Ragghianti Foundation acquires historic magazine Critica d'arte (to be relaunched) and UIA archive

The Ragghianti Foundation in Lucca has concluded negotiations for two important acquisitions: the archives of theInternational University of Art in Florence (UIA), founded by Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti himself in 1968, and the historic magazine Critica d’arte, formerly owned by the UIA, which was responsible for its publication with the publishing house le Lettere until 2016 (the magazine was also founded by Ragghianti, in 1935, together with Ranuccio Bianchi Bandinelli). The two acquisitions constitute the first act of the Foundation’s new president, Alberto Fontana, who was appointed in May.

“It is a reason for great satisfaction,” says Alberto Fontana, “to have been able to secure the patrimony of this important institution, an opportunity to continue the work of Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti and renew his fundamental contribution to art-historical studies, which is still of great relevance.We will relaunch the journal ”Critica d’Arte“ by enlarging the scientific committee and giving it an international scope, which will allow us to further increase the prestige and knowledge of our Foundation.”

The UIA, established as a university school with an international vocation for the conservation and enhancement of the artistic heritage, as mentioned above, was born in 1968 by Carlo Ludovico Ragghianti: the impetus came after the Florence flood of 1966, when there was an urgent need for technicians specialized in the restoration and conservation of cultural heritage. In 1982, the International University of Art was recognized by the President of the Republic as a non-profit organization with legal personality. The UIA in Florence, which was active until a few years ago, preserves an important archive from a historical-documentary point of view, as well as an important photo library, which includes photographs of exhibition layouts curated by Ragghianti from the late 1940s to the 1960s, and also photographs of world museum layouts, used as teaching material in the lectures held at the UIA (and is thus a very important museological documentation). The holdings thus consist of ragghiantian materials related to this important institute created by the art historian from Lucca and long animated by him. To the Foundation’s top management, the most natural collocation of the fonds appeared to be the Ragghianti Foundation, which with this remarkable fund enriches its already extraordinary collection of documents.

The Critica d’arte masthead is still considered one of the most important Italian art history journals. “With the acquisition of the masthead by the Ragghianti Foundation,” the foundation itself specifies in a note, “not only has its closure been averted, which would have represented a serious act for Italian and international culture, but a new life is in prospect, because it is the firm intention of President Fontana and Director Bolpagni to relaunch it as it deserves.”

Image: one of the photos from the UIA archive, showing the set-up of the Botticelli room at the Uffizi.

Ragghianti Foundation acquires historic magazine Critica d'arte (to be relaunched) and UIA archive

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