Conversations on Unlisted 2013 conference for #culturalheritage
Looking back at our Unlisted 2013 conference, I am proud to say that this year’s conference was our most successful to date. As in years past, the Unlisted conference brought together academics and professionals in a forum to discuss cultural heritage, with this year’s theme “Conversation for Conservation”, i.e. the necessary dialogue in social media for cultural heritage and ongoing awareness.
Over the past few years, we have chosen to accompany and complement our mission to promote cultural heritage by investing time in social media and video production, as we feel these contemporary forums are integral to education, promotion and sharing messages. Our objective for Unlisted since the beginning was never to be a strictly academic conference for archaeologists and conservators but rather more out of the box and on the fringe of academia in the hopes of inspiring ideas and opening eyes/ears to a different kind of dialogue, and likewise expand the audience.
With that in mind, this year, we chose to investigate the overlap of cultural heritage and new media in many different and sometimes unfamiliar areas, leading us to encapsulate our (AIRC and Unlisted participants) interests, questions and potential solutions. This year’s conference was shorter than in prior years- a three-hour program that included presentations and roundtable with a filmmaker, a journalist, two photographers, two social media strategists, along with the AIRC itself.
Unlisted 2013 was like viewing cultural heritage through a contemporary and technological kaleidoscope. Journalist Stephan Faris related our theme to journalism and reportage, while MiBAC’s Giuseppe Ariano discussed the Ministry of Culture’s growing voice and online engagement. Photographer Sam Horine talked about instantaneous communication via photography and Instagram, citing his work during Hurricane Sandy. Photographer Nicolee Drake also discussed Instagram and the use of imagery in promoting cultural heritage. Erica Firpo presented AIRC’s social media progress and its focused methods for cultural heritage, whereas I discussed AIRC work in video and photography projects which include Fasti online (Palatine dig), Digging History (AIRC initiavie), MiBAC eduation, and Comune di Roma. Rose Bonello spoke about her success in engaging communities, finding corporate sponsorship and using technology as an aggregator fueled by passionate storytelling. Most poignant was Brent Huffman as he relayed the power of video film documentary to halt or at least for now retard the destruction of a precious heritage site in Afghanistan.
This year, Unlisted 2013 not only crossed genres - archaeology, film making and social media- but our dialogue also traversed a variety of platforms outside of the physicality of the conference hall. Thanks to Marconi University for live streaming, we had conversations via blogs and twitter, and even saw a brief Vine post [username: ThePlanet]. And in the days following the conference, Albert, Sam, Erica, Nicolee and I traveled around Rome and Naples to put this conversation into action through social media outlets and more specifically the hashtag #culturalheritage. We didn’t invent the tag- cultural heritage has been around forever, but we encourage you to use it when you tweet, tumblr, gram and Vine. Take a look out posts, feeds, galleries– yes, there is a lot going on but we can make it good.
~Darius Arya, Executive Director
Darius loves to talk about cultural heritage. You can find him on Twitter and Instagram all the time.
Conversation for Conservation, Unlisted 2013
We are very excited to announce the theme of our annual Unlisted Conference, “Cultural Heritage in Digital Media: Conversation for Conservation, Sustaining Global Storytelling Online”. As in our past Unlisted conferences, guest presenters include members from mainstream media and Italian heritage representatives and a dynamic group of “outsiders” who will discuss the role of social media in cultural heritage. We are proud to host two established photographers that are successfully using the Instagram platform- Sam Horine and Nicolee Drake. Along side of them will be journalist Stephan Faris and filmmaker Brent Huffman who attracted global attention through his heritage video The Buddhas of Mes Aynak, a threatened site in Afganistan. There will be an online screening of his film prior to the conference start.
AIRC will talk about our own Kickstarter video project, ongoing educational filming in Rome (sites, excavations in cooperation with several local entities), and social action platform ipetition for the endangered site of the “gladiator tomb.” There will also be a number of people speaking that have found success in multiple stakeholder collaborations, including Nexus Mundi Foundation, an organization that has created a roadmap to involve corporate sponsorship, universities, and local communities.
Our objective in bringing this diverse group together is to foster dialogue in the various methods of promoting of cultural heritage, whether directly related to archaeological heritage or not.
PLEASE JOIN US
In Rome: Join us April 18, 4 pm at the Sala Vittoria Colonna on Via Colonna, 11 of Marconi University. The conference will also be simultaneously translated in English and Italian.
