Fontana painting giallo

2022-23 Events

Spring 2023

Present Memories: On the Politics of Image-making (Tour)

Sat. Feb. 25  12-3:30pm (with lunch in between) – limited seats available
Magazzino Italian Art in Cold Spring, NY 

A sponsored tour of Magazzino Italian Art (limited to 14 people) on the occasion of a program focusing on contemporary art and memory of Italian colonial and migration histories. “Present Memories: On the Politics of Image-making” is the fourth iteration of Pensiero Plurale, a series of programs curated by Ilaria Conti focused on issues of cultural and social justice, intersectional thinking, and the arts across Italy and the United States. It will feature a morning program with artist Dawit L. Petros and scholar Teresa Fiore and an afternoon session with curator Mistura Allison. The program is introduced and moderated by Ilaria Conti.

Organized and sponsored by Magazzino Italian Art with the partnership of the Inserra Endowed Chair for the dedicated tour.

Ciudad de los Niños (Bolivia-Italy): Documentary Screening and Discussion about Foster Care, Education, and Migration

Mon. April 17, 2023 5:30-6:50pm (Screening) 7-8:15pm (Discussion panel)
Presentation Hall (School of Communication and Media)

A documentary written and directed by Flavio Rizzo, Gabriele Scardino, Elena Bellina, Veruska Cantelli. Produced by: Fondazione Patronato San Vincenzo, Bergamo (Italy), 2005. 

The documentary tells the extraordinary story of Padre Antonio Berta (1927-2007), a visionary man from Bergamo, Italy, who arrived in Bolivia, in 1966 and devoted his entire life to abandoned children. In Cochabamba, he built La Ciudad del Niño, one of the largest foster homes and schools in the country. The film documents the lives of Padre Berta, his religious community, and the lay volunteers who have helped shape Bolivian society during four decades of educational reform, social engagement, and political activism.

Organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at Montclair State University. In partnership with Fondazione Patronato San Vincenzo, Bergamo (Italy) and St. Benedict’s Preparatory School, Newark, NJ.
Included in the series Dentro/Afuera: The Interconnections between Italian and Latin American/Spanish Cultures and linked to the research project Memoria Presente: The Common Spanish Legacy in Italian and Latin American Cultures

Fall 2022

Amir Issaa between walls

Afro-Italian Rapper Amir Issaa: Workshop and Concert 

Mon. Oct. 3, 2022
Concert: 8pm in Leshowitz Hall (Chapin Hall/Cali School of Music)
Workshop: 5:30pm in Schmitt 110 


Amir Issaa is a prominent Afro-Italian rapper who combines music with his work as a political activist, social educator, and author. Born and raised in Rome, in the neighborhood of Torpignattara, Amir is the son of an Egyptian immigrant father and an Italian mother. Both indebted to the U.S. rap tradition and sensitive to local influences in Italy, he has embraced a diverse array of experiences over the decades from breakdance to graffiti, international collaborations, workshops in prisons and colleges, and publications such as a memoirs and a creative manual.

Organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at Montclair State University. In partnership with (TBC) as part of the X program (TBC). Co-sponsored by the Alfonse M. D’Amato Endowed Chair in Italian American and Italian Studies and The Center for Italian Studies at SUNY Stony Brook University.

Potentially Dangerous: When It Was a Crime To Be Italian (2021) is a documentary about the little-known experience of discrimination of Italians in the U.S. during WWII: declared “Enemy Aliens” due to the lack of U.S. citizenship, they were subject to curfews, banned from their workplaces, evacuated from their homes and communities, and even placed in internment camps. Produced by John Turturro, the documentary won the won the 2021 Russo Brothers Italian American Film Forum Prize. The film will be shown in person in the class ITAL 262 Italian Americans in Film taught by Dr. Teresa Fiore (the screening is not open to the public), while director Zach Baliva will have a virtual conversation with the class over Zoom based on pre-prepared questions and comments (the Zoom conversation will be accessible to the larger public – more info to follow). Baliva started his career working for the writers and producers of the hit TV show ER. He left to produce My Name is Jerry, the feature film that gave Steven Yeun (Minari) his first on-screen role. Baliva traces his roots to Italy’s Abruzzo region and has lived and worked in Rome and Venice.

Organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at Montclair State University.

al martino

The Soundtrack of Italian American Cinema

Tue. Dec. 6, 2022  3:00pm
University Hall 1040

A talk by Mark Rotella, Director of the Coccia Institute for the Italian American Experience

Designed in connection with the course “Italian Americans in Film,” offered at MSU
Organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at Montclair State University.

 

Events in progress

Logo WICIP Spoletti

Postponed until date TBC

Women in Film and Accessibility: Film Title TBA


Screening and panel as part of the WICIP (Women Italian Cinema Inclusive Project), the first international project aimed at promoting Italian cinema written, produced, and directed by women, which is also available in an accessible version. This project, conceived and managed by L’Age D’Or with Sub-ti Access, was selected and co-funded as a Special Project by the Italian Ministry of Culture.

WICIP is a multilingual project with films presented in their original language with subtitles in multiple languages, depending on the screenings locations (remote viewing is also part of the program). The primary objective is to put a spotlight on female talent in cinema and promote women empowerment. All films will be accessible to people with sensory disabilities (subtitles for the deaf and hard -of-hearing (SDH) and audio description (AD) for the blind and visually impaired via smartphones. Each event will include one or more Q&A sessions and debates, with the support of local organizations, promoting cinema made by women as well as a culture of inclusivity and accessibility.

Organized and sponsored by the Inserra Endowed Chair In collaboration with the Italian Program (Dept. of World Languages and Cultures) at Montclair State University. In partnership with Sub-ti Access.

Ongoing research projects

Plaza Italia

Memoria presente: The Common Spanish Legacy in Italian and Latin American Cultures”

Supported by a NEH (National Endowment for the Humanities) Faculty Award for Summer 2021 and the Inserra Endowment, “Memoria presente” is linked to Montclair State University’s federal designation as a Hispanic Serving Institution.
NEH logo
Soldier K-ration

Food, Hunger, Migration and the American Myth in Sicily at the Time of the WWII Allied Landing

  • An in-progress research project about food practices and human mobility before and after 1943. Supported by the Angelo and Marie Cali Fund for Italian Studies and the Inserra Endowment at MSU.

Ongoing programs for college and high school students

Red, yellow, and green graphic silouette of a person on a Vespa scooter.

Summer Italian Intensive Program for College Credit

July 10-27, 2023  

  • The only Italian program in the US designed in an intensive summer format for high school students on a university campus includes guest speakers and off-campus tours, a residential option, intern opportunities and a wide range of scholarships. A collaborative effort at all levels, the course relies on a network of high schools and the support of the Italian government and the Italian American community.

Credit for header image: Lucio Fontana (an Italo-Argentinian artist), “Concetto Spaziale, Attese -1960” (source)