Extended deadline and revised topic – Call for Papers: Architectural and Design Crossovers. Modern Italy in Comparative Perspective (ASMI Annual Conference 2027)

The Association for the Study of Modern Italy (ASMI) invites proposals for its forthcoming Annual Conference 2027, which will take place on 29–30 January 2027 at the Institute of Languages, Cultures and Societies (ILCS), Senate House, University of London.

The conference has a revised topic: “Architectural and Design Crossovers. Modern Italy in Comparative Perspective”.

The conference explores architectural and design crossovers between Modern Italy and other countries from circa 1750 to the present. Papers may address architectural and design cultures and their intersections with politics and society. These crossovers may include travel, collaboration, influence, perception, reception and reaction.

Papers may also consider the relative evolution and standing of architectural and design cultures in the national and regional life of Italy and other countries, including comparative aspects such as professional organisations, pedagogy and philosophy, and media publications. Relevant sectors include industry, housing, urban design and planning, consumer products, and design for state, commercial, civic and religious settings. Exhibitions and trade fairs, whether national or international in scope, are also a particularly rich source for comparing and contrasting Italy with other national and international experiences.

Papers may be located within the following periodisation:

• From the Grand Tour to Italian Unification, c. 1750–1860
• Nationhood, Architecture and Design, c. 1860–1920
• Interwar Italy: Empire, Fascism and Modernist presences, c. 1920–1945
• Post-World War II: Consumer Culture, Urban Design, Radical Critiques, Postmodernism, c. 1945–2000
• Current Concerns: National and Transnational, c. 2000–Present

Confirmed keynote speakers are Professor Grace Lees-Maffei (Professor of Design History and Heritage, University of Hertfordshire) and Professor Lorenzo Ciccarelli (Professore Associato in Storia dell’Architettura, Dipartimento di Architettura, Università di Firenze).

The conference will be in person. The keynote speeches will be live-streamed online. Papers can be presented in English or Italian.

Proposals for papers or panels should include a 300-word abstract for 15/20-minute presentations, together with a brief biography, and should be sent to asmi.conference.2027@gmail.com by 7 October 2026.

Notifications of acceptance will be sent by 31 October 2026. Registration details will be announced no later than 1 December 2026. Accepted speakers will be required to join ASMI and register for the conference by 15 December 2026.