Elsewhere: live stream, April 18 4pm Rome (10am EST).
Welcome back, Santa Maria Antiqua
One of our favorite sites to visit in the Roman Forum is the church of Santa Maria Antiqua, which up until this week had been closed to public viewing. Santa Maria Antiqua is the oldest church in the Roman Forum and a key monument in the transformation of the Forum from pagan to Christian space: constructed in the 6th century inside a 1st-century structure with courtyard attached to the Imperial palace on the Palatine hill above. Santa Maria Antiqua was abruptly abandoned in the 9th century after a devastating earthquake and resulting landslide. The church was rediscovered at the turn of the 20th century, partly restored, and made accessible to visitors until 1980, when it was permanently closed due to damage caused by rising damp. Since 2006, Santa Maria Antiqua has been a World Monuments Fund project, led by mural conservators Werner Schmid and Giuseppe Morganti, who have been working with the Archaeological Superintendency of Rome to restore the frescoes and permanently resolve the damp problem.
Thanks to centuries of sealing off, Santa Maria Antiqua can be considered a veritable Pompeii-like site- somewhat untouched postcards of an era that was written over. Its walls showcase a cycle of beautiful frescoes depicting the Virgin Mary and baby Jesus, popes, saints, and martyrs, thus forming one of the largest and most important collections of pre-Iconoclastic Roman and Byzantine art in the world. These frescoes date to a period of iconoclasm when in East figures in churches were destroyed. The AIRC has a special connection with Santa Maria Antiqua. In years past, we have excavated in front of the site and we have also done our best to help WMF, Schmid, Morganti and team. Over these past six years, we’ve had given special entry and behind-the-scenes access to Santa Maria Antiqua thanks to professors Morganti and Schmid, who’ve also taken the time to speak with our students.
From now through November 4, Santa Maria Antiqua is available for public visits. A maximum of 25 persons can visit the site for approximately 45 minutes. Reserve via coopculture.it , 06 39967700. Cost: €12+ €9 (Foro romano entrance ticket + guided visit)
Additional reading: La Repubblica, Washington Post
Photos by AIRC and La Repubblica
Dig Rome: Ostia Antica 2012 has begun!
They have arrived! Ostia Antica Summer 2012 Excavation group is ready to get dirty! This week, we will be visiting several sites and monuments in Rome so please take a look at our twitter feeds: @AIRomanculture and @SaveRome (as well as instagram), and hashtags: #digrome #ostiaantica12. 
Half of our OstiaAntica 12 students taking a stroll in the Roman Forum.
Living History in Rome day by day
Take a peek into the mind blog of AIRC Executive Director Darius Arya as he writes about
Living History in Rome day by day.
Happy Birthday, Rome!
Here’s an all-too-familiar scenario: you’ve got a friend with a birthday coming up. It’s an important one, too, a really big deal—but, then again, at her age, every birthday is a big deal. You’ve known her for a long time—most of your life, in fact—but you’re having a hard time figuring out what to get her this year. She’s like a second mother to you, and therefore the gift has to be awesome. So what do you get her? Definitely not the same thing you got her last year, since she’d remember it, even at her advanced age, and she’d hold it against you for the rest of your (and her) life. Oh, and she’s going to outlive you by a long shot.
So what do you get for someone on her 2765th birthday? Don’t panic: a lot of people have put a lot of thought into it, maybe even too much.
Today, tomorrow, and Sunday the City of Rome is marking the traditional “birthday” of Rome, commemorating the founding of the city by Romulus on April 21, 753 BC. The whole centro storico will be the scene of one big party.
Among the things not to miss:
- Reduced entry to the Capitoline Museums (coinciding with Culture Week), where you can pay homage to Romulus’ adoptive mom, the Lupa Capitolina, who is basically responsible for the last 2765 years
- The Gruppo Storico Romano’s re-enactments of the foundation myth (the plowing of the pomerium) and the ancient Parilia festival
- A series of itineraries around the Trevi fountain exploring the complex culture and history of Rome from antiquity to today
- Free guided tours of the Palazzo Senatorio (City Hall)
Among the things you could probably live without:
- Various military bands playing really loud music that only your grandparents could enjoy
- Various official ceremonies involving lots of very well-dressed but bored-looking people in stiff poses carrying wreaths and medallions that no one will care about after this weekend
- Various shows about artists and historical figures you’ve never heard of
- Various tours of Rome’s monumental Verano cemetery, just to rub in the fact that Rome is going to outlive you by a long shot
- A big, gawdy concert on the Via dei Fori Imperiali featuring a bunch of actors, musicians, and artists you’ve never heard of
So get a party hat and a kazoo and join in the collective fun. The old lady will really appreciate it. Just don’t sing the “Happy Birthday” song—the word on the street is that she hates it.
