Early Italian Art in the Works of Nicholas Roerich (1900s‐1910s)

In the works created by Nicholas Roerich in the 1900s –1910s various cultural influences were synthesized. These were conditioned by the consistent pattern of the development of Russian art as well as by the individual preferences of the artist. The artistic heritage of old Italy became one of the strongest influences on Roerich and was interpreted by him in a particular way. The article examines the factors that determined Roerich’s interest in Italian art of the Middle Ages and the Early Re-r naissance and analyzes the experience of his trips to Italy in 1901 and 1906. The study of the style and methods of old masters significantly enriched Roerich’s means of expression and helped to establish his mature style.

Ukrainian Icons Theotokos Mother of Mercy (New Iconographic Interpretation of Traditional Plot)

Baroque trends, which have been extended in the Ukrainian religious art of the late 17th – early 18th centuries, contributed to the expansion of its thematic composition, stylistic changes and the emergence of new iconographic plots. The icons Theotokos Mother of Mercy, or the Cossack Intercession, as they are also called, are a clear example of the renewal of themes in Ukrainian religious art during the Baroque period. This iconographic version of the Intercession, apparently, is borrowed from Western European painting; it is correlated with the compositional type of the image of the Intercession of the Theotokos – Madonna della Misericordia – popular in Italian art. It is supposed, that the image of the Blessed Virgin, covering the parish with the mantle, has been inspired by the vision of the Cistercian monk, theologian and writer Caesar of Geisterbach, who describes it in his Dialogus Miraculorum (1221). Formation of the iconography Madonna della Misericordia in Western European art has started in the 13th century. The Virgin usually stands on the early images. The Christians staying under the protection of the Virgin Mary are depicted on their knees and in a much smaller scale. The icons Madonna della Misericordia have been often ordered by specific groups of believers, such as fraternities, professional guilds, monasteries and abbeys. The theme of the Intercession of Theotokos of the iconographic version Theotokos Mother of Mercy has taken a special place in the Ukrainian iconography of the Baroque period. The image of the Patroness, blessing and covering the faithful with her mantle, has attracted Ukrainian masters with the realism and majesty of the compositional plan. The popularity and rapid dissemination of this iconographic variety of the Intercession have been caused also by the fact that it presents individualized images of people from different layers of the that time society with special penetration. Contemplating the icons of the Intercession in the temples, the believers have seen obviously a powerful and merciful patroness in the image of the Mother of God. Ukrainian icons Theotokos Mother of Mercy of the 17th – early 18th centuries are filled with the search for a new artistic expressiveness, reveal the nature of the transition period and the peculiarities of the process of formation of a new stylistic system of sacred painting.

P–511 Characteristics of psychological services for couples undergoing ART treatment in Italy

Study question What are the characteristics of the psychological services for couples undergoing ART treatment in Italy? Summary answer In the 47% of ART clinics the psychologist is a stable member of the team whereas psychological services are used by 10–20% of couples. What is known already: ART treatments are complex and emotionally demanding for both men and women. During the procedure the couples often experience stress and several negative emotions. In Italy the Law 40/2004 establishes the guidelines for ART application. This law sustains the importance of offering psychological support to the people who undergo ART treatments at any stage of the medical procedure. However, in Italy there are no specific recommendations or protocols for psychological interventions in ART centres. Furthermore, there is little or no studies regarding the characteristics of the psychological services offered to those undergoing ART treatments. Study design, size, duration This observational study aims to explore the characteristics of psychological services in ART clinics. Therefore, the ART Italian National Register (National Health Institute) with the Department of Dynamic and Clinical Psychology and Health study (Sapienza University) proposed a national survay to the 306 Italian ART centres. The Medical Director of each centre was invited to participate by e-mail and to fill a questionnaire on an on-line platform. Data collection was between Jenuary to February 2020. Participants/materials, setting, methods The participation has been proposed to all the Italian ART centres (n = 306). 35 centres have been previously excluded because participating in the first phase of the study regarding the questionnaire construction. Around the 40% of the centres participated in the study (n = 113). The questionnaire contains 26 items with multiple response answers. It mainly explored: the presence of the psychologist in the ART centres, charachteristics of the intervention offered, percentage of couples using the psychological service. Main results and the role of chance In the 47% of ART centres the psychologist is a stable member of the team. The 38% of respondents reported that the psychologist works on call in the centre, the 18% reported that the psychologist is present in the centre 1–2 times a week whereas the 32% reported that the psychologist works in a private practice outside the centre. The reported percentages of couples using the psychological service are: 10–20% (69%), 20–30% (13%), 30–50% (5%), more than 50% (5%) and around the 100% (8%). The number of psychological sessions usually offered are: up to five (9%), four (13%), three (29%), two (27%), one (10%). Couples interventions represent the 73%, single patient intervention the 14%, whereas the 13% are group interventions. The 60% of respondent reported the absence of a protocol for psychological intervention in the ART centre whereas the 40% reported the presence of a protocol. In around the 50% of cases the psychological service represents an extra cost for the couple/individual. In the 60% of cases the psychologist is not involved in the team meeting, however the 87% of respondents reported that confronting with the psychologist on patients is percived as useful. Limitations, reasons for caution These results should be considered with cautions due to the rate of participation (around 40%). Furthermore, this is a national study and the charachteristics of psychological services offered in ART centres of different countries should be investigated. Wider implications of the findings: In conclusion, the results show that psychological services in Italian ART centers are not yet fully operational and integrated in the ART procedure. All of this highlights the importance of further investigations with the aim to shared information to use to establish common protocols for psychological interventions in ART centres. Trial registration number Not applicable

