CCR Talks: The Women Behind Van Gogh - April 13, 2023

Note: Change of date. 

Vincent Van Gogh died in Auvers-sur-Oise in the north of France in 1890. At his death, he was a desperate, unknown artist leaving behind a huge, unsold mass of paintings which today are considered masterpieces. His loving brother Theo, his universal heir and the only one at that time who appreciated his art, tragically died soon after. So, how did it then come to pass that today van Gogh’s artwork is so well-known, having made its way to posters, bookshop shelves, auction houses, and the walls of museums worldwide? As it turns out, it was thanks to the efforts of two amazing women that Van Gogh became the universally loved artist we know today. Please join us for an evening aperitivo lecture in the Trieste neighborhood to find out more about their amazing stories. 

When: Thursday, April 13, 2023

Time: 6:30 p.m.

Where: in the Trieste neighbourhood. Confirmed participants will be informed by email of the exact meeting point.  

Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members. 

RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Apr. 9. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

Gallery Aperitivo & Talk - April 7, 2022

The long history of classic Italian art history is renowned, but how much do you know about contemporary art in Italy? Francesco Zero will welcome us into his private art gallery for drinks and a talk on art movements from the post-WWII period to the present. He will address the fundamental question of "What is art?" in viewers' perceptions and reactions. Along with co-owner Pino Purificato, Francesco will also relate the works of other Italian figurative artists to those of Pino's father, Domenico Purificato, who was a prominent figure in Italian neorealist painting and film.

This talk will be in Italian, with consecutive translation into English or French as needed. Light refreshments will be served.

When: Thursday, April 7, 2022

Time: 6-8 p.m.

Where: Galleria Purificato Zero, Via Bisagno 11 (Piazza Istria/Corso Trieste metro)

Cost: Free.

RSVP to canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Marielle by noon on the 6th of April. Green Passes/Proof of vaccination will be checked and COVID-19 containment measures will be respected.

CCR Talks: Italy, the Land of Wine! - January 19, 2022

It is safe to say that for a couple of millennia now Italy's name has been closely associated with wine. Both its production and consumption have been identified with a certain Mediterranean lifestyle, which other peoples -- be they contemporary Canadians or 3rd-century BC Gauls -- have embraced with gusto. In this lecture we shall delve into some recent research, carried out using innovative techniques, into the very first phases of wine-growing. They are revealing the rich and enterprising world of early winegrowers -- and their valiant consumers!

When: Wednesday, January 19, 2022
Time: 6 p.m. (lecture duration is approx. 75 minutes)
Where: on Zoom
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Saturday, January 15, 2022. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

CCR Talks: The Caves of the Oppian Hill and the Discovery of the “Grotesque” - December 7, 2021

The great palace of Emperor Nero with its amazing wall and ceiling paintings was abandoned and purposely buried after the Emperor’s death in 68 AD. Despite this attempt at obliteration, the frescoes miraculously survived and were rediscovered by accident in the late 15th century. The unearthing of these paintings contributed to an artistic revolution never before seen in Western art. This lecture, the first this season, will look at the artists, aristocrats, and adventurers who first crawled into the “grotte” (or “caves”) beneath the Oppian Hill and drew inspiration from what they saw as well as sharing the bizarre legends and stories that swirled around the discovery of this mysterious underground world.

When: Tuesday, December 7, 2021
Time: 6 p.m. (lecture duration is approx. 75 minutes)
Meeting Place: on Zoom
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Saturday, December 4, 2021. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

CCR Talks: Let's discover German art - May 4, 2021

This year marks the 150th anniversary of German Unification. Let's take the opportunity to look at Germany's amazing history through its artists, their relationship to political power, and their unique contributions to Europe's vibrant artistic legacy in the 20th century.

Die Internationale by Otto Griebel, 1928

When: Tuesday, May 4, 2021

Time:  18:00 (lecture duration is approx. 75 minutes)

Where: on Zoom

Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.

RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Saturday, May 1, 2021. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

Guest Speaker: An Insider’s View on Raphael’s Transfiguration - April 6, 2021

Achim Gnann has spent years studying Raphael's drawings, both as a university professor and as curator of Italian drawings at the Albertina Museum in Vienna. He has pieced together how the artist created his masterpieces, often under intense pressure to work fast, coordinate a large workshop and ensure the highest quality work. In this online lecture from Vienna, he will use Raphael's preliminary drawings to illustrate how Raphael's celebrated last, great altarpiece, "The Transfiguration," now hanging in the Vatican, reveals how Raphael's mind provided and discarded solutions, and finally reached the layout we see today, only to be thwarted by sudden, unexpected death in April, 1520.

When: Tuesday, April 6, 2021

Time: 6 p.m. Rome time 

Where: on Zoom.

