Italian-Canadian Writers Gather in Italy for Biennial Conference
More than 80 speakers and participants from across Canada, Italy, the United States and beyond came together at Università della Tuscia in Viterbo, Italy, last May 27 to 29 for the 20th Biennial Conference of the Association of Italian-Canadian Writers (AICW). The theme of the Conference was “Common Ground, Distant Shores / Prospettive Interdisciplinari tra Italia e Canada.”
Established writers, celebrated novelists, and academics mingled with emerging writers and first-time conference participants. The voices of first, second, third and even fourth-generation Italian-Canadians were heard. Friends, family members and students from the university were also in attendance.
Walking tour of Viterbo, Italy. Photo: Domenic Cusmano.
The stunning backdrop of Viterbo, one of the most well-preserved medieval walled cities in Italy, added that extra bit of magic to the conference, transporting us back a few centuries and likely sparking new bursts of creativity. The trek to the university took me along the city walls, through narrow cobblestone streets, up stone staircases, and along a piazza with a fountain and several cats sunbathing or asleep on ancient stones. Viterbo, known as “la città dei papi,” the city of popes, is situated in central Lazio, 81 kilometres northwest of Rome. The Via Francigena, an ancient pilgrim route that runs from Canterbury, England, to Rome passes through it.
Piazza del Plebescito, Viterbo, Italy. Photo: Cristina Pepe.
On the morning of May 27, preconference activities included a poetry-writing workshop led by Silvia Falsaperla and a prose-writing workshop led by Licia Canton. In the afternoon, Università della Tuscia art history professor Fulvio Ricci led a walking history lesson and tour of the medieval centre of Viterbo. It seemed as if every time we turned a corner, there was a piazza with a large fountain that we wanted to go back to and hang out.
On the following two days, the conference presentations – in English and Italian – included academic papers, readings of poetry, prose, essays and memoirs, and three roundtable discussions. Among the topics discussed were the role of Italian cultural social clubs in Canada, the writer/translator relationship, and teaching Italian as a second language. Presentations addressed the general themes of the Italian diaspora, including migration and return, memory, identity, displacement, loss, family, food and tradition. Also discussed were immigrant women and their works, biography and life-writing, Italian-Canadian queer identities, self-translation, teaching Italian beyond the classroom and as a second language, media in Italian culture, and Italian cultural narratives across media-literature, journalism, and visual culture. Each day had three parallel sessions, so careful scheduling choices had to be made.
AICW 2026 Biennial Conference, post-reading session photo shoot, Viterbo, Italy. Photo: Courtesy of Licia Canton.
In his opening remarks, Simone Cassini professor at Università della Tuscia spoke on the contacts, cultural interests and studies that brought his university and the AICW together for this conference. The keynote address, by Monica Barni of Università La Sapienza, Roma, and Massimo Vedovelli of Università per Stranieri in Siena, focussed on Italian immigration around the world, particularly Italian immigration to Canada after World War II.
The closing keynote address, titled “Radici Ciociare: A Life in Three Languages,” was given by long-time AICW member Gianna Patriarca on the topic identity and cultural roots. Patriarca, who resides in Toronto but whose roots are in Lazio – the town of Ceprano to be precise – also read a selection of her poems in English, Italian and Ciociaro dialect.
A formal dinner at a local ristorante followed, giving everyone a final opportunity to gather, talk to new and old friends, and share ideas. May 30 was reserved for an optional excursion by bus to Villa Farnese in Gradoli on Lago di Bolsena, and a delicious long, leisurely meal at the Azienda Agricola Vazianello agriturismo in Caprarola.
The quality of the literary works presented at this conference demonstrates that Italian-Canadian writers have a lot to say, carry a strong sense of cultural identity, and those radici Gianna Patriarca spoke about in her presentation are strong and thriving.
View of Viterbo, Italy, through an arch in the old quarter. Photo: Domenic Cusmano.
Our thanks go to the planning committee: Salvatore Bancheri (University of Toronto), Simone Cassini (Università della Tuscia), Francesca De Caprio (Università della Tuscia), Christine Sansalone (Laurentian University), Maria Pia Spadafora (AICW), and student volunteers: Matteo, Anastasia, Luca, Cristina, Ludovica, Antonella, Virgilio and Luca from Università della Tuscia.
Stay tuned by visiting aicw.ca for the location and more information on the next AICW biennial conference in 2028 somewhere in Canada. Alla prossima!
A Vancouver-based artist, writer and educator, Cristina Pepe was born in Orsara di Puglia and immigrated to Canada as a young child. She loves to travel to Italia every year, and writes an art and culture blog, “Un po’ di pepe,” about all things Italian.
