March 5-14, 2024

Tourists, art lovers, and poets alike have long been fascinated by the work of Piero della Francesca, the early Renaissance mathematician and painter. In this tour of Umbria, Tuscany, and the Marche, participants will be escorted by Dana Prescott and award-winning poet Mark Wunderlich through the upper Tiber Valley to see Piero’s work in situ, and share amazing poetry inspired by his oeuvre.

 

This is a pilgrimage where one is instructed in one art form (painting) through the lens of another art form (poetry).

Alongside tours throughout the region to see the work of Piero della Francesca, daily workshops will help attendees appreciate what is known as ekphrastic poetry. Those interested might try their own hand at writing. No previous writing or scholarly experience is necessary. 

Lodging and meals are provided by the Civitella Ranieri Foundation on the estate of the Ranieri Castle. A handbook will provide essential ekphrastic poems, selected poems, and information specific to Piero, as well as information on the towns we will visit. Lectures will supplement our travels, and all participants will have access to the vast library holdings of Civitella Ranieri.

There will be time for walking, for reading, and for slow looking at some of the most miraculous paintings of the 15th century. A hike through the countryside outside Sansepolcro—with attention to the crops and trees that form the backgrounds of Piero paintings—will help participants embody the surroundings, and an egg tempera workshop will help us experience the painstaking element of craft that informs so many of Piero’s works. In addition, an Umbrian cooking class is planned. Further excursions maybe planned based on group interests as well as weather, seasonal specialties, etc. Two meals per day are provided, several in restaurants, as well as all museum entrance fees and ground transportation, a welcome cocktail, and final celebratory dinner, where participants may choose to read from their work developed in the workshop.

Dana Prescott is a painter, writer, and educator, who has lived in Italy for most of the past 30 years. Formerly the Andrew Heiskell Arts Director at the American Academy in Rome and Director of Rhode Island School of Design’s European Honors Program, she was Executive Director of the Civitella Ranieri Foundation from 2007 – 2022. Her book of poems inspired by the paintings of Piero della Francesca, ‘Feathers from the Angel’s Wing,’ was published in 2016. She is presently working on a collection of essays on nature in art. 

Mark Wunderlich is the author of four critically acclaimed books of poetry, the most recent of which is ‘God of Noth–ingness,’ published by Graywolf Press. He is the recipient of fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the National Endowment for the Arts, the Amy Lowell Trust, the Fine Arts Work Center in Provincetown, and the Civitella Ranieri Foundation. His work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, The New Yorker, the New Republic, The Nation, Paris Review, and has been widely anthologized and translated. He is Executive Director of the Bennington Writing Seminars graduate writing program.