Cost: free

RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Marielle.

CCR Walks: Façades - October 27, 2019

What is Rome’s colour? Burnt ochre or the light colours of the Baroque? As occurs during a wonderful choir performance when a few solo voices suddenly stand out, the city’s landscape is the result of more than the sum of its parts. How does one go about curating its unique cityscape?

Please join us as we take a look at Rome’s buildings and learn about their façades and the techniques and building materials used to create them. We will also explore the issues facing the owners, legislators, and conservators entrusted with protecting this architectural and cultural legacy.

When: Sunday, October 27, 2019
Time: 10 a.m.
Meeting Place: Piazza Venezia area; exact location will be provided to registered attendees.
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Wed., Oct. 23rd. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

CCR Talks: J.J. Winckelmann - January 20, 2019

Johann Joachim Winckelmann (1717 - 1768) is being celebrated this year as the pioneer who first articulated the differences between Greek and Roman art and spearheaded many of the ideas at the root of modern archaeology. Many consider him to be the father of art history. Join us for a morning coffee/cake slide lecture as we learn about his life, his achievements, and his legacy. The lecture will also touch on the current “dispersed” exhibition on Winckelmann at the Vatican Museums (closing on March 9th).

When: Sunday, January 20, 2019
Time: 10 a.m.
Where: In the Quartiere Trieste area of Rome; exact location will be sent to confirmed participants by email.
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members. Optional potluck contribution: not obligatory but those who wishing may contribute a cake or sweets or a bottle of prosecco to share with other participants at the lecture.  Please advise Joe when reserving if you would like to do so.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Thu., Jan. 17, 2019. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

CCR Walks: Campo Verano - November 10, 2018

photo: Lichtbilder/Reinhard Goldmann

In the Christian liturgical calendar, November is entirely devoted to the deceased. That's why it is dubbed the “Month of the Dead” which makes it an ideal time to explore Rome’s Monumental Cemetery, Campo Verano. Join us as we learn of the cemetery’s Napoleonic origins, its artwork and, above all, the interesting people who rest there, including saints, football players, war heroes, resistance fighters, writers, actors, and film directors. 

When: Saturday, November 10, 2018
Time: 10 a.m.
Where: In the vicinity of Campo Verano Cemetery; exact location will be sent to confirmed participants by email.
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.
RSVP: canadarome@gmail.com ATTN Joe by Thursday, November 8, 2018. You are financially responsible for your reservation.

CCR Day Trip: The Monasteries of Subiaco - May 12, 2018

Let’s channel "The Name of the Rose" during a very special visit of the monasteries of Subiaco, in the Province of Rome. Come with the CCR on a springtime trip, with guided tour in English, to the Monasteries of St. Scholastica and St. Benedict in this ancient hilltop town.

The religious order founded around 500 AD by St. Benedict grew around a cluster of twelve monasteries. The Monastery of St. Scholastica is the only one of those first twelve to survive, thus making it the oldest Benedictine monastery in the world today. It boasts a lovely Cosmateque cloister, a frescoed church, and a medieval bell tower. The monastery named after the founder of the order, the Monastery of St. Benedict, was built in the XII century over the cave where Benedict had been a hermit for three years. Once again, astounding frescoes cover the walls of monks' cells and chapels, including the earliest known image of St. Francis of Assisi, a living portrait dating to his retreat here in the early 13th century. During its history, the monastery survived floods, earthquakes and the scandalous behaviour of certain monks until its monastic community was reformed in 1363, including the arrival of religious brothers from other parts of Europe. Among these were Germans in the XV century who brought the new art and technology of the printing press, making the Lazio Region the heart of printing in Italy for centuries.

Not only will participants be able to discover the mysterious and sacred areas of the monasteries but they will also admire the recently restored Chapel of the Angels, the Refectory and the magnificent library with unique manuscripts from the medieval era. After our visit which will last approximately 3.5 hours, a lunch will be hosted in the “Foresteria” -- or guesthouse -- of the monastery complex.

When: Saturday, May 12, 2018
Transportation, Meeting Point & Timing: By car (please carpool). Meet in the parking lot of San Benedetto (this is the abbey that is the one further up from Santa Scolastica) by 8:45. Confirmed participants will be sent further information regarding the meeting point.
Cost: for the two visits €15 per person; €20 for lunch for adults, €14 for child menu. Advance payment is required.
NB: Book early as space is limited and remember that you are financially responsible for your booking.
RSVP to Marielle at canadarome@gmail.com, specifying whether you would also like to come to lunch; also, please indicate whether you need help finding a lift or rather have room in your car to offer a lift to others.

