The Art Department has recently opted to restart trips to Europe in order to further enrich its students on the power and depth of art.

This year, students will tour both Italy and Switzerland, exposing themselves to the numerous museums, artistic monuments and social scenes known to each country. The 10-day trip is composed of both social and educational activities for all attending students.

At teacher Christine An is the primary trip adviser and believes that it will be a life-changing experience.

“Everything we see, hear and visit helps us learn about art,” An said.

An encourages all art students to attend and strongly believes that the experience of travel significantly alters student perspectives on art.

“I’m looking forward to taking pictures as inspiration,” senior Alexa Roy said.

An believes that experiencing art conveyed through widely distributed photographs of famous works is no comparison to the powerful impact of a personal encounter.

“As an art teacher, I want my students to experience that,” An said.

Junior Sydney Manning has never been out of North America, and is excited to attend the trip.

“The trip will help [improve] our art because we will be exposed to a whole bunch of different forms of art,” Sydney said.

To attend the trip, students must be enrolled in a basic art course. All interested art students are welcome.

The trip will be chaperoned by the school’s art teachers and is funded both through student fees and various undecided fundraisers. Scholarships will be offered to students in need.

The trips were halted in the past few years due to An’s schedule. Because she was never offered the opportunity to explore another country as a student, An decided to relaunch the trips.

“I didn’t want my students to miss out on the opportunity I was never offered as a student,” An said.