 Learn Spanish and explore literary and visual arts in the Highlands of Peru
Peru
»Watch a 5-minute video on VCU in Peru
6 undergraduate or graduate credits
Dates
Visual and Literary Arts: June 1 - June 27, 2008
Spanish Language: June 1 - July 12, 2008
Professors: Javier Tapia, Michael Schreffler, Scott Mills, Michael Panbehchi and Erin Lambert
E-mail: Peru@vcu.edu
Cost
Visual and Literary Arts: $2,530 + airfare + applicable VCU tuition
Spanish Language: $2,950 + airfare + applicable VCU tuition
Registration deadline: March 17, 2008*
*March 17: deadline for turning in copy of passport and International Student ID card (ISIC) if participating in the Inca trail. Anyone who does not turn in a copy of their passport and ISIC card by March 17 will not be guaranteed a spot on the Inca trail.
Program description and application [PDF]
The Office of International Education, the School of World Studies, the Department of English and the School of the Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University are pleased to announce the summer program in Peru. Participants will travel to Lima for a short visit, and on to Cuzco, for an extended visual exploration of the countryside and culture of the highlands of Peru. The program will include visits to museums to explore ancient, colonial and contemporary art, as well as visits to ancient ruins and colonial sites. Of particular importance will be the group’s participation in the Festival of Corpus Christi in Cuzco. An optional four-day hiking and camping trip along the Inca Trail will expose students to the biological and cultural diversity of that region of the country culminating at Machu Picchu.
 Course and credit options: 6 undergraduate or graduate VCU credits
Participants can choose two of the following three-credit courses offered by the departments of Painting and Printmaking, instructed by Javier Tapia; Photography and Film, instructed by Scott Mills; Art History, instructed by Michael Schreffler; English, instructed by Erin Lambert; and Spanish, instructed by Michael Panbehchi.
Painting and printmaking: PAPR 324 Intermediate Drawing; PAPR 421 Advanced Drawing; SCPT 491 Drawing, Works on Paper; SCPT 591 Drawing, Works on Paper; PAPR 621 Graduate Drawing
A peripatetic investigation of direct observation, on-site drawing. Emphasis will be placed on the development of a suite of drawings in which on-site references become spinal elements in multimedia two-dimensional constructions. Documentation of your daily activities will be maintained in an illustrated diary or journal.
Photography and film: PHTO 491 Videography and Photography; SCPT 491 Video and Photographic Art I; SCPT 591 Video and Photographic Art II
A course of study for still- and moving-image media to include video, film and photography. The program will allow students to work independently and experiment with attention to light, subject matter and point of view with assistance from individual instruction. Professor Mills will also lead students on additional walks and hikes that are of particular interest to photographers, video and filmmakers. Students are required to bring all equipment needed including cameras (video and or still), tape and film (one tape 1hr, multiple memory cards or 24 exp of film per day is recommended), rechargeable batteries (extra batteries are recommended), battery charger (for video and digital cameras) and an AC-power converter (220v to U.S. 110v). A wide-angle lens is highly recommended. Inexpensive wide angle lens adaptors are required for students shooting video. Tripods are optional and in some instances may not be recommended for hikes. Flexible ‘mini tripods’ are recommended. A comfortable, durable, rugged camera bag is important as the nature of the travels in Peru you will encounter differing environments that include moisture, dust and vibration. It is essential to have lens cleaning capacities.
Art History: ARTH 489 Advanced Art History in Peru; ARTH 591 Advanced Art History in Peru
Art and architecture of Inca and Colonial Peru: An in-depth study of visual culture in the Andes, c. 1500-1800. Lectures held throughout the duration of your stay in Peru will be supplemented with visits to art and archaeology museums in Lima and Cuzco. The course will focus on the Inca, the dominant empire in the Andes prior to the Spanish conquest, as well as the colonial culture that emerged under Spanish rule in the 16th through 18th centuries. Each student will be required to complete a series of assigned readings and a workbook, which must be submitted to the instructor at the end of the course.
 English: ENGL 305 Creative Writing; ENGL 435 Advanced Workshop in Poetry; ENGL 437 Advanced Workshop in Fiction; ENGL 439 Advanced Workshop in Nonfiction; ENGL 666 Workshop in Poetry; ENGL 667 Workshop in Fiction; ENGL 672 Workshop in Nonfiction; ENGL 391 South American Literary Traditions; ENGL 691 South American Literary Traditions
ENGL 305, 435, 437, 439, 666, 667 672: Students will sign up for the course in the genre of their interest. Group workshop meetings involving all students will be held while other instruction will involve individual tutorials with the instructor. Primarily a workshop focusing on the writing of its participants, the course will provide a forum for discussing the approaches and techniques of contemporary writers with a special focus on writers from South America, and will enable workshop participants to expand and improve their own writing. The course offers students a chance to benefit from their travel in several ways — through experiences that are richer because they are recorded and reconsidered in writing, as well as through encountering the voices, rhythms and strategies of writers from other cultures as well as their own. The final product of the course will be a portfolio of writing in the genre chosen by the student, which will be presented in its final form to the instructor after our return from Peru.
