Support

Join the American Academy in Rome community by becoming a Friend of the Academy in Italy. By becoming a Friend you will be included in the academic, artistic, and social life of the Academy and provide much needed financial support to this American institution in Rome.

 

Our unique Experience Packages offer you the chance to enjoy exclusive access to distinguished artists and scholars of the Academy.

Purchase online today! Or bid in person at the Gala Silent Auction on November 6.

Your participation will provide critical support for AAR Fellows and programs.

Watch this space as we continue to add exciting new opportunities!

Quantities are limited, so please purchase now to ensure availability. Activities must be scheduled at a mutually agreeable time within one year of purchase.

 

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Personalized Portrait by Beverly McIver, 2018 Fellow
$30,000

Personal portrait by award-winning artist and Esbenshade Professor of the Practice of Visual Arts at Duke University, Beverly McIver. McIver is widely acknowledged as a significant presence in contemporary American art and has charted a new direction as an African American female artist. Her work examines racial, gender, social, and occupational identity, with a special emphasis on “capturing people’s souls” in her work.

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When in Rome…
$25,000

Prepare yourself for the ultimate insider’s view of Rome. Enjoy accommodations for two nights for up to six people in our 17^th century Villa Aurelia, an architectural jewel with 3.8 acres of gardens and panoramic views of the Eternal City. Savor a special lunch prepared by the Rome Sustainable Food Project with Academy Fellows and Residents. Embark on a private, customized tour of Rome’s famed historic sites with the Academy’s Director. As an added benefit, enjoy the opportunity to organize a private dinner at the Villa Aurelia with no rental fee (additional charges apply).
Villa accommodations are based on dual occupancy and are subject to availability.

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Get Real with Laurie Anderson, 2006 Resident
$15,000

Laurie Anderson is one of America’s most renowned and daring creative pioneers. Best known for her multimedia presentations, innovative use of technology, and first-person style, she is a writer, director, visual artist, and vocalist who has created groundbreaking works that span the worlds of art, theater, and experimental music. Join Anderson for cocktails at her SoHo studio and a walk-through of her current virtual reality work, “To the Moon.” Maximum four people for tour.

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Put It in Writing: Your Name in Francine Prose’s Next Book
$7,500

Francine Prose (2006 Resident) is the award-winning author of several New York Times bestselling works of fiction and non-fiction, including A Changed Man, Lovers at the Chameleon Club, Paris 1932, Blue Angel, and Reading Like a Writer. Here is your chance to forever be immortalized in literature by having a character named after you (or a friend or loved one) in Prose’s latest novel, “The Vixen,” forthcoming from HarperCollins (publication date TBD). 

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Studio Tour with Nari Ward, 2013 Fellow
$7,500

Nari Ward is a Jamaican-born, New York-based visual artist internationally recognized for his sculptural installations composed of discarded material found and collected in his neighborhood. He re-contextualizes found objects in thought-provoking juxtapositions that create complex, metaphorical meanings to confront social and political issues surrounding race, poverty, and consumer culture. Join Ward for conversation, drinks, and a private tour of his studio in Harlem.
Maximum six people for tour.

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Meet Me at the Met: Tour with C. Brian Rose,
1992 Fellow and 2012 Resident
$5,000

Explore the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Roman, Greek, and Etruscan collections on a personal guided tour with C. Brian Rose, James B. Pritchard Professor of Classical Archaeology at the University of Pennsylvania and Curator-in-Charge of the Mediterranean Section of the University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology. Maximum ten people for tour.

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Dinner at Alice’s Wonderland
$5,000

Enjoy dinner for six with wine pairings at The Café at Chez Panisse in Berkeley, CA, founded in 1980 by Alice Waters, also founder of the Academy’s Rome Sustainable Food Project. The Café offers a menu inspired by the market and changes twice daily. Alice will oversee every detail of your meal and ensure that you and your guests have an unforgettable evening. 

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Divine Design: Consultation with Architect Calvin Tsao,
2010 Resident
$5,000

Calvin Tsao’s work has been described as a “sensuous vision of modernism . . . always with an emphasis on materials’ emotional as well as aesthetic qualities.” Calvin and his partner, Zack McKown, are motivated to resolve and reflect their clients’ needs and aspirations, which has garnered them clients from Meryl Streep and Ian Schrager to companies like Shu Uemura and Sunbrella. Spend the afternoon with Calvin in his studio to learn about color theory and how he works with materials to create luscious and elegant environments. Then bring Calvin’s design insights and sensibility to one space in your own home or office and enjoy a design diagnostic by him and his firm, Tsao & McKown Architects.

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MoMA Returns: Tour of New Galleries with Sean Anderson, 2005 Fellow
$5,000

Sean Anderson, Associate Curator in the Department of Architecture and Design at The Museum of Modern Art, will guide you through the newly-expanded and reimagined MoMA, with special emphasis on the postwar and contemporary exhibitions, followed by lunch or drinks. The museum’s expansion, developed by MoMA with architects Diller Scofidio + Renfro, in collaboration with Gensler, adds more than 40,000 square feet of gallery spaces and enables the Museum to exhibit significantly more art in new and interdisciplinary ways.  Maximum 8 people for tour.

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Experience Packages are contributions to the American Academy in Rome and are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law, which is generally the amount by which the contribution exceeds the fair market value of the goods or services received. As no goods or services are provided in exchange for our Support Opportunities, they are 100% tax deductible.