Catch UNLISTED2012 everywhere: LiveStream and Twitter
Our Unlisted2012 conference is all about global access and community. With the help of US Department of State, we will be live streaming UNLISTED 2012 fro 230-530 Rome time (930-1230 EST). Here is a test link.
For Twitter users, we created the tag #UNLST2012 so that you can find all relevant tweets. Be sure to include this tag in all tweets regarding Unlisted2012 conference and we will do our best to answer your questions. After each speaker we will have a brief question and answer session, as well as Q&A during the last hour of the conference – so tweet your questions and watch us respond. To make it easier, please take a look at our UNLISTED TweetGrid which filters all conversations tagged #UNLST2012 as well as @AIRomanculture and @SaveRome (Director Darius Arya) accounts.
Information for live streaming and Twitter:
- Test link: http://www.ktroma.it/romanculturestreaming/index.html
- Ttest page (to see how the video streaming works) http://www.ktroma.it/streaming/index.html
- For conducting a test prior to 23rd:
mms://194.242.227.71/Kt_on_demand/Kt_on_demand/PaoloGrossi_KTsrl_streaming_roma/paologrossiktsrl.wmv - For Ipad: With GoodPlayer App clicking on link on March 23
http://www.ktroma.it/romanculturestreaming/index.html - Twitter: #UNLST2012 and UNLISTED TweetGrid
What you need
PC: Internet explorer or other browsers with windows media player plugin
MacOSX: Safari or other browsers with Flip For Mac Plugin
Podcasting Culture in Rome
On November 26, at American University of Rome and British School in Rome-hosted conference “Our Future’s Past“, I was pleased to participate and present with my AIRC colleague Alberto Prieto . We spoke on the final day of the 3-day conservation/ cultural heritage conference where topics addressed included various aspects of technology and innovation. (more…)Our Future’s Past: Sustainable Cultural Heritage XXI
Thursday November 24 through November 26, the American University of Rome and British School at Rome will be hosting the conference Our Future’s Past: Sustainable Cultural Heritage in the 21st Century. AIRC’s Darius Arya and Albert Prieto will present their lecture on November 26. The lecture will highlight AIRC’s recent efforts to promote awareness of Rome’s cultural heritage through video documentary work and discuss AIRC’s partnerships with AIAC (Fasti Online) and MiBAC.
UPDATE: Arya posts Filming the Past: Conservation Matters. Video to come.
AIRC and MiBAC
Today, Dr. Arya and Dr. Prieto proudly participated in the Italian Ministry of Culture MIBAC press conference acknowledging the official launch of the English-language version of the General Directorate of Management and Promotion of Cultural Heritage’s website. For the past year, AIRC has been collaborating with MiBAC on various projects, including providing expert translation skills. AIRC’s Darius and Alberto attended the opening session of the conference, in which the General Directorate kindly acknowldedged AIRC’s participation.
Arya with Mario Resca, Director-General MiBAC
Unlisted Conference Videos
In April 2011, AIRC hosted its first UNLISTED Conference, co-sponsors with the Italian Ministry of Culture to discuss new ways to preserve global cultural heritage sites that do not have the benefit of UNESCO World Heritage status.
Twelve new videos from Unlisted 2011 are now available at AIRC’s video web page. These videos include opening remarks from the Ministry of Culture (MiBAC) and AIRC Executive Director Darius Arya, and five guest speakers: Lorenzo Cassini, University of Rome, Helga Di Giuseppe and Lisa Fentress from the Associazione Internazionale di Archeologia Classica in Rome, Larry Coben from the Sustainable Preservation Initiative in the USA, Friedrich T. Schipper from the University of Vienna, and Dr. Laurie Rush from the United States Army, and the three papers comprising the panel on “New Models in Conservation” from Larry Coben, Andrea Crovetto (Banca Finnat), and Laura Forti.
AIRC videos can also be viewed on Youtube page: WEDIGROME.
