2024 – so many events…
The summer of 2024 was very eventful at the Residential College in Volterra. It seemed that something extraordinary was happening every day. Maybe the most important story is that we were able to officially celebrate the renaming of our home in Volterra.
Volterra International Residential College
is now
Pagnotta International Residential College
The event took place on May 31, with the presence of our distinguished patrons Steve and Beth Pagnotta, the Dean of the School of Architecture and Community Development University of Detroit Mercy Dan Pitera, Associate Dean Noah Resnick, former Dean Will Wittig, and many other guests. We had a great opportunity to thank Steve and Beth for their generosity in supporting our project!
During the first six weeks of the School of Architecture and Community Development program in Volterra, we hosted a very special guest, our first Scholar in Residence, Prof. Craig Wilkins, Ph.D. of Taubman College of Architecture and Urban Planning at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor. While in Volterra, Craig gave a wonderful lecture on the social aspects of public spaces in American cities. Craig fell in love with Volterra (of course!), and Volterra fell in love with Craig 🙂 It was very sad, when the time came to say goodbye…
A very special lecture was also given by Pablo Alvarez, Director of the Special Collections Research Center at the University of Michigan Libraries. It was on the Art and Science of the Human Body in the European Renaissance. Pablo demonstrated in his presentation, how art and science were part of the same realm of human interests, which we until today define as humanism.
An event, or a series of events of a completely different category, developed during our stay in Volterra this year. Velio Grandoli, whom many of you may remember as the Master of Alabaster art, your professor of the Alabaster Sculpture class, decided to retire. He has been an essential part of the program in Volterra since the very beginning, since 1987. He is not leaving the city, but he would no longer teach, or work in alabaster. He wanted his legacy to continue and therefore decided to approach the Volterra-Detroit Foundation to buy his alabaster laboratory from him, so it could still be used to teach our students, and maybe organize other art education programs. This way, we are proud to announce, that we now officially own Velio’s alabaster laboratory, which you can see, with our students working in it, on the pictures below.
