The visiting artist (VA) program provides a wonderful opportunity for emerging and mid-career artists who demonstrate a significant exhibition record/record of creative research. The residency has its home base in the Temple Rome printmaking area, and is particularly suited for artists whose works will benefit from access to printmaking processes and equipment, including artists exploring new directions and innovative approaches to making prints and/or considering the role of printed images in contemporary art and culture.

The selected visiting artist actively develops their proposed project in the printmaking lab at TUR. It is expected that most of their work will take place in the studio and make use of its equipment and spaces. Part of the advantage of hosting a visiting artist is that students can share space with a practicing visual artist. Such an arrangement provides students with a rare opportunity to see how an artist develops significant/complex creative research. The advantage for the artist is that they will have access to the printmaking lab equipment, the vibrant learning community at Temple Rome, and of course the rich cultural setting of Rome in which to develop their work. 

Visiting artists contribute to building a thriving creative atmosphere within the Temple Rome art community in the following ways:

• a public lecture for the TUR art community.

• a technical demonstration of a process vital to their creative research.

• studio visits for GRADUATE and advanced UNDERGRADUATE students.

The public lecture is a platform for introducing the VA to the wider Temple Rome art community.  It is a key opportunity for opening up interdisciplinary dialogue between art students studying at TU Rome. A technical demonstration (workshop or tutorial) allows the VA to share their working process with interested students and faculty. Studio visits are a platform for direct conversation in which students benefit from the VA’s experience and point of view. Such efforts contribute to the diversity of conversation in the studio art atmosphere; on a practical level they expand institutional knowledge and strengthen technical studio capabilities. The printmaking faculty, graduate studio assistant, and any dedicated work-study candidates can provide support, within reason, to the visiting artist during their tenure.

Temple University Rome is committed to the continuous improvement of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion on its campus and encourages applications from people of diverse backgrounds. 

The visiting artist residency is a one-month experience. Temple Rome will host one VA  per academic semester. The VA residency will begin during the second week of Temple Rome’s academic calendar. The Fall VA will run from the first week of October through the first week of November; the Spring VA from the first week of February through the first week of March. Short-term, project-based residencies will also be considered based on the relevance and feasibility of the proposed project (not to exceed one per semester in addition to the VA).

The 2023/24 VA program received generous funding from artist and Temple Rome alumni Robert Flynt to cover two awards for the selected candidates.  Each award consists of a $1,600 travel stipend to offset the cost of travel and/or lodging during the residency period; and a $500 materials award to offset the cost of supplies during the residency (see appendix for details), the purchase of which to be coordinated with TUR printmaking faculty in anticipation of the residency start date.  During the residency period, the selected VA will have full access to the Temple Rome printmaking facilities with the support of our printmaking faculty member, Devin Kovach.  

All artists working in the Temple Rome Printmaking lab will need to complete a short safety orientation with Prof. Kovach at the outset of their residency period.  Artists are expected to uphold the studio best practices throughout the duration of their tenure.  

The $500 materials award is used to cover the cost of matrix materials (zinc/copper etching plates, photointaglio/photolitho plates, silkscreen frames, RISOgraph printing, wood or linoleum blocks), printmaking inks, proof and editioning papers, and all necessary chemicals and solvents. 

Selected artists will be asked to submit a materials request form after confirmation of their acceptance of the VA residency. 

At that time, they should indicate how they would like to utilize their materials budget (purchases will be coordinated with TUR printmaking faculty Devin Kovach). 

Additional materials expenses, beyond the $500 budget, must be incurred by the selected artists.

Artists should be able to make a compelling case for why Rome, and specifically Temple Rome, would be the ideal setting in which to develop their new work. Successful proposals establish a meaningful connection to the context of Rome as a place where the contemporary and the ancient are mingled. Of critical importance will be the way that the VA proposes to reveal new ways of interpreting this Roman narrative through their proposed project.

For information about the new VA residency program application cycle please email d.kovach@temple.edu.

Application materials should be uploaded to the web link provided*.  Applications must include an artist’s statement (max. 1000 words), a project abstract (max. 1000 words), and a portfolio of digital images (not to exceed 20 images), organized into a single pdf document.  

Please include a cover letter with your full name, address, preferred email address, and telephone number.  A committee composed of between 3 and 5 people will include Temple Rome art faculty, the Director of Tyler in Rome, the TUR chief academic officer, and 1-2 additional voices as needed. The selection committee receives applications once a year, in early July, for both Fall and Spring residencies. Candidates are invited to indicate their preferred residency period (whether Fall or Spring). These preferences will be taken into account during the selection process.

Temple University Rome had the great privilege of hosting Maria Pina Bentivenga as its inaugural Visiting Artist (VA) in residence.

