L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MARCH 19, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 24 L'Italo-Americano SEATTLE ITALIAN COMMUNITY A s t r a Z a r i n a , w h o s t u d i e d architecture at the Universi- t y o f W a s h - ington in the early 1950s and later became a UW pro- fessor, began traveling to the picturesque hill town of Civita di Bagnoregio in the 1960s. T h i s h i s t o r i c g e m , p e r c h e d h i g h a t o p a s l i m pinnacle of land, seemed to b e f r o z e n i n t i m e . D e v a s t a t e d b y a n e a r t h - quake in 1695, bombed dur- ing World War II, home to just a handful of full-time residents, the 2,500 year- old town of Civita was built on soft clay that crumbled "like fresh ricotta," accord- ing to the New York Times, putting its hilltop perch in constant jeopardy. Nonetheless, Zarina was captivated by the village, its buildings and its rich histo- ry. On one of her early vis- i t s , s h e w a s c a u g h t i n a fierce rainstorm and was i n v i t e d t o w a i t o u t t h e storm in a local home. As she admired the large fire- place, the family offered to s e l l h e r t h e o n e - r o o m house. She bought it on the spot and spent the next two years restoring her "room" as well as undertaking sev- eral other restoration pro- jects in Civita. In 1976, she established a much-beloved UW study- abroad program in Civita called Italian Hilltowns, a complement to the UW's successful Architecture in Rome program which s h e h a d e s t a b l i s h e d s i x y e a r s e a r l i e r . I n 1 9 8 1 , Z a r i n a a n d h e r h u s b a n d T o n y C o s t a H e y w o o d c o - founded the Civita Institute in Seattle, a nonprofit orga- n i z a t i o n t h a t p r o m o t e s e x c e l l e n c e i n d e s i g n through educational pro- g r a m s a n d c u l t u r a l exchanges between the two countries. O v e r t h e d e c a d e s , t h e c o u p l e w o r k e d h a n d - i n - hand with Civita residents, UW students and others to p r o t e c t a n d p r e s e r v e t h e town's architecture, history and culture. They retired to C i v i t a f u l l - t i m e i n 2 0 0 1 , and Zarina taught her last c l a s s t h e r e i n 2 0 0 3 . S h e died on August 31, 2008, at the age of 79. A b o u t 1 5 y e a r s a g o , P a l a z z o A l e m a n n i , a city-owned museum build- ing in Civita, dedicated a room to Zarina, choosing artifacts to represent her impact on the city. But the town wanted a more per- m a n e n t r e m i n d e r o f h e r influence, so members of t h e C i v i t a I n s t i t u t e w e r e a s k e d t o h e l p d e s i g n a n exhibit. L a s t s u m m e r , " A s t r a Zarina in Civita" opened. The exhibit was created by a trio of Seattle architects and artists from the Civita Institute, and staged in col- laboration with the city of B a g n o r e g i o a n d t h e Geological and Landslides Museum. Installed in one of the rooms of the Renaissance- era Palazzo Alemanni – the s a m e r o o m w h e r e y e a r s earlier Zarina had taught her students – the exhibit focuses on three areas of Zarina's story: her life, her t e a c h i n g a n d h e r l e g a c y . The exhibit's main installa- tion is made up of six video p r o j e c t o r s d i s p l a y i n g i m a g e s , v i d e o a n d t e x t along the room's walls. "The projectors are oper- a t e d b y r e m o t e c o n t r o l , " s a i d S e a t t l e a r t i s t a n d e x h i b i t d e s i g n e r I o l e Alessandrini. "It's not a sta- tic installation, but a flexi- ble system. That means if t h e m u s e u m n e e d s t h e space for something else, such as a special event or lecture, they can shut off the projectors and set up the room for another pur- pose." W o r k i n g w i t h Alessandrini on the exhibit were Civita Institute board member Clark Pickett, who r e s e a r c h e d p h o t o g r a p h s and created the video con- t e n t f o r t h e d i s p l a y , a n d N a n c y J o s e p h s o n , t h e I n s t i t u t e ' s c u r r e n t p r e s i - dent, who served as project manager. Additional sup- p o r t w a s p r o v i d e d b y J o r d a n H u g h e s , S h a r o n Mentyka and Cinzia Rocchi. W h e n p l a n n i n g t h e exhibit, the team wanted to portray Zarina's influence a n d l e g a c y a s a c c u r a t e l y and as engagingly as possi- ble. But it was not an easy task. "We wanted to get the c o n c e p t j u s t r i g h t , " s a i d Josephson, "but after sever- al years, we felt we were not really hitting the mark. A few years ago, we went back to the drawing board with new committee members. Within five months, a new c o n c e p t a n d d e s i g n e m e r g e d . " A b u d g e t o f $20,000, raised by mem- bers, was earmarked for the display. B o r n i n I t a l y , Alessandrini met Zarina in Rome in the early 1990s. " Z a r i n a s a i d t o m e , y o u should come to Seattle and study at the University of Washington," she recalled. "At the time, I didn't even k n o w w h e r e S e a t t l e w a s . B u t I w o r k e d t o m a k e i t happen. When I arrive, she and Tony were like family t o m e . M y m o t h e r d i e d w h e n I w a s 1 9 a n d m y father, six years later. They filled a big gap for me." Since moving to Seattle in 1994, Alessandrini has established a reputation for innovative public art instal- l a t i o n s t h a t m a n i p u l a t e l i g h t , d i g i t a l m e d i a a n d s p a c e . S h e w a s r e c e n t l y chosen to create a laser-lit installation at KeyArena, home of Seattle's new hock- ey team, which will open in 2021. She brought these tal- e n t s t o b e a r o n " A s t r a Zarina in Civita." Alessandrini spent three m o n t h s d e s i g n i n g t h e exhibit and another month in Civita installing it. "The l o c a t i o n i s g r e a t , " s a i d Alessandrini. "You walk up some steps in the Palazzo Alemanni, you see the pro- jected images and it makes you pause. Her spirit is felt through these images and words." "Astra Zarina in Civita" o p e n e d A u g u s t 2 5 , 2 0 1 9 , t h e 9 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y o f Z a r i n a ' s b i r t h . H e r h u s - band, who lives full-time in Civita, was present as Luca P r o f i l i , m a y o r o f B a g n o r e g i o a n d C i v i t a d i Bagnoregio, cut the ribbon during the opening festivi- ties. T h e C i v i t a I n s t i t u t e hopes the exhibit will con- tinue to strengthen the ties established between Astra Z a r i n a a n d t h e p e o p l e o f Civita. "People just loved h e r i n C i v i t a , " s a i d Alessandrini. "Some of the adults today knew her when they children. She saw the potential in them as indi- viduals and in their town, and they are grateful for all she did." RITA CIPALLA Seattle's Civita Institute honors founder with exhibit in Italy Lewis Albanese, right, was in Vietnam for just three months before being ambushed and killed by enemy fire. His bravery in waging a one-man attack earned him the Medal of Honor posthumously "Astra Zarina in Civita," which opened last August, was created by the Civita Institute working collaboratively with the city of Bagnoregio and the Geological and Landslides Museum (Iole Alessandrini) Astra Zarina gets ready to entertain in Civita in this 1960s photo (Civita Institute)

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