Nine interior design students from the American University of Sharjah (AUS) College of Architecture, Art and Design recently travelled to Italy for a study tour during Milan Design Week.

The group attended exhibitions at the Triennale di Milano and at the Universita' Statale, visited Milan's international furniture fair (Salone Internazionale del Mobile), and assisted with events and installations in outdoor and indoor venues downtown. They were also special guests at the Rolex Flagship Store in via Montenapoleone and at the Gucci Sowroom in Brera, both of which unveiled their most intimate, high-end interior spaces. One day of the study tour was spent in Florence.

Lead by Massimo Imparato, Visiting Assistant Professor of Architecture, the trip gave the students the opportunity to develop analogies between the changes that their academic and professional environments are undergoing amid the globalization of design culture and the social and market implications. They were able to experience first-hand the excellence of design research and innovation shown every year during Milan Design Week.

The students also visited major heritage monuments in Milan, from the Monastery of San Lorenzo, Bramante's Church of Santa Maria presso San Satiro and the Duomo, and some of its most relevant urban spaces, to the Galleria, Corso Vittorio Emanuele and Piazza San Babila. In Florence, students visited the church of Santa Maria Novella, Palazzo Strozzi, Piazza della Signoria with Palazzo Vecchio, and the Galleria degli Uffizi.

"Italy brings history to our contemporary life and fills it with deep meaning regarding design and architecture. It is a very green and natural environment. However, people add energy to it. Italy is a piece of historical art," said participating student Mona Bachir Abdallah.

"With the best gelato, countless historical sites, Renaissance architecture, a thousand photographs of immense joy, good company, and the flowers in bloom, the grandeur of Italy was unforgettable," said Rabia Perzada, a participating student.