NEW INSIGHTS INTO THE ‘CARPIO ALBUM’ (SAL ms 879): COMMISSIONING, AUTHORSHIP AND CULTURAL AGENDA

An outstanding cultural promoter, collector and patron of the arts in his native Spain, Gaspar de Haro y Guzmán (1629–87), 7th Marquess del Carpio, left his mark as ambassador in Rome (1677–82) and as viceroy in Naples (1682–7). In Italy, Carpio assembled forty-three volumes of drawings, of which only four, including SAL ms 879, have been spared dismemberment. Yet, lumping the ‘Carpio Album’ together with the nobleman’s collection of original drawings completely misses the point. Unlike the others, which were assembled to boost Carpio’s connoisseurship of Italian art, the Album was commissioned to showcase the collection of (largely antique) sculpture he had acquired in Rome and the series of modern fountains he commissioned, also in Rome. Like Vincenzo Giustiniani’s epoch-making Galleria Giustiniana of 1636–7, the Album was to be printed. The marquess’s departure for Naples cut short an ambitious publication project, the theoretical background and pedagogic scope of which have been largely overlooked. The attribution of drawings to artists Philipp Schor and Paolo De Matteis, amongst others, underlines the complex cultural agenda underpinning an Album conceived to reinstate the Roma antica myth by linking it to its Roma moderna counterpart. A new understanding of De Matteis’s artistry and objectives in configuring the Album is complemented with findings regarding Carpio’s commissioning or acquisition of antique, pseudo-antique and modern sculpture. The collection’s fateful dispersal helps unravel the Album’s most likely provenance.

The “Sufi” Portrait in the Giovio Series

Founded in 1501, the Safavid state and the young leader of this state, Shah Ismail I, attracted the attention of European aristocratic dynasties, kings and religious leaders. Ambassadors, diplomats and merchants sent from Europe to Azerbaijan conveyed various information about Ismail to their homeland, and later these records and sources were published in books, albums and memoirs. Gradually, engravings and paintings depicting Ismail Safavid appeared in the European fine arts. Unfortunately, the descriptions of Shah Ismail I in the European visual arts have not been sufficiently studied. It is known that the portrait, taken as the standard of appearance of Ismail the First, was exhibited at the Paolo Giovio Museum in Como. The article examines the activities of Paolo Giovio, his famous museum and the portrait of "Sufi" in Giovio's collection. Key words: Shah Ismayil, Paolo Giovio, Italian art, portrait painting, Museum of Como, Safavid period

Saying “I Don’t Know”: A Video-Based Study on Physicians’ Claims of No-Knowledge in Assisted Reproductive Technology Consultations

IntroductionThe assisted reproductive technology (ART) field deals with consistent and predictable gaps in knowledge. Expressing lack of knowledge with a sentence like “I don’t know” can be challenging for doctors. This study examined physicians’ negative epistemic disclaimer “non lo so” in Italian ART doctor-couple interactions. In particular, it aimed to reveal specific features of “non lo so”: function, topic, temporality, responsibility, and interactional aspects.MethodsThis was a video-based observational study. We used microanalysis of face-to-face dialogue to analyze 20 purposively selected triadic consultations from a corpus of 85. This inductive analysis focused on the function, the content (topic and temporality) and some selected interactional aspects of the “non lo so”, quantifying and capturing the interaction between these qualitative features.ResultsWe found 82 doctors’ “non lo so” in the corpus (mean = 4.4; range = 0–15). We discovered three main functions of this expression: propositional (n = 73/82), relational (n = 6/82), discursive (n = 3/82). The most frequent topics raising doctors’ “non lo so” were costs (n = 11/82), treatment-related aspects (n = 10/82), and timing issues (n = 9/82). In more than half of the cases (n = 44/82), present issues emerged. The majority (n = 70/82) of “non lo so” was framed using the “I,” with doctors’ taking personal responsibility. Patients played a role in these expressions from doctors: Patients initiated more than one third of them, and in one fourth of the cases, patients followed up immediately.ConclusionOur findings may be related to characteristics of the specific field of ART. Doctors in this setting must frequently express a direct lack of knowledge to their patients, and when they do, they mean it literally. Patients contribute to such disclosures, and their responses suggest that they find them acceptable, showing that they may expect limitations in their potential to conceive.