Anissa Pjetri

Anissa Pjetri is a scholar specializing in art history and visual culture, with a focus on the visual productions of nationalist propaganda, modern border formation, national memory construction and Orientalism in the post-Ottoman Balkans. She holds a research MA in Global Arts & Cultures from Rhode Island School of Design (2024), where her work examines the erasures of nation-mandated photography and its role in nation-building through the lens of the intimate memory of the erased. Her master’s thesis, Frames of Power, Drawers of Memory: The Bordering Photographic Apparatus in the Post-Ottoman Balkans, investigates the role of national photography in border construction and belonging, exploring the tensions between state-produced visuals and the formation of independent, intimate spaces of recollection.

Prior to RISD, Anissa worked as a museum professional and cultural mediator for the Amir project at Spazio Utopia in Florence. There, she facilitated engagement with histories of migration, displacement and contested heritage in the city. She contributed to educational programs that highlighted Florence’s cultural heritage, fostering critical discussions on identity, memory and historical erasure. Her work specifically addressed erased histories, such as that of slavery in Renaissance Florence and the enduring impacts of Italy’s colonial past.

Additionally, Anissa has worked as a community facilitator in various Florentine cooperatives, including Coop ARCI, Coop Girasole and Coop CAT, providing support for unaccompanied teenage refugees and migrants.