Iaap newsletter 28 - The new Israeli Jungian society

Italy
ASSOCIAZIONE ITALIANA PER LO STUDIO DELLA PSICOLOGIA ANALITICA (AIPA) :
The General Assembly of our Association, held in February 2008, has confirmed the
Executive Committee elected in February 2006 for another two years: Antonio Vitolo,
Wanda Grosso, Leonella Magagnini, Filippo Strumia, while Fabrizio Alfani takes over
from Riccardo Mondo who has had to leave his post for family reasons. The year 2008
started with an important event: the presentation of a “special” book entitled
“Psicologia Analitica, Percorsi Italiani” written by one of our most active members
and Past Presidents, Marcello Pignatelli. The author describes the beginnings and
subsequent diffusion of Analytical Psychology in Italy starting with the arrival of Ernst
Bernhard and the first informal study groups, and includes some “historical”
photographs illustrating his personal memories concerning the foundation of the AIPA.
The presentation debate was a fantastic opportunity to become familiar with and/or
to recall our roots and to learn about some interesting events which characterized the
first years of our Association.
In July, the DGAP (Deutsche Gesellschaft für Analytische Psychology) President Robert
Winner and the renowned scholar Giovanni Sorge asked AIPA President Antonio Vitolo
to write a paper concerning the importance of Ernst Bernhard in the dissemination of
Analytical Psychology in Italy and the founding of the AIPA. This paper was delivered
at the Congress held in Berlin. In this area of active exchange between the AIPA and
the DGAP we mention another significant event: the piano performance of Jorg
Rasche, IAAP Vice-President, invited by AIPA President Vitolo to give a talk on “The
Jungian Approach to Kinderszenen”. This lecture was really unique because Dr.
Rasche personally played a R. Schumann composition on the piano. We enjoyed this
unusual conference very much, where reflections, music and words also aroused great
interest among colleagues from CIPA (Centro Italiano di Psicologia Analitica) who
joined us that evening. In effect, this current year offered several occasions for
cooperation between AIPA and CIPA members; in particular, we should mention that
the XIV° CIPA Congress, “Attualità e Inattualità della Cura Psicoanalitica”, held in
February in Rome, opened with lectures given by both Presidents, Anna Benvenuti and
Antonio Vitolo, to signify the practice of cultural exchange and effective collaboration
between the two main Jungian Associations in Italy.
Moreover, just to illustrate how productive such cooperation has been we recall the
special “afternoon meeting” dedicated to the XVII° IAAP Congress themes (“Journey &
Encounters, Clinical – Communal – Cultural”) and organized by the colleagues (both
AIPA and CIPA) who were in Cape Town last summer. Pictures, short movies, music
and dances were shown to accompany personal reflections on the Congress, held in
August 2007, concerning both the contents developed in the various sessions and the
profound experiences of the participants.
In addition, the debates hosted monthly at the Bibli Bookshop alternatively featuring
speakers from the AIPA and the CIPA, with the aim of deepening the spirit of Jungian
pg. 48