Over 475 guests recently gathered to honor Carlo Petrini and Paolo Sorrentino at the American Academy in Rome’s 2015 McKim Medal Gala. A wide variety of Italian and American luminaries from the worlds of art, fashion, business, and academia enjoyed cocktails, music, and conversation in the candlelit gardens of the Villa Aurelia. The evening was styled in the manner of a modern garden party, as envisioned by the filmmaker and philanthropist Ginevra Elkann, who served as Gala chair.
The jasmine-scented Secret Garden led to an elegant outdoor dining room beautifully decorated and arranged with flowers and herbs, with the full moon and the Villa as a backdrop. Elkann opened the program with Mary Margaret Jones, chair of the Academy’s Board of Trustees. They thanked the audience for supporting the gala and raising over $550,000 for the Italian Fellows program, which provides a unique opportunity for Italian scholars and artists to live and work as part of the American Academy in Rome’s dynamic international community.
Academy President Mark Robbins then introduced the program, reminding everyone of the important link between Italian and American cultural history. The chef Alice Waters, who created the dinner menu (prepared by the Academy’s Rome Sustainable Food Project), presented the first McKim Medal to the author and food activist Carlo Petrini. The actress Valeria Golino presented the second McKim Medal to the award-winning director Paolo Sorrentino, who literally stole the show with a humorous monologue describing his dread at delivering a thank-you speech with Bernardo Bertolucci in the audience.
Coverage of event included T Magazine, published by the New York Times, and Vogue Italy.
All photographs were taken by Gerardo Gataeni or Stefano Trovati/SGP.