figure drawing, portraiture, landscape and still-life painting are interrelated with copying, memory work, and sketchbook journals.
Group and individual critiques are integral to the students' work. In seminars, students are asked to seek connections in their work with that of other artists and critics. Music, poetry, and theater are often compared to painting, sculpture, or architecture. Studio disciplines and aesthetics are taught separately but presented as a unified body. Studio, writing, history, and criticism combine to form one seminar in seeing. The faculty considers each student as a working artist regardless of his/her level of experience. Whether beginning or well advanced, the student who will thrive at the Marchutz School of Fine Arts is serious and committed.
The summer program consists of one Painting/Drawing class and an Art Criticism Seminar for a total of six credits. Students may choose to enroll in a third IAU course for a total of 9 credits. The program is designed to accommodate all skill levels.
PAINTING AND DRAWING I, II OR III (Required) – 3 credits
The overarching purpose of the painting and drawing courses, at all levels, is to develop the student’s capacity to look both into the visible world and into themselves with the intention of transforming their vision into art. The student is led gradually toward a deeper understanding of the relationship between natural and artistic forms. This is achieved through disciplined study in the landscape, through portraiture and model work and museum study. 90 contact hours.
ART CRITICISM AND AESTHETICS (Required) – 3 credits
Intensive critical and comparative analysis of works from different periods and cultures, with an emphasis on the relationship between content and form. Includes three full-day seminar/site visits.
The site visits take place on one Thursday and two Saturdays – TBA. 45 contact hours.
ADDITIONAL COURSE (Optional) – 3 credits. Students can choose a liberal arts or social sciences course offered during the summer term. Additional charges apply.
Click here to read more about summer courses offered.
Candidates
The school's diverse student body is one of its most exciting resources. Each cohort usually consists of twenty individuals who have a varied range of experiences. Studio art and art history majors, working artists, MFA candidates, art minors, and other students with a real interest in art all bring their particular insights to a shared space and common themes. As students engage in artistic endeavors, their range of ages and achievements enriches the quality of dialogue and expands the capacity for growth. An individual's willingness to embrace this challenge of new exchange matters more than work already accomplished.
Credits: 6 – 9 credits
Instructor's Language: English
Student Life
Aix-en-Provence is a major cultural center, hosting a summer International Music Festival featuring jazz, pop, classical, and opera. Cinemas, museums, parks, restaurants, cafes, and night clubs, as well as a variety of sporting events, are available to students. The region is known for its sunny, temperate and generally dry climate, so sunshine and outdoor activities abound.
Aix’s location provides numerous travel opportunities for students. Field trips are embedded into many courses; several others are organized by IAU staff. Additionally, students are also encouraged to strike out on their own and explore their new surroundings. Marseilles, the Mediterranean and the Maritime Alps are only an hour away, and Nice, Monte Carlo, Barcelona, Saint Tropez, Paris, Milan, Rome and Geneva are all within one day of travel, perfect for a weekend trip.
Housing
IAU prioritizes homestay placements for students due to the cultural and language advantages they offer; however, given the changes in availability and willingness in host families, it is important that students maintain flexibility and an open mind when it comes to housing placements. Moreover, as a result of the reduced number of families available to host students at this time, it will be necessary to place some students in student residence apartments. Students should be prepared that they may not receive their first preference for housing. Note that the costs of all meals, laundry, and cleaning supplies for the student residence apartment are the responsibility of the student.
Homestay placements for this Summer 2023 will only be available on a very limited basis, and therefore students should expect to be placed in a student residence apartment or semi-independent housing arrangement. As a kind reminder, in both of these options, students would be responsible for their own groceries and preparing their own meals. In the case of student residence apartments, students are also responsible for laundry services. Kindly note that these housing options are offered at a lower price point to compensate for the altered inclusions. Cost information can be found here.
Students are housed in the homes of French host families when possible. Living in a French home is ideal as it provides an immediate introduction to life in Southern France. Host families come from a cross-section of society; they belong to no particular professional or social milieu, but all are carefully chosen, and many have hosted American students for several years.
The homestay option offers students room and half board. Daily continental breakfasts and six dinners a week are provided by the host family. Students are responsible for lunches.
Bed, linen, pillow and blankets, are provided, and the room is cleaned weekly. Students must bring their own towels, and they are provided with one machine load of wash each week. You can request to be placed with another IAU roommate in the host family setting.
There is a multitude of affordable cafés, brasseries, small sandwich and grocery shops from which to choose. Many other food markets are available around town during the week.
Duration
APPROX. June 5 - July 18
Costs
6 credits: $ TBD
9 credits: $ TBD
Please note that if you see dates or costs for a prior term above, that future terms will have similar dates and costs. We will update info as soon as it becomes available.
*A non-refundable deposit of $500 is due within two weeks of acceptance. This deposit is applied towards the program cost and paid to the College of Staten Island.
Costs included: Tuition and fees, homestay (breakfast daily and six dinners included) or apartment (without meals), pre-departure advising and orientation, textbook rental, insurance, field study tours, and scheduled cultural activities.
Costs not included: Airfare ($1,200 - $1,500), some meals (homestay option) or all meals (apartment option), passport/visa fees, and personal expenses ($1,000 – $1,500), courses that may incur an additional lab fee.
Click here to see the robust offering of merit scholarships, grants, and need-based assistance that IAU offers.
All costs, fees, and dates are subject to change without notification. Contact the program sponsor to verify all costs, fees, and dates for this program. Please refer to your acceptance materials for information on arrival, orientation, and academic calendar.
Eligibility Requirements
- Minimum class standing - students must have completed at least one semester (minimum 12 semester credit hours) of college-level coursework at the time of application.
- 2.5 GPA or higher
- Students must be at least 18 years of age
Applications to Include
- Official transcripts
- One letter of recommendation from a teacher who knows the applicant from a classroom setting
- Statement of purpose
Application Deadline
March 15
Entry Requirements
A valid passport is required. U.S. citizens do not require a visa for the summer program. Students with other nationalities may be required to apply for a visa. If this is your situation, please allow ample time (6-8 weeks) to apply for your visa starting with the Campus France visa application. Upon acceptance to the study abroad program, you will be provided with detailed instructions on the visa application process, if necessary. Additional information is available on the IAU Passports & Visa page
Have you talked with your study abroad advisor about your home institution's application process? Your institution's deadline might be earlier than the CCIS program application deadline. Check now to make sure all of your material is submitted on time!
"This is a once-in-a-lifetime experience to improve your soul as well as your outlook on life. CCIS is very helpful in all the details in the study abroad application process. The sponsors were personable and knowledgeable in dealing with me and my questions about study abroad."
"Marchutz is a dream come true! I'm learning to paint in the shadow of Cézanne. The professors are amazing. They create a whole world for you to grow and thrive in artistically.
IFALPES, the Institut Français des Alpes specializes in the teaching of French language courses. Known as the "Venice of the Alps" with canals, Old Town, lake, skiing, castles, restaurants, Annecy is a bustling city all year.
Choose from three summer sessions to explore your creative talents while you also explore the French countryside and seek inspiration from the landscapes and old towns that have inspired some of the greatest artistic talents.
This course is perfect for the student who has interests in all things wine, gastronomy, and sustainability.