Pratt in Venice: Forty Years of Opening Doors

For four decades, the annual Pratt in Venice summer program has offered a door to the world, expanding access to culture, history, and firsthand experience for students across disciplines. Through this door, students find passage to new places, spaces, and ideas, with the kind of up-close access that can’t be taught in a textbook or online. This singular Pratt in Venice experience is both beloved and revered for its academic rigor and romantic sense of possibility.

“The focus of Pratt in Venice has always been to provide informed access to an historic culture manifested in extant architecture and art in many forms,” said Professor of History of Art and Design Diana Gisolfi, director of Pratt in Venice. “The fragile beauty of the city in the lagoon continues to inspire artists.”

40 Years and Counting

This past June and July, sixteen undergraduate and graduate students left the bustle of New York City and dove into the history and culture of Venice. This year marks the program’s 40th year on site, having operated almost continuously since its founding in 1984. Offering a uniquely integrated curriculum of art practice and history, the program allows students to study painting, drawing, printmaking, and art history, as well as the materials and techniques of Venetian art. Students also have the option to take Italian lessons while they’re immersed in the language and culture around them.

Through a full slate of lessons and activities, students learn from expert craftspeople and conservators; encounter art in its original context of palaces or churches; visit world-class museums; and strengthen their own artistic voice and cultural understanding through research in renowned libraries and through individual exploration of the city. Highlights of this summer’s program included demos of wood conservation and mosaic art, trips to Torcello, Padua, and the Veneto, walking architecture tours, and opportunities to draw or paint on site. This year, the trip also coincided with the 61st International Art Exhibition of the Venice Biennale, titled In Minor Keys, which gave students a chance to engage in topical conversations and compare ancient works to contemporary art from around the world.

“It is clear that this itinerary is a true labor of love, thoughtfully curated over many years. I am deeply grateful for the chance to experience so many remarkable works of art and architectural spaces in situ, guided by the expertise and insights of the professors, historians, and craftspeople that enriched every visit in ways that simply would not have been possible otherwise,” said Rachel Pontius, MA History of Art and Design/MS Library and Information Science ’28.

For many students, scholarships help make this experience possible, including the new Dimitri Hazzikostas Endowed Scholarship for Art History, which will support art history degree candidates who wish to embark on this unforgettable journey and deepen their academic studies in Venice. The scholarship, which has been generously made possible by Ion Hazzikostas, the son of the late History of Art and Design Professor Dimitri Hazzikostas, officially launches in 2027; a generous preliminary donation has already benefited two participants on this summer’s trip.  

Sarah Lichtman, chair of the History of Art and Design Department, expressed appreciation for the gift, and the experiences it enables. “The opportunity for students to study art and design history with such outstanding Pratt faculty in situ in Venice is unparalleled,” she said.

Students are also granted access to world-class libraries, home to historical scholarly works and primary sources, such as illuminated manuscripts and early printed books, which can then serve as the basis for their research projects. The Cini Foundation Library, located in an abbey on the island of San Giorgio Maggiore, houses an impressive art historical library as well as conservation journals. Parts of this library were designed by Longhena in the 1600’s.

“The program’s in-depth and in-situ approach was invaluable to my interest in the Renaissance and Baroque periods,” reflected Ferdousi Islam, MA History of Art and Design/MS Library and Information Science ’28. “Examining art and architecture firsthand alongside expert faculty enhanced my education, while my research project allowed me to explore transcultural connections beyond the borders of Venice.”

The program will be celebrated with an exhibition on Pratt’s Brooklyn campus this fall, which will highlight the artistic and academic projects completed over the six weeks in Venice. 

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