November 10, 2023
Hosted by the Trout Gallery.
view of Weiss Center for the Arts, where The Trout Gallery finds its home.
Souvenirs of Ruin
Image: Giovanni Battista Piranesi (Italian, 1720-1778), Remains of the Aqueduct of Nero which were to be destroyed on account of their age but remained standing by order of Pope Clement XIV, 1775. From the Le Vedute di Roma (The Views of Rome), 1748-78. Blair Murrah Gallery, Sibley, MO.
Italian artist, archaeologist and architect Giovanni Battista Piranesi (1720-78) combined his multidisciplinary interests to produce dramatic depictions of Roman temples, aqueducts, monuments and ruins. In the 18th century, Piranesi's prints often inspired travelers to embark on the Grand Tour through Europe. Some tourists then brought home an engraving by Piranesi to commemorate their experiences among these newly excavated sites. Other travelers, such as Commodore Jesse Duncan Elliott (1782-1845), a former Dickinson College Trustee and resident of Carlisle, acquired eclectic collections of antique fragments during their Mediterranean travels. Curated by Emily Angelucci '24, this exhibition features a wide selection of Piranesi's romanticized perspectives of Roman ruins alongside Elliot's artifacts, which include pieces of the Parthenon, sarcophagi and statuary. Seen in dialogue with Elliot's antiquities, Piranesi's prints demonstrate the Grand Tourists' shared desire for tangible connections to the ancient world
Disruptive: Unruly Texts, Provocative Pictures
Image: Suzanne McClelland (American, b. 1959), Pussy, 2002, letterpress on linen pulp paper, 14.6 x 22.5 in. (37.15 x 57.15 cm). The Trout Gallery, Gift of Eric Denker ‘75. 2010.8.1.
Across a diverse selection of prints, sculpture, photographs and drawings, this exhibition presents disruptive combinations of texts and images. Dating from the 19th century to the present day, the works on display employ visual and semantic tactics that are surprising, satirical and, sometimes, unsettling. Individual objects feature captions, labels, speech banderoles, narratives and poems, as well as words and letters shaped into artful forms.
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Further information
- Location: Weiss Lobby, Weiss Plaza
- Time: 5:00 pm - 7:00 pm
- Cost: Free