The author was the first scientist from his institution to win (or even attempt) the university-wide competition to run a semester-abroad program. This success is attributed to his proposal to teach the Science of Art. The course was taught in the spring semester of 2008 in Florence, Italy, to a group of 31 sophomores and juniors from a broad spectrum of liberal arts majors, including chemistry. The prerequisite was either non-majors' Physical Science or General Chemistry I. Texts were Patricia Hill's non-majors' book (The Molecular Basis of Color and Form) and Ken Schuman's Anatomy of a Restoration. Topics included light, color, dyes and pigments, paint, frescos, glass, and art conservation and restoration. Field trips included the Brancacci Chapel in Florence, the Sistine Chapel in Rome, a mosaics school in Ravenna, and a glass-blowing shop in Venice.