The Temple University Rome Gallery of Art hosts free exhibitions both online and in-person, open to the public. For current and upcoming exhibitions visit our Calendar. To stay updated about future Gallery events, sign up for our mailing list.
Gallery of Art
Temple University Rome
Hours: Mon.– Fri. 10AM-7PM
Modarte: a collaboration between fashion and art
Temple University Rome is pleased to present the exhibition Modarte: A Collaboration Between Fashion and Art, featuring works by Atelier Sorelle Fontana, Carla Accardi & Antonio Sanfilippo, and Maison Valentino & Alfredo Pirri.
The inauguration will take place on Tuesday, January 14, and the exhibition will officially open to the public the new spaces of the Gallery of Art, Temple University Rome, located at Via di San Sebastianello 16.
With our location adjacent to the Spanish Steps, we are proud to be part of this magical Roman square, rich in history. Piazza di Spagna has long been a meeting point for foreigners and pilgrims entering Rome from Piazza del Popolo: in the Middle Ages, the area was a crossroads for merchants, pilgrims, and artisans who gathered around the ports of the Tiber River.
As a point of convergence for the historic center of Rome, the Piazza di Spagna area became home to the emerging artistic community in the postwar period. Via Margutta, already known as the street of artists —Picasso had his studio here in the early 20th century — and Via del Babuino, home to the studios of Antonio Canova, Carla Accardi, and many others, are just steps away. Here, galleries such as l’Attico, l’Obelisco, Sperone, and Marlborough, and even on our own street, La Salita, introduced American and international contemporary art to the Roman public.
At the same time, various fashion houses were emerging, developed from the vision, courage, and creativity of tailors, designers, and stylists who established their boutiques on the square. The atelier Sorelle Fontana opened in 1949, followed by Valentino in 1959.
This exhibition presents the first in a series of investigations into collaborations between art and fashion, titled “Modarte”. We will showcase the partnership between Atelier Sorelle Fontana, Carla Accardi & Antonio Sanfilippo and Maison Valentino & Alfredo Pirri.
Alfredo Pirri collaborated with Alessandro Michele, Creative Director of Maison Valentino, for the Pavillon des Folies fashion show (Paris, September 29, 2024). The floor of the runway was animated by the work Passi, first presented in 2003, and part of a broader study on light. The work, recreated and adapted by Pirri for the occasion with Alessandro Michele, engages the audience in the process of fragmenting the perception of reality, as the glass fragments gradually upon contact. Through drawings, watercolors, photographs, and the video of the Paris fashion show, viewers can follow the artist’s creative evolution from the initial idea to the final project.
In 1959, Atelier Sorelle Fontana introduced a prestigious painting prize called 16 Painters for 16 Dresses, centered around the theme of Abstraction. Carla Accardi and her husband Antonio Sanfilippo, both key figures in the Forma 1 movement in postwar Rome, participated in this project. Accardi exhibited Integrazione No. 19, a black-and-white canvas, while Sanfilippo presented a tempera painting titled Untitled of the same year. We will present works by the two artists similar to the originals. Additionally, we can admire the result of this collaboration through photographs and sketches of the clothing made from the fabric.
To provide further context to the exhibition, we will screen the film Le ragazze di Piazza di Spagna by Luciano Emmer, an imaginary story of three young seamstresses at a fashion atelier near Piazza di Spagna. Thanks to the participation of Maria Teresa Natale and the GoTellGo Cultural Association, we will present an excerpt from a conversation between Maria Teresa Natale and the seamstress Maria Teresa, on December 15, 2022, at the Centro Anziani di Via Pullino as part of the project Memorie di Cortile: Le Donne della Garbatella si Raccontano.
We thank the Fondazione Micol Fontana Foundation, the Maison Valentino, the Archivio Accardi Sanfilippo, and the Associazione GoTellGo .
For additional information: Shara Wasserman, Director of Exhibitions shara@temple.edu
Temple University Rome is excited to host its sixth annual Black History Month throughout February 2025. This year's theme is Black Resilience.
