Earthquake Hazards and Art Making in Early Modern Italy: Novelty, Memory, and Cyclicity
Throughout history, natural disasters have caused profound fractures, violently disrupting the relationship between humans and their environment. Focusing on seismic events in sixteenth-century Italy, this lecture explores the impact of catastrophes on artistic production, the transformation of urban spaces and their social perception. It will discuss material responses to disasters—restoration choices, rebuilding techniques, and material recycling—while also considering the broader social and conceptual implications of destruction, including questions of loss and memory.
Saida Bondini is a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Zurich and the Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz – Max-Planck-Institut. In 2021, she received her PhD from the Courtauld Institute of Art and the University of Lausanne. Saida has been the recipient of fellowships and internships from international institutions, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; the J. Paul Getty Museum, Los Angeles; and the Italian Academy for Advanced Studies/Columbia University. Her current research, funded by the Swiss National Science Foundation, explores the interdependence between art, architecture and natural disasters in the early modern period.
All welcome- this seminar is free to attend, but booking is required.
This page was last updated on 9 January 2025
