The Roman Mosaics of the Villa del Casale in Piazza Armerina, Sicily
Sun, Mar 10
|Cabrillo, VAPA Bldg 1000
Join us for an Art History Lecture from Allan Langdale no tickets necessary; first come first served (register for event reminder) donations welcome at the door ❤️ 🇮🇹
Time & Location
Mar 10, 2024, 6:30 PM – 8:30 PM
Cabrillo, VAPA Bldg 1000, Cabrillo College, Aptos campus, in VAPA building 1000, Art History Forum room 1001
Guests
About the Event
The Roman Mosaics of the Villa del Casale in Piazza Armerina, Sicily
Some of the world’s most impressive Roman mosaics can be found in the ruins of an early fourth-century Roman villa near Piazza Armerina, Sicily. The mosaics are of such high quality, and are so extensive, that some have speculated the villa was owned by none other than the emperor Maxentius, whose early death may have meant that he never enjoyed his spectacular home. The site is one of Italy’s many treasured UNESCO World Heritage sites. The range of subjects depicted in the mosaics is astonishing: mythological subjects, a chariot race in a hippodrome, erotic subjects, allegories, geometric designs, hunting scenes, and scenes of sporting events. Most impressive of all is an enormous mosaic depicting the transporting of exotic animals from North Africa on to ships. This remarkable mosaic, rich in details, has given rise to a second theory about who may have owned this palatial structure: a man who became rich by importing exotic creatures for the venationes or wild beast slaughters of Roman amphitheaters, such as Rome’s Colosseum.
Bio: Allan Langdale is an art and architectural historian, photographer, filmmaker, and travel writer who received his Ph.D. in art history from UC Santa Barbara. Allan has taught courses in Italian Renaissance, Greek, Roman, Byzantine, Indian, and Islamic art and architecture and currently teaches art history at UC Santa Cruz. He has written the definitive architectural field guide to the little-known region of Turkish Cyprus, In a Contested Realm (2012) and also made the award-winning documentary The Stones of Famagusta: the Story of a Forgotten City (2008). His travel books include Palermo: Travels in the City of Happiness (2015) and The Hippodrome of Istanbul / Constantinople: An Illustrated Handbook of its History (2019). He also has a travel blog at Allan’s Art and Architecture Worlds.
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Street parking is free or you can pay for parking in the closest parking lot "L" near the Music and Theater buildings / pay at the kiosk machine.