CCR Day Trip: Villino Volterra and Garden Tour - April 21, 2018

A day trip exploring a famous town, and some hidden treasures within it, in the hilly "Castelli Romani" area just south of Rome. This day out of town will be perfect for families with children as well.

Here's our plan for the day. At 10:15 Virginia Volterra will take us on a personal tour of the restored Villino Volterra and gardens built between 1904-07 by her grandfather, the famous mathematician, Vito Volterra. After the house and garden tour, at approximately 12:30 lunch will be offered (appetizers, two primi, pizza rustica, porchetta, wine, water). There will be an optional lecture at 2 p.m. in the greenhouse for those who wish to stay on after lunch and hear about Ariccia’s past. Children may play in the yard beside the greenhouse at this time. A further optional tour of the town of Ariccia will follow after the lecture, at  3 p.m., with a guide and admission to Palazzo Chigi and its park.

When: Saturday, April 21, 2018
Transportation, Meeting Point & Timing: by car (please carpool, free parking outside Villino Volterra), arriving by 10 a.m.; by train from the Roma Termini station with Luigi Girolametto departing Termini at 9 a.m. on the Regionale 7349 train, arriving in Albano Laziale at 9:51. The train ride costs €2.10 and those taking the train should meet past the Termini check point, beside the first car of the train 10 minutes prior to departure
Cost: tour of Villino Volterra and lunch only -- €25 for CCR members, €30 for non-member guests, children under 5 free, children 5-12 €12.50; tour of Villino Volterra, lunch and lecture on Ariccia (as seen through the eyes of famous authors) -- €30 CCR members, €35 non-members; all of the above plus a walking tour of Ariccia, the piazza by Bernini, and the Palazzo Chigi and its park -- €35 for CCR members, €40 for non-members. Advance payment is required.
NB: Book early as space is limited and remember that you are financially responsible for your booking.
RSVP to Luigi at lgirolametto@gmail.com, specifying whether you would like to participate in the second and third components of the day.

CCR Walks: Bernini and Borromini - November 12, 2017

Follow in the footsteps of the ultimate courtier, Cavalier Bernini, as his carriage rumbles past the haunts of his youth, and the great man remembers his architectural duel with his most bitter rival, the great Francesco Borromini. This walk strings together some of the churches which saw this rivalry soar skywards, as each tried to outdo the other, and thus succeded in transforming Baroque Rome into a stony tribute to the two mens' genius.

When: Sunday, Nov. 12, 2017
Time: 10 a.m.
Meeting point: Quattro Fontane area; exact location sent to confirmed participants by email.
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members.
RSVP required by Thu. Nov. 9, ATTN Joe at canadarome@gmail.com. You are financially responsible for your reservation.
NB: Please bring correct change.

CCR Walks: Ramblings on the Palatine - October 1, 2017

Following the summer break, we take up where we left off in the spring… and head to the heart of the ancient city, which has inspired countless artists, poets and writers as the cradle of a whole civilization: the Palatine Hill, where, we are told, “it all started” (and, in many ways, where it all ended). We will focus in part on the exciting discoveries which have been unearthed in recent years and which shed new light on today's ivy-covered ruins nestling among the pine-trees.

When: Sunday, October 1, 2017
Time: 10 a.m.
Meeting point: To Be Announced
Cost: €10 for members and €15 for non-members; FREE admission ticket (also valid for the Coliseum) because it will be the first Sunday of the month.
RSVP required by Thu. Sept. 28, ATTN Joe at canadarome@gmail.com. You are financially responsible for your reservation.
NB: Please bring correct change.

CCR Talks: Artemisia, A Woman Painter in a Man’s World - January 13, 2017

Arguably the best-known female painter of her time recognized today, Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1656) is equally renowned for a notorious trial concerning her rape, at age 18, by Agostino Tassi, a well-established colleague of her father, the painter Orazio Gentileschi. This incident inspired a number of novels and films. Despite this scandal early in her life, her painting career took off. During her lifetime, she traveled to Florence, Genoa, the English court and Naples and exerted a remarkable influence on a whole generation of painters. A recently opened exhibition at Palazzo Braschi, focusing on her work and influence, will be on until 8 May 2017. It charts Artemisia's career as a follower of Caravaggio, and compares her work to that of other followers of the ill-fated genius.

We take this opportunity to offer a lecture on Artemisia for those who would like a bit more information on the artist and her struggle for recognition before viewing the exhibition. This lecture will be accompanied by a potluck dinner to which all attendees will be asked to make a contribution.

When: Friday, January 13, 2017
Time: 7 p.m.
Where: Quartiere Trieste area – exact location will be sent to confirmed participants.
Cost: CCR members €10, non-members €15 – plus potluck contribution.
RSVP: by Wednesday, Jan. 11, ATTN Joe/Peter at canadarome@gmail.com