*CONF **"The Course of Empires: American-Italian Cultural Relations,
1770–1980"*

*October 19-20, 2017*

*Smithsonian American Art Museum, Washington, DC*



*Thursday, October 19, 6-8 p.m., Keynote at the Embassy of Italy*

*Friday, October 20, 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m., Symposium in McEvoy Auditorium*



Registration is now open at *http://empires.eventbrite.com
<http://empires.eventbrite.com/>* for “The Course of Empires:
American-Italian Cultural Relations, 1770–1980.” This conference will
examine the persistent fascination of American and Italian artists with the
cultural achievements of ancient Rome and the Renaissance. In creating a
national identity and official culture, Italy and the United States looked
to history—in particular, ancient Rome and the Renaissance—to find
inspiration for enlightened political practices; to locate models of
artistic, political, and economic preeminence; and to seek ways to ward off
imperial decadence and decline. Scholars will seek to update and broaden
our understanding of American-Italian cultural relations from the
Revolutionary Era through the Cold War by encompassing a diversity of
international voices and approaches. The talks will be webcast live and
archived for future viewing. For the webcast, the full program, and
speakers' bios and abstracts, see our webpage at *http://s.si.edu/empires
<http://s.si.edu/empires>*.



*Organizing Committee:*

Melissa Dabakis, Professor and Chair of Art History, Kenyon College

Paul Kaplan, Professor of Art History, Purchase College, SUNY

Daniele Fiorentino, Professor of U.S. History and Political Science,
Università degli Studi Roma Tre

Sergio Cortesini, Assistant Professor of Art History, Università di Pisa

Karen Lemmey, Curator of Sculpture, Smithsonian American Art Museum

Amelia Goerlitz, Fellowship and Academic Programs Manager, Smithsonian
American Art Museum



"The Course of Empires" is the sister conference to "Hybrid Republicanism:
Italy and American Art, 1840–1918," held at the American Academy in Rome in
October 2016. Both events are made possible by the Terra Foundation for
American Art, which is dedicated to fostering exploration, understanding,
and enjoyment of the visual arts of the United States for national and
international audiences. SAAM is pleased to present this program in
collaboration with the Embassy of Italy in DC and the Italian Cultural
Institute. We are especially grateful to His Excellency Armando Varricchio,
the Italian Ambassador to the United States, for serving as the honorary
patron for this conference. Additional support is provided by Purchase
College, SUNY; Kenyon College; Università di Pisa; Università degli Studi
Roma Tre; and the American Academy in Rome.

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