Originally from Basilicata in the south of Italy, Ms. Bentivenga is a contemporary artist and professor of printmaking  based in Rome. Her etchings and artist’s books are exhibited in Italy and abroad, and are part of collections including the Albertina in Vienna and the Istituto Nazionale per la Grafica in Rome. She is a founding member of the InSigna Association in Rome, which promotes and produces artist’s books and fine art prints. She is also a board member of the Associazione Incisori Contemporanei and, since 2016, has been on the board of the International Renate Herold Czaschka Foundation. Ms. Bentivenga is an accomplished professor of printmaking, teaching for many years at the Rome University of Fine Arts (RUFA) and the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma.  

From mid-October to early December, Ms. Bentivenga worked intensively in the Temple Rome printmaking area, embedding herself alongside students and faculty to develop an ambitious new series of prints conceived specifically for her residency at TUR. Her project focused on diverse sacred spaces in Rome including the Synagogue, the Mosque, and the Ara Coeli Church. She photographed each location, seeking to capture nuances and details of light and space. Taking advantage of Temple Rome’s photo-mechanical processing equipment, the resulting photos were brought back to the studio where they were enlarged, exposed, and developed into photoetching plates. She then worked exhaustively, color proofing and printing on lightweight Japanese papers, to combine the photo plates with her own hand-drawn intaglio plates. The resulting images are subtle reflections on ephemeral qualities of each site. It was her intention that they extend beyond ideas about religion, encouraging reflection on the psychological experience of space, and the convergence of place and spirituality. 

In addition to developing her personal research, Ms. Bentivenga was a frequent guest in Printmaking Workshop, an advanced level course for upper-level printmaking students. She contributed significantly to the class and students followed her project closely, eventually incorporating her photo-intaglio technique to expand their own experience of traditional etching. This type of open, fluid exchange was exactly what was hoped for when the VA program was conceived.

The idea of hosting contemporary artists to develop new projects alongside our students in the Temple Rome printmaking area got its start in the academic year 2021/22. Artists Johnny Plastini and Josè Witteveen completed residencies in the Fall of 2021 and Spring of 2022 respectively at the invitation of Professor Devin Kovach. Recognizing the beneficial impact of these experiences, Dean Emilia Zankina sought to broaden the scope of the initiative by creating an official Visiting Artist in Residence Program. 

Mr. Abram is an alumnus of the Temple Rome program, having studied at TUR in the 1980s while completing his MFA in printmaking at the Tyler School of Art.  Mr. Abram is professor of Art and Queer Studies at Denison University in Granville, OH. His residency was particularly special as Mr. Abram's residency constituted a return to the place that was so transformative for his artistic path. During his Roman tenure, Mr. Abram produced multiple zinc-plate etchings and an expansive series of photopolymer etchings connecting with Queer identity and histories in the Eternal City. As an educator himself, Ron was a natural working with our students. He generously engaged with undergraduates through frequent class visits and a public artist talk. He also did repeat studio visits with our graduate student Henry Rosenberg (who happened to be his former pupil!). Mr. Abram’s presence made the Temple Rome printmaking studio a buzzing hive of activity; the nature of his work opened important dialogue and gave students a model of how they can take on big ideas with humor and beauty. By sharing his story, he demonstrated how they can tap into the transformative power of making art in Rome. 

Giorgia Mascitti was our youngest artist in residence ever, arriving to Rome from her home in Pescara (IT). Ms. Mascitti's residency was marked by a full immersion in the world of intaglio etching. She was a permanent fixture in front of the acid baths down in the basement, completing 10 copper plate etchings and editioning almost as many. Ms. Mascitti was accompanied lockstep by graduating senior printmaking student Olivia Musselman who completed an academic internship as Ms. Mascitti’s assistant. Working alongside Olivia (and often in tandem), Ms. Mascitti made strong bonds with our Fall ‘23 students, modelling how an artist, even a young one, must dedicate rigorous attention and countless hours to their art; but also, that being serious with one's work does not preclude play! 

Marina Ancona is the founder and operator of 10 Grand Press in Brooklyn, NY and Santa Fe, NM. As a master printer, she has published the works of renowned artists such as Nicole Eisenman, Jeff Gibson, and Harmony Hammond. Alongside her professional practice, Ms. Ancona is an active artist and professor of printmaking at Cooper Union. She joyfully embraced the sometimes-chaotic nature of our student print shop and was a frequent class visitor – often spotted giving a secret printing tip to a student to improve their work. She also gave a formal public lecture and did multiple studio visits with our graduate student Francesca Lally. She pursued a project recycling fragments from a salvaged 17th-century Italian architectural manuscript to make paper for her own “luscious” colorful abstractions; a fitting blend of history and contemporary printmaking practice.