Visual Arts – Performing Rome

PERFORMING ROME is a visual arts course in Rome that intertwines the practice of performance art with the Eternal City, its past history and its present. An immersive journey through sacred, institutional and contemporary art and architecture, exploring Rome through the body, space and thought.

DURATION > 1 WEEK

LANGUAGE > ENGLISH

WHEN > 6 – 10 JULY 2026

CAMPUS > ROME

Rome on stage

During the course, you will be able to develop a physical and conceptual interpretation of the city, exploring its history, myths and monuments in depth. This intensive workshop investigates the individual and collective dimensions of performance art against the backdrop of Rome. You are invited to embark on a creative journey capable of transforming Caravaggio, Bernini and Zaha Hadid into contemporary performances.

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Giving body to space

The course includes guided visits led by the lecturer and concludes with the presentation of a performance open to the public.
It is open to performance artists and artists in general, as well as filmmakers and photographers interested in developing reportage projects on performance art.

Through physical and mental exercises, you will learn to “occupy space” and develop a conscious presence: yoga-based practices, trust exercises, endurance training and meditation techniques will accompany the performance work.

At the end of the course, a certificate of attendance will be issued to participants who have attended at least 80% of the lessons, for the possible recognition of 2 CFA academic credits.

Hear from participants in previous editions | Performing Rome

Course type: group – in person
Participants: Min. 8, Max. 15 | The programme is open to university and fine arts academy students, photographers, filmmakers and anyone wishing to explore the world of performance art.
Attendance: Monday to Friday, from 9.00 am to 5.00 pm
Duration: 30 June – 5 July 2026 – 5 days
Cost: €850.00 – Admission tickets are included in the course fee.
Requirements/materials: No entry requirements.
Language: English | Participants are required to have a good knowledge of English.
Lecturer: Marta Jovanovic
Campus: RUFA – Via Degli Ausoni 7/A-Rome + various visits around the city.
Certificate: At the end of the course, a certificate of attendance will be issued to participants who have attended at least 4 of the 5 scheduled lessons, for the possible recognition of 2 CFU credits

Day 1
Presentation and course programme.
Lesson on the history of performance art from Futurism and DADA to the present day, analysing its development in different parts of the world. The works of some of the most important performance artists, such as Yoko Ono, Marina Abramovic, Joseph Beuys, Vito Acconci and others, will be analysed and discussed, together with the relationship between performance art and the contemporary art scene, its connection with museums and commercial galleries, and the key role of performance art in major artistic events.
Individual and group exercises.
Visit to St Peter’s Basilica.

Day 2
Performing the Vatican – individual or group performances by students
Itinerant route through central Rome. Visit to San Luigi dei Francesi (Caravaggio’s The Calling of Saint Matthew, The Inspiration of Saint Matthew and The Martyrdom of Saint Matthew), Palazzo Barberini, and the Church of Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome (Bernini’s The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa of Ávila).

Day 3
Performing Caravaggio and Bernini: individual or group performances by students.

Day 4
Performance preparation.

Day 5
Discussion and review of performance concepts, rehearsals and final performance.

Marta Jovanović Marta Jovanović is a performance artist and lecturer whose mission is to promote and facilitate the continued development of the discipline. Founder of the Performance Art Program at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade and artist-in-residence at the Getty Research Institute in Los Angeles in 2017, Jovanović is the subject of the documentary film “Born Just Now” by American director Robert Adanto, winner of numerous international awards. Her works, “Pionirka”, “It is My Body”, “Love”, and “Motherhood”, are held in major private and museum collections. The performance “BelgradeMermaid” opened the Belgrade Biennale in 2018, while the following year its continuation, “Mermaid’s Tale”, became a virtual reality performance. Curator Kathy Battista wrote a compendium on her early work entitled “Marta Jovanovic: Performing the Self”, published by the Martin E. Segal Theatre Center at the City University of New York, while in the book New York New Wave, Battista positions Jovanović among New York’s most urgent contemporary feminist artists.

RUFA Winter-Summer Course Students and Alumni: 10%
RUFA Students and Alumni: 50%
Very Early Bird: by 31 December 2025 – 15%
Early Bird: by 31 March 2026 – 10%
Course/group/family package: contact [corsibrevi@unirufa.it](mailto:corsibrevi@unirufa.it)
Participants who, after completing the course, enrol in a First- or Second-Level Academic Diploma Programme will receive a 10% reduction on the annual tuition fee for the first year of attendance.

RUFA has established several agreements with facilities providing housing services. For further information, please contact [corsibrevi@unirufa.it](mailto:corsibrevi@unirufa.it)