This year marks the 100th anniversary of the publication of Filippo Marinetti’s founding manifesto of Italian Futurism. The manifesto's publication sparked intense interest across Europe and Eurasia, from France to Italy and Russia, and is widely considered the inaugural text of the 20th-century literary avant-garde. Marinetti's subsequent visit to Moscow and St. Petersburg in 1914 allowed the Russian avant-garde to differentiate itself from rival European currents, raising important questions about the competitive diffusion of aesthetic modernism and cultural modernity within and beyond Europe. Taking advantage of Yale University’s unique resources for the study of the Italian and Russian avant-garde, our conference will add its comparative and transnational perspective to the many celebrations of Futurism’s 100th anniversary currently being held in the United States and abroad.

This conference has been made possible by the generous contributions of the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, the Departments of Italian, Slavics and Film Studies, the European Studies Council and the Edward J. and Dorothy Clarke Kempf Memorial Fund. We would also like to acknowledge the public endorsement by the Triennale di Milano.

Events are free and open to the public, however registration is required. For more information call (203) 432-0595.

The Department of Italian at Columbia University in the City of New York is pleased to announce Beyond Futurism: F.T. Marinetti, Writer, a two-day international symposium. The sister conference will take place on November 12-13, 2009. For more information please visit the conference website.