Fabricating Rome
Rome is one of the oldest living cities, and its claim to being ‘caput mundi’ continues to resonate today.
How is this manifested in the field of the visual? This site explores crafts, traditions, and institutions that help constitute the contemporary life of Rome.
The list of projects and actions form part of a graduate seminar in art history, held in the Department of Art History & Studio Art at John Cabot University Rome, under the direction of Dr. Lila Yawn.
Entitled Fabricating Rome, the course was ideated and developed by art historian and curator, Cornelia Lauf.
Graduate students were encouraged to become archivists of contemporary Rome, learning to interact with the living culture of this city with the eye of the documentarian, the care of the curator, the perspective of the historian, and the creativity of the artist.
Roman trades and lifestyles specific to the local ecosystem constitute the material and immaterial patrimony of this city. Fabricating Rome seeks to create value and shed light on projects and people whose work merits notice. The aim of the course was to teach students how to record stories by living makers of beauty and value.
Credit Betsy Davis
Fabricating Rome, a project of Cornelia Lauf
Cornelia Lauf is an art historian and curator based in Rome. She holds a B.A. from Oberlin College and a Ph.D. from Columbia University. Her research has spanned exhibitions on certificates of authenticity, carpets by artists, artist’s books, and many projects involving art, craft, and agriculture. She is a Visiting Professor at John Cabot University.
Credit Cassidy Tuttle
Fabricating Rome web concept, design, and editor, Laura Sprague
Laura Sprague is the author and builder of The Art Experiments (theartexperiments.com) which combines art history with art-making. She has experience teaching both children and adults in a variety of contexts and two languages. A Brigham Young University, Provo graduate, she is currently studying art history at John Cabot University, Rome.
Contributors
Matthew Beckmann
Paris Bermudes
Jordan Bonadurer
Baris Gedizlioglu
Jennifer Lawless
Melissa Metzgar
Madison Pierson
Kristen Pou
Melissa Robohn
Nathaniel Sloan
Meghan Sullivan-Silva
Lynette Turnblom
Special Thanks
Paolo Barbaglia
Dennis Balk
Charlotte Cans
Roberto Cilloman
Costumi d’Arte Peruzzi
Courtney Christ
Emilio Corti
Betsy Davis
Jeremy Deller
Vittoria De Petra
Valerio di Lucente
Jonathan Dumont
James Gardner
Inge Hansen
Rossella Lucidi
Fabiana Mendia
Miltos Manetas
Nathaniel Mellors
Alberto Micanti
Jonathan Monk
Kwame Phillips
Flavia Prestininzi
Imara Ruffo di Calabria
Maria Vittoria di Sabatino
Mario Salinetti
Paolo Sallier de La Tour
Ahlam Shaker
Nathaniel Sloan
Haim Steinbach
Diego Tonus
Vincent Tremeau
Giorgiana Velluti
Carlo Virili
Lila Yawn
Tommaso Zannini
We wish to acknowledge John Cabot University, Rome and the Departments of Art History, Communications, Marketing, and Web Communications. John Cabot University’s Master of Arts in Art History guides students toward professional mastery of the materials and methods of art history with emphasis on first-hand research in the museums, monuments, and archaeological sites of Rome. The degree can be completed in approximately fifteen months of full-time study and is the first graduate degree program in art history based entirely in Rome offered by a U.S. accredited university.
Project Partners: Masseria Pernice, Camporeale; Università La Sapienza, Rome; United Nations High Commission for Refugees, New York City; World Food Program, Rome