The Gallery of Art is pleased to present the exhibition Dreams From My Father, featuring the work of artist Kimmah Dennis as the inaugural event for our celebration of Black History Month. Arranged over the month of February in the United States and in Canada, and in October in Great Britain, BHM honors the contribution of the African diaspora to the world’s creative culture, from music and dance, fashion and design, language and literature. Our theme for this year’s program looks to showcase, through a rich schedule of events, a possible understanding of what Black Resilience looks like for young black creators within the community in Rome.
The program of events will be followed by a Documentary Screening and a Roundtable Discussion, allowing for new insight and dialogue around the theme of Black Resilience.
Timeline of Events
February 4 : Gallery of Art opening, 6-8 PM (TUR Gallery of Art)
Kimmah Dennis
"Dreams From My Father"
On display through Feb. 27
The Gallery of Art will open with Kimmah Dennis' exhibition on on Tuesday, February 4, 2025, from 6-8 p.m., with "Dreams From My Father". Kimmah Dennis is a Liberian-Ivorian painter and photographer who explores the issue of the trauma of displacement through traditional, experimental, and conceptual materials. She is currently the Terra Foundation Affiliated Fellow at the American Academy in Rome. The show will run through Thursday, February 27, 2025.
Migration is a journey of hope, resilience, and transformation. In her solo exhibition, Dreams for My Father, interdisciplinary artist Kimmah Dennis presents a compelling exploration of migration, belonging, and identity. Dennis merges painting, drawing, collage, photography, and installation to craft narratives that transcend geographical and cultural boundaries. This exhibition intertwines personal and collective stories of displacement, adapting identity, and inherited dreams. The title is inspired by Barack Obama’s Dreams from My Father and her own experiences of loss and legacy; Dennis reflects on her father’s sacrifices and the enduring aspirations passed down through generations. The work in this exhibition is shaped by interviews with migrants in Rome, conducted in locations such as Piazza Vittorio Emanuele, local markets, and other gathering spaces where diverse communities connect. These stories resonate with universal struggles for security, opportunity, and a sense of home. Kimmah Dennis is the Terra Foundation Affiliated Fellow for a Chicago-Based Artist in the Visual Arts at the American Academy in Rome.
February 10 – Documentary Screening, 6-8 PM (TUR Cinema Room)
Title: The Sea Has Betrayed Me
Type: Documentary Podcast
Original Language: Italian
Subtitles: English
Duration: 46 minutes
Produced by: Sensi Holistic Creative Agency
Producer: Alina Vasieikina
Director: Daniele Stocchi
Cinematographer: Daniele Comelli
Interviewer: Giulio Villaggio
Protagonist: Sheikh Tijan Jallow
Synopsis: The Sea Has Betrayed Me takes viewers on an intimate and deeply moving journey through the life of Sheikh Tijan Jallow, a 25-year-old Gambian refugee, model, and aspiring actor. Born in West Africa, Sheikh grew up in a family of four siblings, dreaming of a brighter future beyond the borders of his homeland. The film chronicles Sheikh’s extraordinary story through a podcast-like one shot documentary, where he shares his courageous and at times heartbreaking journey from Gambia to Italy. At the age of 14 he left his hometown with his cousin for Senegal in pursuit of his dream to become a professional footballer. Soon after, a life-changing decision led him to embark on a perilous eight-month journey to Italy—a journey fraught with challenges, resilience, and hope. Through candid and captivating storytelling, The Sea Has Betrayed Me delves into themes of migration, identity, and the resilience of the human spirit. Sheikh’s narrative is a poignant reminder of the struggles and dreams shared by millions seeking safety, opportunity, and belonging in unfamiliar lands.
The screening will be followed by a brief talk with Sheikh.
February 17: Roundtable Discussion, 6-8 PM (TUR Gallery of Art)
Students are invited to attend a round table discussion on Black Resilience with speakers such as: Kimmah Dennis, Sheikh Tijan Jallow, Gordon Abeiku Mensah (member of the Berkeley Center on Antidiscrimination and Comparative Equality Law), Denise Kongo and Kwanza Musi Dos Santos (representatives from the non-profit association QuestaeRoma.org).