The great decorative arts of the 20th century in Francesco Principali's collection on display in Rome

The exhibition Metamorphosis of the Everyday - The Fascination of Art Nouveau and Deco Materials in the Roman Collection of Francesco Principali is on view at the Casina delle Civette in Rome until December 9. Francesco Principali, an international art dealer, collector and architect, was born in Rome in 1947; already in his twenties he was researching and collecting furniture that belonged to the early twentieth century. Always on the cutting edge and attentive to new cultural movements, like some of his favorite artists, he began his collection when the minor arts of the 20th century were unknown to most. This endless and attentive passion of his over the years prompted him to introduce others to the objects, lamps, sculptures and furnishings of the twentieth century as well.

Thus in 1989 he opened his first antique store, in a neighborhood where art galleries could be counted on the tips of one’s fingers. Such was his success that only a few years later, in 1992, he would expand his business. He died prematurely in 1999, leaving behind a large collection that his heirs, on the occasion of the anniversary of his 70th birthday, decided to exhibit and show to the public, following his philosophy of life that “nothing is owned but simply discovered, treasured and handed down.”

The exhibition is divided into two separate venues. In the rooms of the Casina delle Civette, which through Art Nouveau stained glass windows tell the story of the last century,about 40 works from his private collection are included. Among the sculptures are bronzes by Duilio Cambellotti, Ettore Ximenes, Pietro Carnerini and Benedetto D’Amore. Among the ceramics, authors such as Guido Andlovitz, Antonia Campi, Tullio D’Albisola, and Giò Ponti. Added to this are a collection of early 20th-century Venetian glass designed by Carlo Scarpa, Ercole Barovier, and Napoleone Martinuzzi, and some furniture designed by Marcello Piacentini for the Casa Madre dei Mutilati in Rome.

In the Dependency, a section mainly based on period paper material that collects advertising posters, playbills and paintings by authors such as Plinio Codognato, Guglielmo Sansoni known as “Tato” and Duilio Cambellotti. For information and reservations you can click on this link.

Pictured: Manifattura La Salamandra, Female Figure (1930; terracotta modeled by casting and decorated in polychrome underglaze. Signed)

The great decorative arts of the 20th century in Francesco Principali's collection on display in Rome

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