Speaker: Danielle Oteri
Danielle Oteri: Hi I'm Danielle Oteri. I'm from New York, but right now I am in Naples, Italy.
What sparked your interest in studying Italian history and culture?
Danielle Oteri: I first became interested in studying Art History in Southern Italy when, as a graduate student, I was studying in Florence and I came here to Naples, to visit the towns and villages where my grandparents are from and to meet my Italian family. And I discovered just this incredible wealth of unbelievable monuments and museums that very few people seem to know much about. And I rededicated my career, and my life, really, to studying it and sharing it with you.
Why do we know more about the Italian Renaissance in Florence than in Naples?
Danielle Oteri: Did you know that the reason we know so much about the Renaissance in Florence, but not in Naples, is because of World War II? As the Germans were retreating and the Allies advanced, they dropped a bomb on the state archives of Naples, which at that time was the largest repository of Medieval and Renaissance documents in Europe. And with one move, they obliterated centuries of primary source documents.
Danielle Oteri: If you are interested in learning more about Southern Italian art and history and literature, then I look forward to meeting you at a Context Conversation.
