“I always tell my students;
within all of us, in
the most suitable way, a tiny, magical artistic potential
is hiding patiently to be discovered.”
"The
task of teachers is to
awake that magic within the students, and guide them to search for the true art
and the talent and to teach them the joy of learning. So the teachers are not
only to teach the technical know-how, but also to nourish each one's
imagination, fantasy,
and the culture to quest for the true art and talent."
Accademia Riaci Honorary President,
Raymond Riachi.
HISTORY - Accademia Riaci
The heritage of traditional craftsmanship and
art that flourished in Tuscany,
especially in Florence, celebrated the glory of the Renaissance
era as the true gem of arts. Workshops and studios of the craftsmen
were the major driving power of the city’s production activities
that helped Florence truly flourish as Italy’s artistic
capital of the era, and they together with the merchants achieved
glory and great fortune.
Numerous magnificent artistic
objects were created for baptisteries in the craftsmen’s
studios, often those of goldsmiths.
A good example is Maestro
Benvenuto Cellini, who taught
his superior sculpting techniques
for making a nude statue
out of marble to his apprentices
in a studio somewhere. Today,
these commissioned crafts
executed by the beloved Maestro
have been preserved for centuries
as a true work of art. This
legacy of the wholesome and
special traditions of craftsmanship,
such as gold and jewelry
production, sculpture and
painting, were fortunately
lively inherited over many
centuries in Florence and
in the entire Tuscan region.
Upon
founding the studio in 1983,
Maestro Raymond Riachi had
a strong vision to create
a school that not only taught
his techniques, but enlightened
young artists with the lively
spirit and atmosphere of
the Renaissance, in order
to fulfill his life long
mission as a Maestro. This
was how Accademia Riaci was
founded: a treasure box of
traditional art and its irreplaceable
techniques. Its teaching
secretly contains techniques
unknown to any other school,
and the academy strives to
nurture and develop the imagination
and fantasy in each and every
single student.
Starting as
a small art studio, today
the same passionate mission
has lit up not only a single
maestro, but a spectacular
team of teachers representing
the best Italian artists
in Florence, retaining the
founder and Honorary President's
vision of tradition and spirit,
expressed in the quote. Our
students body have represented
over 15 countries world wide,
pursuing their art in the
fields of Design, Crafts,
Fine Arts, Language Arts,
Art History, and most recently
Italian Culinary Arts, never
failing to inspire them.
EDUCATIONAL METHOD AND PHILOSOPHY
Principle Idea of Education
The Ultimate goal
of education at Accademia
Riaci focuses not only on the teaching of traditional techniques
and styles, but aims to guide every student to develop their
own artistic sensitivity.
Live the past, create the future.
The academy's faculty are
top runner artists of
each field, united by the
mission of inspiring next generation artists with unique tradition
and artistic knowledge. Students are encouraged to develop
their creativity and refine their techniques, and expand their
originality to lead the future.
Classics to Ultramodern Techniques
Students may choose to
learn from various fields
of arts and traditional arts offered at the academy. Contrary
to the recent trends of mass production, the academy believes
in high quality rather than quantity. This is why design and
techniques of traditional and classical arts to the most advanced
designs and techniques are studied and acquired through numerous
hours of practical hands-on training in their major of choice.
Students will be nurtured to develop their imagination, and
fantasies - the most valued elements of an artist. Professors
encourage each student to inspire and develop each student's
originality not only through their teaching, but also by helping
them re-discover the “special
something” about each learning artist.
Small Classes
Due to respect for diversity
of learning styles and
artistic potentials, the academy limits its classroom ratio
to approximately 6 students per professor. This limited number
of students in the class is effective in achieving speedy
accurate learning. The many fields of trade proves the successes
of our students with high quality.
Tailored Instruction
Just like how Leonardo
Da Vinci taught his assistants,
lessons are conducted in close relationship with each student,
in line with their ability and personality, challenging both
beginners and experienced professionals.
