NEMESI II Summer school

2 weeks, from Monday 29 June to Friday 10 July 2026 with students present in Trento, PLUS a compulsory 2-hour follow-up online workshop on 13 July 2026 (from 9.30 to 11.30 am).

On Friday 10 July a final exposition of projects will take place the whole day so departure is recommended starting from Saturday morning.

Contents

2-week interdisciplinary summer school, NEMESI II - Futuristic Spaces and ArchiLectures: Depero scenarios for Trento aims to define and develop “ArchiLectures”, i.e. architectural readings investigating the intimate relationship between the Futurist avant-garde art in Trento and the architecture of its public space. The aim is to understand and reveal the city’s artistic and cultural roots, involving an international group of students who are asked to come up with design ideas for rethinking some of Trento’s most important public spaces: “ArchiLectures” as possible visions for a city oscillating between Futurist avant-garde and utopian architecture.

Considering the cultural richness that a figure such as Fortunato Depero brought to Futurism on an international scale and the value that he still brings to the Trento today, the aim of NEMESI II is to restore utopian “ArchiLectures”, true futuristic images that bring together the reality of Trento’s public spaces with the possible artistic and architectural connections hidden in the archives. Works of art and architecture are taken out of museum drawers and brought into public spaces, becoming “urban events” that raise awareness of the city’s cultural heritage.     

The starting point for this proposal is the work on the “Futurist Plastic Pavilions”, conceived by the Rovereto artist himself in the 1920s, in which advertising, architecture and typography combined to define a unique plastic form, a total art form, as also conceived by Depero.

This means establishing contact with local cultural institutions, such as the Casa d’Arte Futurista Depero and the Mart Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Rovereto, revealing its spaces to the city as if they were ephemeral architecture, through drawings, photographs, typographic creations, video collages, virtual reconstructions and 3D prints.

Consulting the Depero Fund, preserved at the Mart 20th Century Archive in Trento and Rovereto, will allow us to discover and revive some of the images of a multifaceted artist engaged in various fields and areas of experimentation, from painting to “motorised plastic complexes”, graphics, poetry and advertising architecture, opera, theatre set design and publishing projects. NEMESI II will enter Depero's workrooms and rendering them virtually, including through the use of historical photographs reworked with AI to make them physically three-dimensional and experiential in an immersive environment.               
In addition to the workshop programme for the organisation and elaboration of visual narratives, NEMESI also includes the preparation of an exhibition, which will enable the participants to develop further skills in collaboration with FabLab UniTrento and Level Up Trento, which not only provide access to tools but also support in the design and prototyping processes.

Students will be tasked with:

Students will be asked to: 
●   develop project proposals;
●   create an exhibition layout; 
●   propose a communication and dissemination campaign to promote the exhibition. 

All work must be carried out in groups, proposing solutions to the teachers’ requests. 
These activities must be carried out in two weeks, drawing on the students’ own skills, those acquired, their direct relationship with the teachers during workshop activities and collaborative work with two organisations in the Trento area, namely FabLab UniTn and LevelUp Trento.

NEMESI II will explore the following aspects:

●    a utopian-futuristic reinterpretation of some of the most significant public spaces in Trento (case studies will be given the first day of NEMESI II);     
●    the graphic, digital and physical restitution of Depero’s “Futurist Advertising Pavilions” and the museum project conceived by the artist himself for the city of Trento, also through the use of AI;     
●    the creation of a model of the urban area including the case studies and ‘ArchiLectures’ proposed as part of NEMESI II, to be experienced in a mixed mode (immersive/augmented).
●    the setting up of a final exhibition, the setting up of a final exhibition, in the wake of the ephemeral architecture proposed by Depero and studied as part of NEMESI II, with the involvement of local authorities, national/international experts, local companies and citizens.

The planned activities will concern:

●    lectures (presentation of activities, specialist communications on NEMESI II topics and on the use of software employed for activities);
●    photographic survey;
●    life drawing in the most significant locations in the cities;
●    workshop activities for cataloguing, managing and reworking the information (graphics, photographs, videos) collected during the site visits;
●    pecha kucha/interim group presentations to discuss work in progress;
●    preparation and setting up of a final exhibition;
●    publication on the activities carried out for NEMESI II, open access and for informational purposes, with a narrative of the results obtained.     

International speakers

Prof. Jorge da Cruz Pinto, Faculty of Architecture of the Technical University of Lisbon
●    Prof. Virginia de Jorge Huertas, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos de Madrid
●    Prof. Francisco del Corral del Campo, ETS de Arquitectura de Granada.
●    Prof. Evin Eriş, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg
●    Prof. Lina Toro, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos de Madrid. 

Workload and credits

All lectures, seminars and activities are in English.
The program includes approximately 7 hours per day of the activities described above, including visits and social-cultural programs. 
All participants will receive a certificate of attendance after satisfactory completion of the in-person part.
Participation in the online session will earn external participants an official UniTrento transcript certifying 6 ECTS and an evaluation mark.      
Participation in all activities included in the program is mandatory and attendance will be tracked daily.

Participant background

Admission will be open to a maximum of 22 international senior Bachelor’s degree students (who have finished the 2nd year) and all Master’s degree students from any background related to architecture, engineering, communication, multimedia design, visual arts, or similar, with an interest in architecture and graphics.
The interdisciplinary nature of the project therefore addresses students interested not only in the description of architectural space in images, but also in the use of innovative technologies for the experience of heritage and its cultural promotion.
Participants should be confident in English-language use (B2). 

Application process

Starting from 2nd February until 2nd March 2026, you can apply through an application link. 
To apply you will first be asked to create a UniTrento guest account. To do so, please see the instructions in the document "How to login to UniTrento application tool" available at the bottom of this page. 
All students are required to upload their CV, most recent ToR (Transcript of Records), complete identity document, English certificate and a motivation letter.
The Summer School will take place with a minimum number of 10 participants.

Deadlines

Applications by international external students: 2nd March 2026, noon.    
Up to 2 local UniTrento students can be admitted if places are still available and must apply starting from 15 March 2026.

Participation costs

Since you will be selected and come from a University Partner of UniTrento, you will receive a fee waiver.
If you come within the Erasmus+ Programme K131 or the ICM K171 Program, you can also apply for a short-term mobility scholarship. Ask your international office for details.UniTrento organizes and covers the costs of the social-cultural program consisting of: 
●    a guided visit of the town;
●    a welcome coffee and a farewell lunch;
●    a one-day and a half-day outdoor activity;
●    a guided visit to a museum or other cultural institutions.
Participants are responsible for covering the following expenses:
●    Meals: approximately from 6 to 9 euros (€) in the university canteen, 15-30 € at a café or restaurant, less if you cook by yourself or with others;
●    Housing: approximately 35 €/day in shared accommodation, hints to find one will be sent to prospective participants (on campus housing is not available);
●    Travel;
●    Transportation expenses once you arrive at UniTrento and in the surrounding area unless you get from your host the Trentino Guest Card;
●    Visa and health insurance, if needed (students living outside the European Union). 

Accommodation

All participants are responsible for planning and paying for their own lodging during the School.
Details and possible housing solutions will be sent to applicants.
You are recommended to book in advance since the summer period is quite busy. 

Academic coordinator

Prof. Starlight Vattano
Department of Civil Environmental and Mechanical Engineering, Trento, in collaboration with: Faculty of Architecture of the Technical University of Lisbon; Universidad Rey Juan Carlos de Madrid; ETS de Arquitectura de Granada; Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg.

Contacts

International Relations Division 
international-stp@unitn.it
Tel + 39 0461 283224