La costruzione dell’Altrove nell’Italia fascista. Rappresentazione e appropriazione nelle opere di paesaggio dell’ex Museo Coloniale di Roma

Through the analysis of colonial landscape artworks which were part of the former Colonial Museum of Rome, inaugurated in 1923, this dissertation investigates how Fascist Italy constructed a visual conception of a colonial ‘Elsewhere’. It examines the themes, stereotypes, and visual strategies employed to depict the natural and built environments of Italy’s overseas territories, demonstrating how these images served the regime’s ideological and propagandistic objectives. While much scholarship has focused on the representation of colonized peoples, this study foregrounds the portrayal of colonial places – landscapes, cities, and archaeological sites – as a crucial yet underexplored element of Fascist visual culture. It argues that the depiction of landscapes functions as a form of symbolic appropriation, transforming the colonial environment into a constructed image that reflects imperial ideology. The artworks examined have been classified into three main iconographic categories: archaeological sites, urban centers, and natural landscapes. This categorization allows for a structured analysis that connects each type of imagery to broader aspects of Fascist colonial cultural policy and propaganda themes. Archaeological sites, deeply linked to the myth of romanitas, were instrumental in Fascist discourse to legitimize colonial domination by evoking the glory of ancient Rome, thereby establishing a historical continuity that justified the imperial project. These images symbolically appropriated the past to reinforce ideological narratives of power and civilization. Urban centers and colonial architecture, including both monumental buildings and traditional dwellings, offer insights into the relationship between visual representation and the physical transformation of colonial spaces. On one hand, these depictions not only documented but also promoted the regime’s efforts to impose order, modernity, and Italian identity on colonial cities, reflecting the ambitions and contradictions of Fascist urban planning and settlement policies. On the other hand, narratives and images emphasized the exotic and ‘oriental’ aspects of the cities, especially those in Libya and the Dodecanese Islands – particularly Rhodes. Natural landscapes and rural scenes were connected to agrarian colonial policies aimed at making the colonies ‘familiar’. These images portrayed the colonial territories as fertile, productive, and inviting spaces, designed to attract settlers and justify economic exploitation. The idealization of nature in these works served both to naturalize the colonial presence and to render the colonies familiar and attractive. By organizing the artworks according to these iconographic categories, the dissertation highlights how each visual theme is interwoven with specific facets of Fascist cultural politics and propaganda strategies. This framework facilitates a comprehensive understanding of how colonial landscapes were constructed as powerful ideological tools, simultaneously reflecting and shaping imperial ambitions. Through art historical analysis combined with a critical examination of ideological and propaganda narratives, the dissertation traces the history of selected works and artists, despite challenges posed by archival limitations. It emphasizes the role of landscape imagery in Italian colonial propaganda and its deployment within the regime’s cultural policies. In this regard, periodical press – including colonial magazines and tourism promotion journals – turned out to be particularly useful for understanding the narratives and tropes underlying colonial discourse. Finally, the epilogue briefly reflects on the postwar reception of these colonial artworks and advocates for a critical, historically informed approach to these images, essential for a deeper understanding of Italy’s colonial legacy.