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Australians in Italy : contemporary lives and impressions
Edited by Bill Kent, Ros Pesman and Cynthia Troup
Clayton, Vic. : Monash University ePress, 2008
ISBN: 9780980361681
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Book description
Long before the advent of modern tourism, Australians travelled
to live in Italy, or undertook extensive visits there. Indeed they continue
to do so in increasing numbers, as women and men find Italian partners; as
business people with European interests settle there; as retirees in their
thousands seek 'the good life' that Italy - in Ros Pesman's words, this
'culturally endowed place of rebirth' - seems to promise.
While many are familiar with celebrated expatriates such as Germaine Greer,
Jeffrey Smart, Peter Robb and David Malouf, hundreds of other artists,
writers, musicians and intellectuals have made and continue to make a
notable contribution to the cultural and intellectual lives of both
countries. Whilst Australian Studies flourishes in Italian universities,
Australian academics write distinguished accounts of Italian history
covering various eras. Despite this sustained activity, the scholarly and
cultural engagement of Australians with Italy is not a well known story.
This collection seeks to map the past and present of the Australian love
affair with Italy, and yields rich insights into its causes, motivations and
transformations. Contributors include former Australian Ambassador to Italy
Rory Steele, poet Peter Porter, contemporary artists Euan Heng and Jo-Anne
Duggan, as well as distinguished academics and young scholars. Amongst the
diverse range of articles and vignettes are chapters by Ian Britain on
Donald Friend's Italian years, Loretta Baldassar exploring the phenomenon of
reverse migration, and novelist Lisa Clifford reflecting on her family ties
with Italy.
Australians in Italy will appeal to scholars and students of migration and
multiculturalism, Australian Studies, Italian Studies, and tourism and
travel. It will also delight those interested in Italy and all things
Italian - people of Italo-Australian backgrounds, armchair and actual
travellers, sojourners in Italy, and the general reader.
About the author
Bill Kent is an Australian Professorial Fellow in the School
of Historical Studies at Monash University, and was founding director of
the Monash University Centre in Prato. He is a widely published
specialist in the cultural and social history of late medieval and
Renaissance Italy, and is general editor of the critical edition of
Lorenzo de' Medici's letters. In 2004 he published Lorenzo de' Medici
and the Art of Magnificence (Johns Hopkins University Press).
Ros Pesman is Professor Emeritus in the School of Philosophical
and Historical Enquiry at the University of Sydney where she was
formerly Challis Professor of History and Pro-Vice-Chancellor for the
College of Humanities and Social Sciences. Her most recent publications
include From Paesani to Global Italians: Veneto Migration to Australia
(with Loretta Baldassar, University of Western Australia Press, 2005).
Cynthia Troup has taught in the School of Historical Studies and
in the Faculty of Art and Design at Monash University, and at The
University of Melbourne she works in Italian Studies. She is a writer
and academic editor. Her publications include short stories, articles on
Italian Studies, and essays and interviews in the fields of contemporary
art and music.
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