Churches, Temples, Mosques: Places of Worship or Museums?

Conference Program:

20 April 2012, S. Jacopo in Campo Corbolini (Istituto Lorenzo de' Medici, via Faenza, 43, Firenze)

9.00 Introductory/Opening Salutes

Dr. Fabrizio Guarducci, Presidente Lorenzo de’ Medici

Cardinale Giuseppe Betori, Arcivescovo di Firenze

Prof. Maia Gahtan, Direttrice, MA Museum Studies

9.30 Keynote Address

Mons. Timothy Verdon, Direttore, Ufficio dell'Arte Sacra e dei Beni Culturali Ecclesiastici, Arcidiocesi di Firenze e Direttore, Museo dell'Opera di Santa Maria del Fiore

10.00 Session 1: Places of Worship in Italy and Abroad.
Chair: Prof. Mauro Mussolin, Scuola Normale di Pisa

1. Padre Egidio Canil OFM Conv, Vicario del Sacro Convento, Assisi

2. Padre Saul Tambini, Direttore, Opera della Porziuncola, Assisi

3. Mons. Antonio Meneguolo, Delegato Patriarcale per la Basilica di San Marco,
Procuratore di San Marco

4. Chanoine Domenique Aubert, Recteur, Cathédrale et Sanctuaire de Chartres

5. Ms. Marie Louise Sauerberg, Conservator, Westminster Abbey, London

6. Dr. Yusuf Natsheh, Director of Department of Tourism and archaeology Al Haram al-Sharif (Dome of the Rock and Al-Asqa Mosque)

Lunch

14.00 Session 2: Places of Worship in Florence
Chair: Prof.Giacomo Pirazzoli, Università degli Studi di Firenze

1. Padre Antonio Di Marcantonio, Ministro Provinciale dell'ordine francescano dei minori conventuali e Rettore, Basilica di S. Croce, Firenze

2. Dott.ssa Monica Bietti, Direttrice del Museo delle Cappelle Medicee, Firenze

3. Dott.ssa Magnolia Scudieri, Direttrice del Museo di San Marco, Firenze

4. Prof.ssa Dora Liscia, Università degli Studi di Firenze e Responsabile, Museo Ebraico alla Sinagoga, Firenze

Tea

17.00 Rountable 1 (in English)
Moderator: prof. Mauro Mussolin, Scuola Normale di Pisa
Participants: Mons. Timothy Verdon, , Dr. Yusuf Natsheh, Chanoine Domenique Aubert, Ms. Marie Louise Sauerberg, Padre Saul Tambini

21 April 2012, Refectory S. Croce, Florence (after the visits)

9.00 Cathedral and Baptistery visit, Mons. Timothy Verdon

10.30 S. Croce visit, Padre Antonio di Marcantonio

11.30 Rountable 2 (in Italian)
Moderator: prof. Giacomo Pirazzoli, Università degli Studi di Firenze
Participants: Padre Antonio Di Marcantonio, Prof.ssa Dora Liscia, Dott.ssa Monica Bietti, Mons. Meneguolo, Padre Egidio Canil, Dott.ssa Magnolia Scudieri

Central Questions:
1. The division of space in the church: is this affected or guided by tourist visitors? Has the historical division and sacral use of space been interrupted or abolished in favor of a museological division of space? Has the influx of tourists created the need for ‘off-limits’ spaces that never had existed as such before? What is the liturgical consequence of the creation of these spaces?
2. Role of signs, didactic material and museum installations: do these belong in the interiors of houses of worship and if so, what rules of decorum should govern them? How do these rules differ from signage in other museums?
3. Conservation Issues and church interiors/cult objects: are church people and museum people here at odds? When objects are still alive and in use, how does this affect conservation practices? Should it affect conservation practices?
4. Church or museum access: what are the psychological effects of delimiting church or museum access by designating specific hours for each? What are the psychological effects of museum ticketing on the church goer and the museum goer?
5. Legal status of monument: is it legally under a religious authority and/or a superintendency/museum administration and how does this affect the above?

Contact: Lorenzo de' Medici Institute
infolorenzodemedici.it