ENGL 391, 620: Offered at the undergraduate and graduate level, this course will offer a survey of important literary figures from South America, including Peru, and will examine important movements and approaches such as “magic realism.” Students will read most work in translation, but will also be offered the chance to engage in some translation exercises and comparisons themselves (for which previous formal language study will not be required). The course will ultimately result in a final writing project to be turned in after our return from Peru.
 Spanish: Students may take either SPAN 205: Intermediate Spanish Conversation, or SPAN 305: Advanced Spanish Conversation. Students will have varied assignments during the first four weeks of the trip depending on which Spanish classes they have registered for. Students will then spend the final two weeks of the program (June 27-July 12, 2008) in an intensive language course complemented by an immersion in Peruvian culture by living with families in Lima.
During the first four weeks of the trip, students will be expected to compile word lists from each day’s activities. As this class is conversational, Spanish students will be expected to conduct and record in a journal numerous interviews about topics relevant to their travels and Peruvian culture and history.
Program cost:
Visual and Literary Arts: $2,530 + airfare + applicable VCU tuition
Spanish Language: $2,950 + airfare + applicable VCU tuition
The program fee covers accommodations, study visits and tours, in-country transportation to sites in Lima, Ica, Cuzco and Machu Picchu, some meals, VCU administrative fees, the International Student Identification Card, and program directors’ expenses. Students are responsible for the cost of tuition, airfare, some meals and other miscellaneous personal expenses. Please budget for these additional expenses. The estimated cost for personal expenses, not including tuition and airfare, is $550-800.
Airfare: Airfare is not included. Participants are responsible for their own round-trip travel arrangements from the U.S. to Lima, Peru. Javier Tapia will assist participants in identifying a low-cost option for the group. For best fares you should purchase your ticket prior to April 15. Although you may choose your personal travel agent to buy your airline ticket, you must arrive at the same time with the rest of the group. You must contact Javier Tapia to let you know the specific time of arrival in Lima.
Application deadline: March 17, 2008*
Applications will be accepted until the deadline, or until participant space is full.
*March 17, 2008 is the deadline for turning in a photocopy of your passport and ISIC to the Education Abroad office if you want to hike the Inca Trail.
Activities and excursions: The program begins in Lima, Peru where students will spend three days visiting museums and cathedrals. The group will then begin a three-day trip to the Urubamba valley to visit Inca ruins and the Maras salt mines. The participants will then head to Cuzco for 15 days punctuated by the amazing Corpus Christi festival and an optional four-day trek on the Inca Trail to Machu Picchu. After leaving Cuzco, the group will travel to Ica for a variety of activities including a boat tour of the Ballestas Islands. After returning to Lima, those who are participating in the Spanish language program will stay for two weeks in Lima while the rest of the group only stays in Lima for one day prior to returning to the U.S.
 Please note: Participants must submit a photocopy of their passport to VCU Education Abroad by March 15 in order to be eligible to hike the Inca Trail. If you are not already in possession of a valid passport, you should apply for it no later than Jan. 23 to ensure receipt by March 15.
Accommodations and meals: Participants will be housed in a variety of accommodations including hotels, a historic monastery, hostels and camping facilities for those on the Inca Trail. Most meals are included as a part of the program. Students who participate in the Spanish language program will stay in a family homestay for the final two weeks in Lima. Breakfast and dinner will be included during the homestay.
Program directors: Drawing courses are conducted by Javier Tapia, who has been a professor of painting and printmaking at VCU for 19 years and has been leading the trip to Peru for the past 10. A native of Peru, Tapia has extensive knowledge of the area and the culture.
Photography, film and videography courses are led by Scott DuPre Mills, award-winning filmmaker, photographer and multimedia artist. Mills is the founder and director of the VCU International Student Film Festival. Scott is currently working on his Ph.D. with VCU’s new Media, Art and Text program. He holds a B.F.A. in Sculpture and a M.F.A. in Photography and Film. Mills screened his ongoing documentary film “VCU in Peru” in Cusco in 2004 and has been an instructor with the Study Abroad program in Peru since 2003.
 Art history courses are conducted by Michael Schreffler. Professor Schreffler is the author of “The Art of Allegiance: Visual Culture and Imperial Power in Baroque New Spain” (Penn State University Press, 2007) and numerous articles on the art and architecture of colonial Peru and Mexico.
Writing courses are led by Erin Lambert. Lambert is an assistant professor in the Writing and Rhetoric Studies program at James Madison University. She holds an M.F.A. in Creative Writing from Syracuse University and a B.A. in English from VCU.
Michael Panbehchi is an instructor of Spanish and a doctoral student at VCU. His specialization is Art History.
Every effort is made to provide updated and accurate information at the time of publication. The sponsors reserve the right to make necessary changes to the programs and costs.
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