Temple University Rome (TUR) has been situated at the Villa Caproni just north of Piazza del Popolo facing the Tiber River since 1966, making it one of the oldest and most respected American study abroad programs in the city. Now in its forty-eighth year, the program has offered a study abroad experience to over 11,000 students from more than forty colleges and universities.
TUR and the American Academy have collaborated for many years to establish productive and enduring connections between students and Fellows through studio reviews, lectures and events. As the Dean of TUR, Hilary Link, explains, “The relationship between Temple Rome and the American Academy in Rome is essential to the study abroad program. With access to Fellows, lectures, and events, students are given a rare introduction into a unique fine art world that further enhances their experience in a culturally rich city.”
As an architectural Advisor to the American Academy and a member of Temple’s architecture faculty, Cinzia Abbate is an important member of both communities and helps facilitate collaborative research projects and promote common initiatives between Fellows, Temple students and the wider community in Rome. She explains that the Fellows’ specific knowledge of Roman design projects enlightens student experience and introduces them to a variety of professional views. “[W]e have found great success in inviting Fellows to our TUR architecture reviews, and to give lectures and presentations about their work to our students and likewise we have invited our students to attend special guest lectures at the AAR, which is always exciting for them. I hope this is only a small seed of something much more ambitious that can grow in the future.” Roberto Carracciolo of the Temple Rome painting faculty also notes the specific value of AAR exhibitions, which, he says, “have always been inspiring and a great way of meeting American artists and students from other programs…
Above all TUR students fully recognize the value that one-on-one exchanges with Fellows can have for their future. Lindsay Deifik (Tyler MFA candidate at TUR 2013-2014) and Haigen Pearson (Tyler MFA student at TUR 2013-2014) expressed like appreciation for feedback they received during studio visits by Anna Betbeze, FAAR’14, and Reynold Reynolds, FAAR’14. Deifik says her much anticipated encounter with artist and filmmaker Reynolds, FAAR’14, proved “a unique opportunity” to discuss her work with someone working in another medium and gain “a more macro view of my practice.”
Pearson recounts, “Both artists provided me with unique insight and feedback in regards to my work and process, and ultimately left me with meaningful questions to answer. Having such intimate access to forward-thinking contemporary artists was an essential component of my graduate experience in Rome, and with Reynold Reynolds, the relationship extended outside of the initial visit, with him attending our graduate exhibition and extending an open line of communication moving forward.”
Kaitlin McDonough’s (Tyler MFA Painting 2014 at TUR Fall 2012) encounter with artist Polly Apfelbaum, FAAR’13, had an enduring impact on her. “Polly Apfelbaum and I spoke about contemporary painting and what certain women were doing to shake things up. This part of the discussion was a vital reminder of our connection to one another as artists. Her generosity and electric spirit made a deep impression upon me, for which I remain grateful to this day.”
The American Academy and Temple University share a similar vision of the city of Rome as a grand laboratory for hands-on, interdisciplinary learning, a unique setting where exposure to the past and collaboration in the present can produce unique visions for the future.