May 18 – June 24, 2023
This exciting, 3-credit UNM class with professor Teresa Cutler-Broyles combines the history and customs of food, olive oil, and wine in Perugia and the surrounding region, with food writing and travel. We’ll start by exploring a small portion of the history of Italian food and wine, with a specific focus on Perugia and the wider Umbrian area. Through readings, discussions, participant observation, conversations and interviews with local food producers, tour operators and writers, we will learn how the world is interconnected via our traditions and culture around food. Additionally, we will discuss the effects of globalization, and how that all is reflected back into daily life, food (and other consumable) choices, as we examine subjects as diverse as the origin of pasta and how it carries with it cultural identity, the tradition of the aperitivo, the arrival of coffee in Italy along with its subsequent growth in popularity and its effect on religion and education, the slow food and natural food movements, and more.
In conjunction with this historical approach, the class includes visits to restaurants, vineyards, cheese-makers, and olive groves in and near Perugia.
Teresa Cutler-Broyles has an MA in Cultural Theory and an MA certification in Architectural Historical Preservation. She teaches film analysis and cultural theory at the University of New Mexico, including Cult Film, The Zombie Movie, Post-Apocalyptic Film, Architecture in Film and Introduction to Film Studies. She spends her summers teaching at the Umbra Institute in Perugia, Italy focusing on the interplay of Italian history, identity, culture and food, with an occasional foray into the history of Italian gardens.
Teresa is an independent researcher and writes both fiction and non-fiction. In truly interdisciplinary form, Teresa’s research interests include popular culture (specifically television and film), science fiction, vampires and other creatures of the night, monsters, circuses and other liminal spaces, performance, sexuality and gender studies, architecture, the history of garden design, travel, wine and more.
Each semester, University of New Mexico students take advantage of the Umbra Institute’s beautiful location in historic Perugia, Italy. The close partnership between UNM and Umbra allows students to complete courses, taught in English, that count toward their degree. Courses are designed to use Perugia as a classroom and to give students ample time to travel elsewhere in Italy and Europe.
Apply through UNMAll apartments are located walking distance from the Institute and the city’s many events and amenities. With panoramic views abound, the city invites exploration & discovery around every corner.
Apartments are fully equipped (WiFi included!) making it easy for you and your friends to plan a dinner in or to catch your next train or plane out of town, and explore pizzerias, trattorias, or coffee bars.
Being a university city, Perugia hosts events throughout the year—from Eurochocolate to the Umbria Jazz Festival. Whether attending one of Umbra’s workshops (ex. Travel Workshop) or events (ex. Wine Tasting), there is always something to do!
Visit Museums
Explore the Local Culture
Live Like a Local