Italian Art Society Sessions – American Association of Italian Studies Conference

The Italian Art Society is hosting a trio of sessions at the annual conference American Association of Italian Studies in Eugene, Oregon on April 11-14, 2013
The deadline to submit abstracts for all three session is November 15, 2012.
1. Interdisciplinary Approaches to Italian Art and Architecture
For generations, the study of artistic production—whether painting, sculpture, architecture or other—has benefitted greatly from interdisciplinary approaches. Given that the AIAS brings together a diverse assemblage of scholars, this session seeks to tap into the rich methodological approaches inherent to various disciplines. The goal is to shed new light on questions and topics traditionally treated by art historians. Rather than restrict this session chronologically or topically, we invite a broad span of paper proposals that examine the art or architecture of Italy through an interdisciplinary lens.
Please submit a 150-word abstract and brief biographical note to Nick Camerlenghi (ncamerle@uoregon.edu).
2. Rome and Romanitas: The Eternal City through the Ages
No city in the world has an urban fabric so rich in historical layers and dense in historic monuments as Rome. The city has received extraordinary attention from emperors, popes, dictators, pilgrims, architects, and, of course, its own inhabitants for more than two millennia. This session examines the built environment in the largest sense of the term: architecture, urban planning, as well as other art forms (including sculpture, painting, and mosaic) that played a role in defining the Eternal City. Papers from any time period will be considered.
Please submit a 150-word abstract and brief biographical note to Jessica Maier (jmaier@mtholyoke.edu).
3. Getting the Boot: Perspectives on Italian Art and Architecture from Antiquity to Today
This final session is sponsored by the Italian Art Society’s Graduate Student and Emerging Scholar Committee (GSESC). It is only open to graduate students and recent Ph.D. graduates:
The emerging generation of Italianists is exploring and interpreting the art and architecture of the Italian peninsula and its neighboring regions and cultures in fresh and innovative ways. Their work seeks to engage today’s students, scholarly community, and general public. This session is designed to showcase the research of junior scholars with exceptional potential in this area. We invite submissions treating a broad range of topics from all periods of Italian art, from antiquity to the present. We aim to re-imagine the discipline beyond the often narrowly-defined temporal and stylistic frameworks (“Imperial,” “Medieval,” “Renaissance,” “Baroque,” etc.) of the traditional canon by emphasizing original and inventive subjects, perspectives, and methodologies. Topics may incorporate themes such as technique and materials, object and space, viewer reception, ritual, social class, urbanism, nature, politics, ethnicity, current events, popular media, economics, afterlife of images, reinvention of historical structures, and intercultural exchange.
Please submit a CV and abstract of no more than 400 words to session chair Rebekah Perry (rep22@pitt.edu).
For more information on the conferende please see: http://center.uoregon.edu/conferences/AAIS/2013/