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Final fall, AIFS Overseas college students learning overseas in Florence stepped into the highlight—because of an thrilling alternative with Steve Madden, one of many world’s most iconic trend manufacturers. College students enrolled in a images course on the AIFS Overseas International Training Middle (GEC) in Florence collaborated on a marketing campaign with this world-renowned trend model—and future college students can too! That is one in every of many AIFS Overseas packages providing immersive, hands-on experiences that nurture skilled curiosity and supply participating alternatives for studying.
Study extra about this distinctive alternative with trend model Steve Madden and listen to from 4 college students—Marin, Gabriela, Anika, and Ella—who shared their experiences!
Behind the Lens: Pictures Meets Style Advertising
Via a specifically designed images course led by famend photographer and professor Alessandro Galatoli, AIFS Overseas college students in Florence are gaining genuine business expertise by collaborating with Steve Madden’s inventive and advertising and marketing group.
Taking part AIFS Overseas college students work alongside fashions and different business professionals to provide professional-grade visible and narrative materials that shall be featured in precise Steve Madden campaigns. Their work captures the intersection of artwork, tradition, and commerce—proper within the coronary heart of Florence, a metropolis well-known for its timeless model and creativity.
This hands-on method provides college students a clearer understanding of the calls for {of professional} images. For Marin, that meant seeing what goes into creating a sophisticated {photograph}:
“It was actually enjoyable to see what it really takes to get a great photograph.”


The Partnership: AIFS Overseas College students x Steve Madden
Steve Madden selected to collaborate with AIFS Overseas college students as a result of their recent perspective, worldwide curiosity, and artistic vitality align completely with the model’s youthful viewers. For college students, this partnership is an opportunity to realize skilled business expertise inside a supportive studying surroundings. Plus, it serves as a gateway into the style business, a area identified for its excessive barrier to entry.
Whether or not you’re a school pupil learning advertising and marketing, trend, images, or communications, this AIFS Overseas course bridges the hole between tutorial studying {and professional} software. College students can construct their portfolios, community with business professionals, and develop their abilities below the mentorship of specialists.
Along with studying technical fundamentals, the course pushes college students to assume creatively and work confidently in real-world taking pictures circumstances—typically adapting on the spot. Gabriela emphasised how the collaboration inspired inventive decision-making in actual time:
“[I learned how to let] my inventive aspect come out. As a photographer, particularly in shoots like that, you must have a imaginative and prescient and resolve the right way to use the area, and the way you need your mannequin to pose.”


Studying Past the Classroom with AIFS Overseas
This collaboration completely embodies AIFS Overseas’s dedication to experiential studying—providing packages that transcend textbooks and lectures to equip college students with real-world abilities and related, one-of-a-kind experiences. Programs on the AIFS Overseas International Training Middle (GEC) in Florence are designed to have interaction college students intellectually, culturally, and creatively, serving to them join their passions to future profession paths and apply their area of research to an area context.
As Professor Galatoli guides college students by means of the inventive course of from idea to remaining edit, they not solely refine their technical talents, but additionally discover ways to cooperate and ship leads to an expert setting.
Anika highlighted a few of the abilities she developed through the shoot and the way her classroom studying offered a basis that helped her adapt to difficult circumstances:
“I feel the largest ability was studying the right way to work together with the fashions and converse to them in an expert manner, and likewise the right way to really work with our cameras. We talked about it at school and used them on the road, however through the shoot it was actually darkish and there wasn’t a lot gentle, so we needed to modify our settings and attempt to take photos with out utilizing the flash.
Ella additionally carried key classes from the classroom instantly into the Steve Madden collaboration, corresponding to the concept that “much less is extra,” as she put it:
“Particularly in photograph shoots, minimalism is essential. We additionally realized quite a bit about framing and composition, what works greatest for the attention. For instance, having one thing that frames the shot can actually assist.”
Be a part of the following chapter—research overseas with AIFS Overseas and acquire real-world expertise like these school college students did!
Once you research overseas with AIFS Overseas, you may construct relevant abilities, acquire business insights, and make unforgettable reminiscences below knowledgeable steering—all whilst you get pleasure from beneficial program inclusions like on-site assist, journeys and excursions, housing, social and cultural actions, and way more. Uncover how our packages mix cultural immersion with hands-on, career-focused studying—and take your schooling to new heights.
Concerned with gaining one-of-a-kind experiences like these school college students did with Steve Madden? Be a part of the following chapter of AIFS Overseas college students—discover our programs in Florence and past!

