Exhibitions : Upcoming Exhibitions
Voyage to Italia: Americans in Italy in the 19th Century
Date(s): May 7, 2010 thru September 5, 2010
Italy has always been a destination for American travelers, and the 19th century saw a veritable flood. They overran Rome and Florence, hunted for picturesque vistas on the Bay of Naples, and thrilled to ancient ruins and stories of the Caesars. They went as artists, as writers, as social reformers, and as ordinary people from many walks of life, and their desire to travel--as well as the experiences they brought back home with them--became a part of American culture.
Armed with their copies of The Tourist in Europe and A Hand-Book for American Travellers in Europe, Collated from the best Authorities, and hoping to find the spirit of Dante, Petrarch, and Virgil, they frequently stayed for months, extensively chronicling their visits in journals and letters to friends. To most Americans of the time, Italy was simultaneously familiar and mysteriously alien.
Voyage to Italia: Americans in Italy in the 19th Century explores the journeys taken by these ardent tourists and travelers by including medieval, Renaissance, and Baroque artworks like those sought out by them. Works in the exhibition are primarily by American artists, who were inspired by Italy’s tradition of art and beautiful landscapes, and illuminated by their observations from their journals and letters.
To see a slideshow, please click: Voyage to Italia slideshow
To listen to a podcast with curator Genevieve Ellerbee, please click: Voyage to Italia podcast
Location: Sheldon
