The Fresno State Library and Dr. Brian J. Griffith of Fresno State’s department of history present Where Monsters Are Born: Documenting a Fascist Revival in the Streets of Rome, 2018-2019, an exhibition examining Italian neo-fascist propaganda through an anti-fascist lens.

Using propaganda harvested directly from the streets of Rome, this exhibition looks critically at the visual and spatial strategies used by Italy’s neo-fascists to further their aims in the public square. Underscoring how design, history, and selective memory embolden far-right populism, this exhibition challenges the viewer to identify and combat authoritarian messages in everyday spaces.

Tamburo dell'avanguardia This poster celebrates Italy's far-right youth as the "Drum[beat] of the Avant-Garde." Produced by Student Bloc, CasaPound Italy's neo-fascist youth group, it depicts an Italian youth shouting while holding a banner along with an anonymous crowd of Student Bloc members in the background. Rendered in a flame-like color palette, the poster evokes youth as a revolutionary force against the socio-political status quo. Source: Photograph by Brian J Griffith (December 28, 2020).
Tamburo dell’avanguardia This poster celebrates Italy’s far-right youth as the “Drum[beat] of the Avant-Garde.” Produced by Student Bloc, CasaPound Italy‘s neo-fascist youth group. Photograph by Brian J Griffith (December 28, 2020).

The old world is dying. The new one is slow to appear. And in this interregnum, monsters are born. — Antonio Gramsci, Prison Notebooks

Named after Antonio Gramsci‘s trenchant observations of post-World War I Italy’s infamous struggles with ultranationalism, political violence, and dictatorship, Where Monsters Are Born is an exhibition that explores the visual and spatial strategies deployed by contemporary Italy’s neo-fascist community in the popularization of their illiberal worldviews within the country’s streets and public squares.

  • Dates Open:  January 27 – March 22, 2025
  • Reception Date and Time: January 27, 2025, 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. with a talk by Dr. Griffith
  • Location: Pete P. Peters Ellipse Balcony Gallery, Fresno State Library (3rd Floor North Wing)
  • Exhibition is free and open to the public during library hours. 

Keywords for curricular connections and discussion:

Fascism, Neo-Fascism, Italy, Europe, Far Right, Visual Literacy, Propaganda, Posters, Populism, Youth, Violence, Collective Memory, Anti-Fascism

Information Contact

Dr. Brian J Griffith
Department of History, Fresno State
brianjgriffith@csufresno.edu

https://wheremonstersareborn.com

At the Library: Heather Parish (heatherparish@csufresno.edu)