Research Affiliate
I am a public historian, artist, and educator, based in Tiohtià:ke (Montreal), telling and listening to stories about immigration, identity, collective memory, food, and folklore, particularly in relation to the Italian-Canadian experience and traditions from my family’s region, Molise. I explore these themes in my newsletter, Crivello. I am also interested in representations of girlhood in the context of 90s and y2k pop feminism and girl power movements, which I write about in a collaborative newsletter with Jac Di Bartolomeo, called notyrgirls.
Art is a space in which I have explored themes of memory, nostalgia, identity, and autobiography. My work as a public historian is inspired and informed as much by these explorations as the theories and methodologies of historical work. My practice is multi-disciplinary, bringing together my training as an oral historian, with installation art and digital media.
I graduated twice from Concordia University with a BFA in Studio Arts and an Italian minor, and a BA in Honours Public History. In 2019, I completed my masters in Public History at Carleton University. My research project, The Yellow Line: Italo-Canadian Oral Histories from Montreal’s Backyards and Schoolyards, was an archival photo, installation, and oral history pop-up exhibit, presented at the Casa d’Italia in March 2019.
My latest project is an oral history cookbook on the stories and recipes of Montreal’s molisani, Dalla valigia alla tavola: A journey through Molisan culinary heritage, which I completed in collaboration with the Federazione delle associazioni molisane del Quebec, photographer and artist Vee Di Gregorio, chef Joseph D’Alleva, and pastry chef Erica Marsillo. Currently, I am working on a zine/exhibit about the history and family stories of “Italian birthday cake” in North America.
Website: www.artistorian.com
