Features

Black and white photograph of an artist's studio depicting a sculptor working among many examples of his figurative work

From the Archives: Albin Polasek

The spotlight has often shone on Paul Manship, AAR’s 1912 Rome Prize Fellow in sculpture, so we now turn to his colleague: Albin Polasek. A 1913 Fellow, Polasek was a Czech-American sculptor who, like Manship, worked in a neoclassical style.

A color photo from the early 1960s depicting a light skinned woman in an artist's studio, studying a collection of small stones on a work table

In Memoriam: Marjorie Kreilick

Marjorie Kreilick, a 1963 Fellow and the second woman to win a Rome Prize in painting, died on July 5, 2023, in Madison, Wisconsin.

Black and white photograph from 1952 of a light skinned man in a short sleeve shirt seated at a table; he holds a page of sheet music; a piano can be seen behind him

From the Archives: Lukas Foss

When the composer Lukas Foss (1952 Fellow) arrived at the American Academy in Rome in 1950, he was just beginning a remarkable career.

Color photograph of a light skinned man wearing glasses, a white shirt, and a blue suit; in his hand he holds up the medal that is draped around his neck

AAR Honors Chef Massimo Bottura at the 2023 McKim Medal Gala

The American Academy in Rome honored chef and entrepreneur Massimo Bottura at the latest McKim Medal Gala at Villa Aurelia in Rome on June 7, 2023.

Color photograph of the head and shoulders of an elderly light skinned man wearing a sweater and glasses and seated in a living room; one hand touches his white beard as he looks off camera

In Memoriam: Jim Melchert

The American Academy in Rome mourns the loss of Jim Melchert, a celebrated artist and ceramicist who served as our Director from 1984 to 1988.

Black and white photograph of a young dark skinned woman sitting on the bridge in front of the Castel Sant'Angelo, an ancient Roman mausoleum; she holds a stretched painting canvas in her hand and stares into the distance as three young Italian girls on the bridge look up at her

From the Archives: Barbara Chase-Riboud

Barbara Chase-Riboud’s new memoir, I Always Knew, begins in 1957—the year she traveled to Rome for an Affiliated Fellowship at the American Academy.

Front cover of Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome, volume 67.

Memoirs Volume 67 Published

AAR has just published volume 67 of its flagship journal, the Memoirs of the American Academy in Rome.

A screenshot of an image of a webpage with a search bar and several collections of digital images

A New Digital Humanities Center

The American Academy in Rome launches a new-and-improved DHC.

Color photograph of a tour guide leading a dozen or so people on the ground inside an ancient Roman ruin

Classical Summer School Centennial

This year AAR’s Classical Summer School, founded in 1923, marks its centennial. If you participated in the program, we would love to hear from you.

Color photograph of about a dozen people in an Academy studio, looking at an unseen person giving a presentation off camera; architectural drawings are pinned to the walls behind them

Dispatch from Thailand: Stephen Harby

Stephen Harby has made a bequest intention to endow a Rome Prize Fellowship and Residency in architecture, in memory of the architect Charles Moore.

From the Archives: National Academies and the Postwar Rome Prize

To celebrate the opening of Roma, a Portrait at Palazzo delle Esposizioni, which celebrates the foreign cultural academies in the Eternal City, we republish this article by Denise R. Costanzo (2015 Fellow) on the approaches to classical and modern architecture at those institutes.

Color photo of four modern dancers (two men and woman) dancing in front of an unseen audience

Salone and Homecoming from the Society of Fellows

November 4, 2022, saw the return of Salone, the Society of Fellows’ flagship multimedia performance event that featured musicians, composers, choreographers, and artists from among the Academy’s alumni.

Color photograph of the head and shoulders of a light skinned man wearing a dark blazer and white shirt; he is positioned in front of a shelf of books with colorful spines as he smiles and looks at the camera

Peter N. Miller Named New AAR President

Peter N. Miller, a respected historian and educator who is a leading voice on the continued importance of the humanities, will serve as the next President of the American Academy in Rome.

Announcing the 2023–24 Rome Prize Winners and Italian Fellows

The American Academy in Rome has announced the winners of the 2023–24 Rome Prize and Italian Fellowships.

color photograph of a library room with books on shelves to the left and a roman sculpture of a small head on a pedestal on the right

NEH Awards Over $700,000 in Grants to AAR

Today the National Endowment for the Humanities announced it will award a $472,850 challenge grant to AAR for an expansion of the Arthur and Janet C. Ross Library into Villa Chiaraviglio.

Whitfield Lovell Donates Two Portraits to the Academy

Whitfield Lovell (2019 Resident) has generously given AAR two striking portraits of two of the first Black Fellows for the Academy Bar: Ulysses Kay and June Jordan

Black and white screeshot of a video depicting a dark skinned woman sitting in a garden, wearing a dark blazer, and smiling at the camera

Fellows in Focus: Monica Rhodes

Monica Rhodes talks about the importance of involving communities when making decisions on how to best conserve a historical site.

Public Space as a Form of Expression

Five artists and designers discussed the impact, positive or negative, that public art has on the built environment, drawing from their personal experiences and professional projects.

Color photograph of a light skinned woman standing with her arms crossed and smiling at the camera in front of a fuscia wall

Ilaria Puri Purini Appointed Andrew Heiskell Arts Director

Ilaria Puri Purini, a curator and art historian currently based in London, has been appointed as the eighth Andrew Heiskell Arts Director at the American Academy in Rome, to serve a three-year term beginning this summer.

June Jordan & Ulysses Kay: Faces That Changed the Academy

As we close out Black History Month this year, we share a video celebrating two of the earliest African American winners of the Rome Prize: Ulysses Kay and June Jordan.