Spoleto Study Abroad 2014: Final Day Trip and Performance Class

Yesterday (Thursday) we travelled to two cities, Civita di Bagnoregio and Orvieto for our final day trip. Civita di Bagnoregio is a town situated on the cliffs near Orvieto. Since its Etruscan inception and full occupancy during the Middle Ages, its population has dwindled due to damage from earthquakes and WWII. The town is now a summer destination and is only accessible by a footbridge.

Civita di Bagnoregio

The footbridge to Civita di Bagnoregio

The main square in Civita di Bagnoregio

In Orvieto students were free to sample the local food offerings and products such as olivewood goods and pottery. Lorenzo Muti led us through Capella di San Brizio in Orvieto’s Duomo. Please see Marybeth Immediata’s explanation on this experience and how it relates to the “Arts and Ideas” course below.

On Thursday Art and Ideas students had one final opportunity to utilize the “town as text” model as they examined the Renaissance frescoes completed by Luca Signorelli in the Capella di San Brizio in Orvieto’s cathedral. There they viewed Signorelli’s unusual depiction of the end of the world as well as his portrayal of life beyond the grave, specifically his rendering of Dante’s literary description of hell. Throughout the week students had been discussing and dramatizing the various cantos they were reading, exploring Dante’s use of contrapasso in the various levels of Inferno, focusing on how the sights and sounds described so vividly by Dante the pilgrim served Dante the poet’s larger purpose. During our final class, held in the Mercato in the upper part of town, amid cappuccinos, pastries, hot chocolate and gelatos, students commented on the two cantos from Purgatorio and Paradiso and their personal aesthetic response to selections from this literary masterwork. As they prepared to depart Spoleto they also commented on ways in which their perceptions about art and culture have been impacted by this brief exploration of art and ideas.