Seattle Architectural Finishing Studio Blog

We’re home from beautiful Vicenza, Italy!

We just got back from our Venetian plastering course in Vicenza, Italy, where we studied with Stucco Italiano manufacturer Giovanni Polistena.

We learned dozens of sophisticated and highly marketable techniques from a genuine master artisan. Gianni was a great host and remarkable teacher. We had a great time exploring the cities of Vicenza and Venice, as well as the Palladian villas of the Veneto. The villas are a UNESCO World Heritage Site and are renowned across the Western world for inspiring architecture.

A student on the trip, Candie Trujillo, says:

“Thank you so much for an awesome experience!! Of course the main reason for going to Italy was to take the Stucco Italiano class and I achieved more than I thought possible. Gianni was awesome, and his knowledge was incredible. I feel very honored to have learned some of his skills, now mastering them will be quite a challenge. But just knowing I’ve learned from one of the best in his field, I feel I already have a jump start. Kay Lynn did a great job in organizing the class and keeping us informed, and her fun attitude made the trip plans go that much easier. I also was able to meet some fun and interesting people in the class and become friends with many of them and their families. We shared business ideas and trade secrets that has already helped me improve in my own business. Thank you so much Aaron for the opportunity to be taught and enlightened in the great and true art of plastering, I will gladly recommend it to anyone who is up for the challenge.”

Take a look at more photos from the Italy trip here. Hopefully we’ll make it there again next year.

Posted in Business Tips, Classes, Event, Italy, Tips and Tricks, Venetian Plaster, photos | No Comments »

Learn Venetian Plaster - Stucco Italiano Class in Italy.

We have a great trip planned this for fall for up to 12 lucky people, to visit the Veneto region of Italy where we’ll study the application of Venetian Plaster while staying in the historical town of Vicenza.

Giovanni Polistena, owner of Stucco Italiano, will be teaching the class. We’ll also have the opportunity to tour the Veneto region, and in particular visit some of the historical villas of Andrea Palladio. He was specifying polished Marmorino finishes 500 years ago, so we’ll get to see how well these lime plaster finishes stand the test of time.

Vicenza’s a wonderful city. I’ve stayed there twice in the past two years. It has some of Palladio’s greatest work in the town center, and is a great jumping off point to explore the Veneto region. It’s not as touristed as some of the surrounding towns like Verona, so you can really relax and enjoy life like an Italian when you stay there, at least that’s how I felt. The exchange rate’s kind of rough, no doubt. That’s one of the reasons we changed the dates this year from late June to the fall. Better air fares and better room rates. Plus at least half a dozen people said they definitely wanted to go but just couldn’t deal with being gone for 10-14 days during their busiest time of the year. So start saving now because I promise, it will be worth it - this will be a great trip!Here’s a link to a two page PDF with more details: http://www.seattleafs.com/pdf/italy_info.pdf If you’re interested give us a call at the Studio - 206.838.5888, for more info.

Posted in Classes, Italy, Venetian Plaster | No Comments »