From Page to Plate: Sketching Food Resilience. Cibo di Domani

From Page to Plate: Sketching Food Resilience: Cibo di Domani opens on January 31, 2025, at the cultural laboratory Industrie Fluviali. The art of illustration, food studies, and journalism intersect to explore the concept of resilience in contemporary food systems. Sixty digital illustrations by twenty-eight artists from the food insert of the newspaper Domani are presented in an exhibition path divided into six thematic areas, which develop the public debate on food: stability, nutrition, governance, biodiversity, social equity, and food cultures. The project is the result of a collaboration between the Arts Department of The American University of Rome (AUR), with the support of its Center for Food Studies, and the newspaper Domani..

The exhibition offers a perspective on the effectiveness of illustration as an art form in addressing the concept of resilience in food systems, analyzing how individuals and communities adapt and regenerate in response to large-scale phenomena such as climate change and socio-economic instability. Visitors are invited to reflect on food as a social, cultural, and political practice.

The event series is programmed as follows:

INAUGURATION

January 31 (Friday), Industrie Fluviali (Via del Porto Fluviale, 35, Rome - https://maps.app.goo.gl/imagQwXVUdPobArEA)

• 18:30 – Presentation of the Exhibition
  Carlotta Vacchelli (AUR), Michela Rossi Sonno (Domani), Jaxon Cooper (AUR): Overview of the exhibition

  Sonia Ricci (Gambero Rosso), Maria Tornielli (Domani), Lisa Di Giuseppe (Domani): Overview of food and journalism

  Maria Grazia Quieti (AUR), Paul Gwynne (AUR): Overview of Food Studies and Food in Art History
   

• 20:00 – Guided Tour (Italian & English)
  Led by the curators team: Jaxon Cooper, Carlotta Vacchelli, Michela Rossi Sonno
   
• 21:00 – DJ Set by Grosso Bernardo

Comics & Food

February 7 (Friday), Industrie Fluviali (Via del Porto Fluviale, 35, Rome)

• 15:00 – 16:30 – Comics & Science: "Il cibo è in crisi?"
  Participants:
  Comics & Science directors, Andrea Plazzi & Roberto Natalini (CNR)
  Mauro Centritto (CNR), Antonello Bonfante (CNR), Maria Grazia Quieti (AUR), and Fabio Ciconte (Cibo by Domani)
  And a live drawing performance by cartoonist Gabriele Peddes
   
• 16:30 – 17:00 – Coffee Break
   
• 17:00 – 18:00 – Guided Tour (Italian & English)
  Led by the curator team: Jaxon Cooper, Carlotta Vacchelli, Michela Rossi Sonno
   
• 18:00 – 19:00 – Food in the Graphic Novel
  Alessio Trabacchini (NABA, Coconino)
  Giuseppina Frassino (Tricromia)
  Manfredi Ciminale (Comics artist and Illustrator for Cibo, Domani)
  Luca Raffaelli (PAFF! Palazzo del Fumetto Pordenone)

Conference: Picture the Future

February 28 (Friday) - Auditorium, The American University of Rome (Via Pietro Roselli 4, Rome)

REGISTER TO ATTEND THE CONFERENCE HERE

• 10:30 – 10:45 – Coffee
   
• 10:45 – 11:00 – Welcoming remarks from Scott Sprenger, President, The American University of Rome

  ​Presentation of From Page to Plate Project
  Carlotta Vacchelli, Michela Rossi Sonno, Jaxon Cooper
   

• 11:00 – 12:00 – Roundtable: Food in Literature, Comics, and Illustration
  Francesco Verso (Novelist and Scriptwriter)
  Ginevra Lamberti (Writer, Contributor to Cibo Domani)
  Laura Angelucci (Comics artist and Illustrator for Cibo Domani)
  The Sando (Comics artist, Teacher at NABA, and Illustrator for Cibo Domani)
  Moderated by Carlotta Vacchelli
   
• 12:00 – 12:45 – Keynote: Food Studies in Contemporary Art
  Ginevra Ludovici (Scuola IMT Alti Studi Lucca) & Valerio Del Baglivo, in conversation with Manuela Pacella (AUR)
   
• 12:45 – 14:00 – Break
   
• 14:00 – 14:30 – Keynote: Food in Art History
  Professor Paul Gwynne (The American University of Rome) with an introduction by Jaxon Cooper
   
• 14:30 – 15:00 – Food in Contemporary Illustration Art
  Fabio Barilari with an introduction by Jaxon Cooper
   
• 15:00 – 15:30 – Coffee Break
   
• 15:30 – 16:30 – Roundtable on Food and Journalism
  With food journalist Lorenzo Santucci (Cibo by Domani), and editors from Domani, moderated by Michela Rossi Sonno and Carlotta Vacchelli

Finissage

March 7 (Friday), Industrie Fluviali (Via del Porto Fluviale, 35, Rome)

• 18:30 - Closing exhibition tour by the curator team: Carlotta Vacchelli, Michela Rossi Sonno, Jaxon Cooper
   
• 20:00 - Food Inspired DJ Set by Tehrsa

EXHIBITION CATALOG

From Page to Plate: Sketching Food Resilience – Cibo by “Domani”
Edited by Carlotta Vacchelli and Michela Rossi “Sonno”

"From Page to Plate" explores the intersection of food resilience and visual storytelling, presented through the dynamic spaces of the Industrie Fluviali cultural ecosystem. This exhibition is a collaborative effort by the Department of Art History and Fine Arts and the Center for Food Studies of the American University of Rome, along with Domani’s Cibosupplement, and brings together diverse research on food’s role in society and art.

At its core, the exhibition addresses food resilience - our ability to adapt and regenerate food systems in the face of challenges like climate change, economic instability, and social inequality. By showcasing works from 28 international illustrators, it highlights how the medium of illustration engages audiences in understanding complex issues related to food systems, from sustainability to cultural identity.