Long before the mass immigration of Italians to America, in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, Italians made crucial contributions to American culture. When the Capitol was built in Washington, U.S. artists were not of sufficient caliber to provide the sculptures and mural paintings, so it was decorated by Italians. With mass immigration came the modelers and stone carvers who made possible the glories of American architecture and public art during the City Beautiful movement. Meanwhile, American artists often went to Italy to study and work. The Italian contribution to the American diet cannot be overstated. Examine the two-way traffic: Italians in America, Americans in Italy, in a richly illustrated series of lectures examining art, architecture, food, and immigration.
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