Since its founding in 1894, the American Academy in Rome has been an indispensable cultural bridge between the United States and Italy, a transatlantic handshake of artistry and intellect. By offering a residential haven for research and creativity amidst the Eternal City’s ancient splendor, the Academy has become a wellspring of inspiration for America’s brightest minds. Its alumni trophy case could rival that of any powerhouse institution: 629 Guggenheim Fellowships, 75 Pulitzer Prizes, 54 MacArthur Fellowships, 26 Grammy Awards, 5 Pritzker Prizes, 9 Poet Laureate appointments and 5 Nobel Prizes.

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Where better to celebrate such a legacy than the New York Public Library’s Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, a marble neoclassical ode to permanence that could easily moonlight as a Roman temple? On Thursday, November 14, the Academy’s annual gala brought over 320 guests to its stately embrace to toast this year’s honorees: boundary-pushing artist Jenny Holzer, Grammy-winning composer Terence Blanchard and legendary Italian historian Carlo Ginzburg. Each was awarded the Academy’s prestigious Centennial Medal, the cultural equivalent of a laurel crown.

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The evening’s speeches proved as rich as the menu—a feast masterminded by Alice Waters, culinary doyenne and co-founder of the Rome Sustainable Food Project (RSFP). Gala Co-Chairs Marilynn Davis and Mary Margaret Jones, themselves deeply entwined with the........

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