Our city Deruta is a hill town in the Province of Perugia in the
Umbria region of central Italy. Long known as a centre of
refined maiolica manufacture, Deruta is known for its
ceramics, which are exported worldwide.
Our city is also known as “the pottery town”, because pottery
has made Deruta famous around the world. Examples of its
art can be seen in its churches, the facades of its palaces
and in the Pottery Museum.
Deruta is a founding member of the “Associazione Italiana
Città della Ceramica”. This is a nonprofit association created
in 1999 numbering 33 municipalities and 15 Regions, the aim
of which is to create a national network of towns and cities
with a long established tradition of pottery.
Our school is: Liceo Artistico “Alpinolo Magnini” and it is
situated in the city centre. Opened in 1961, this institute is an
important reference point for many students and also for
companies in the area.
The training in the fields of ceramics provided by the institute
has made continuance of the pottery tradition possible.
At present our artistic high school counts about 120 students
and 32 teachers. Our students usually start the first year at
the age of 13\14 years old and they finish at 18\19. The
entire course lasts five years; the first two years are
preparatory during which pupils study different subjects such
as Italian, History, Maths, English as a second language,
Geography, Art, Painting and Graphic labs, P.E., Religion.
From the third year they can choose between two orientation
courses which are Graphics or Design. During the three
years they attend many laboratories inside the school - with
the teachers - and outside - with specific apprenticeship
carried out in factories or ceramic \ design labs.