Antiques Biennial, secretary Fabrizio Moretti speaks: ancient art between market, bureaucracy and culture

The XXXI edition of the Florence Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato, one of the world’s leading antique art exhibition-markets, confirms the success of its predecessors: once again this year we saw, among the exhibitors, the main players on the Italian and international scene, works of the highest quality, some of which will soon go to enrich Italian museums. Together with the Secretary General of the Biennale, Fabrizio Moretti, we drew up an initial balance of this Biennale. The interview is by Federico Giannini, editor in chief of Finestre sull’Arte.

Fabrizio Moretti

FG. How is this edition of the Florence Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato going?
FM. It’s going very well, and I think we can tell that also from the attention the press has given it, as well as from the great turnout we saw in the initial days.

We learned about the sale of Daniele da Volterra’s Madonna, which was purchased by the Uffizi: have there been other important sales, perhaps involving first-rate institutions such as the Florentine museum?
This I could not say: unfortunately (or fortunately) my colleagues are very discreet and no one is telling what is happening in their booth. However, I can say that everyone seems to be very happy with how this edition of the Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato is going.

This year’s edition also sees the presence of galleries specializing in contemporary art, such as Continua or Poggiali: is this a tribute to two galleries that characterize contemporary art in Tuscany or is there something more, in the sense that BIAF is opening up to contemporary art?
Thereis a willingness to find a stronger contamination, and even in the future there will probably be more contemporary art, within the limits we have given ourselves: in particular we stop at 1990.

This is a trend now, to see the ancient and the contemporary exhibited together; we see it in many fairs. Is it a trend that responds to what is happening in consumption and the market, or is there more to it?
Certainlytracing the trend back to what is happening in consumption and the market is a good key, but there is also more: the point is that ancient art is becoming more and more of a fad, something for an elite, instead in my opinion it is important to make it known to a class of collectors who often go for modern and contemporary because maybe it is easier or more recognizable. So I think by grafting contemporary into events like the Florence Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato, we can bring in another audience of collectors.

And speaking of other audiences, we are used to thinking of the BIAF as an event reserved for a niche, very high collector, but in reality there are proposals for medium or small collectors as well, and maybe even for those who want to approach collecting ancient art. Thinking of the latter, what advice would you feel to a collector who does not have great economic means but still wants to approach this world?
The Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato is still an important moment and the advice is first of all to visit it. Then I would like to point out that the works on display do not all cost millions of euros: there are also works that are under 50 thousand and can still be of great quality. Without making examples with names and surnames of artists, the important thing is to know that sometimes the quality of an artist can be bought even with modest sums.

In your opinion, how is the market for ancient art in Italy in this historical moment?
Not very well, unfortunately: there are many laws to take into account, a very high tax burden and a bureaucracy that floods import and export. As a result, it is not easy to work in this situation, but there are very active, very lively and very dedicated merchants in Italy. And they carry on a system that has been going on for decades anyway.

Talking with traders in the sector, we found that some find the Italian laws very restrictive, but for others the laws are not a problem. Also because it should be emphasized that in any case Italian laws serve to protect our heritage, to avoid dispersion, the exit of important assets. So are Italian laws really a problem?Do theynot rather constitute a value for our heritage?
I am a merchant who goes a bit against the grain, because I am convinced of the importance of a law that protects heritage. I am not for excesses of openness, nor am I for excesses of elasticity. Elasticity, if anything, would serve the bureaucracy, especially in terms of mental elasticity in understanding what can and cannot leave Italian territory. But at the same time, it is important that heritage is protected in our country.

This year we saw the Biennale accompanied by a Florence Art Week that gathered important events, so the Biennale also wants to tie itself to the city: what is the relationship the event has with Florence?
The relationship is very good. However, let’s remember that the president of this Biennale is the mayor, and Florence Art Week was created precisely to share the good fortune of the audience of the Biennale Internazionale dell’Antiquariato not only with the participants of the event but also with the whole city of Florence. The idea is that everyone can take advantage of the inducement that is brought by the Biennale.

One last question: the Biennale this year is also hosting a small exhibition dedicated to Stefano Bardini. So the event is meant to be not only an exhibition-market for those who buy and sell, but also a moment of cultural insight?
Exactly. Moreover, it is also a historical message, because the great art market was born in Florence, and Stefano Bardini was an important figure who understood how the art trade could be created by selling a dream to international museums and collectors. The exhibition dedicated to Bardini is an important project that we repropose in the space dedicated to the Ente Cassa, together with which it was created: a look at the life of the greatest Florentine dealer of the beginning of the last century and who created a new antiquarian system, and who moreover today in Florence has a museum dedicated to him.

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