Books by Francesca Baldry
Associazione Il Palmerino Firenze, 2018
Catalogue exhibition 2017-2018 at Il Palmerino Florence, with the first entire unpublished story ... more Catalogue exhibition 2017-2018 at Il Palmerino Florence, with the first entire unpublished story of the Angeli brothers workshop, with a specific focus on their work in the Villas in Florida and Cote d'Azur.
New catalogue on 2023 exhibition at Palazzo Medici Riccardi cocurator with Daniela Magnetti (Palazzo Bricherasio, Banca Patrimoni Sella).
Edizioni Palazzo Bricherasio Banca Patrimoni, 2023
Dal 7 ottobre al 7 gennaio 2024 è aperta al pubblico la mostra dedicata a Federigo Angeli e il mi... more Dal 7 ottobre al 7 gennaio 2024 è aperta al pubblico la mostra dedicata a Federigo Angeli e il mito del Rinascimento nel XX secolo promossa dalla Città Metropolitana di Firenze, organizzata da Banca Patrimoni Sella & C. attraverso la sua Direzione Artistica e grazie alla collaborazione di Sella Sgr, società appartenenti al gruppo Sella, Associazione MUS.E e Associazione Il Palmerino.
Il progetto espositivo, curato da Francesca Baldry e Daniela Magnetti, nasce e si sviluppa attorno a due grandi dipinti in pendant di Federigo Angeli (1891-1952) dal titolo “Dama a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco” e “Signore a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco”, appartenenti alla collezione di Sella Sgr su cui il laboratorio Thierry Radelet di Torino ha effettuato un importante lavoro di restauro. Grazie alla collaborazione con diversi storici dell’arte e alla sinergia con enti pubblici e istituzioni private, le ricerche hanno permesso di giungere ad una corretta attribuzione delle opere; inoltre, attraverso le preziose testimonianze documentali conservate presso l’Associazione Il Palmerino aps, si è potuto ricostruire il viaggio dei due dipinti, riscrivendo una pagina di storia dell’arte altrimenti sconosciuta.
Leo S. Olschki editore, 1997
Primo studio di insieme sul collezionista e committente inglese (1810-1903) - personalità poliedr... more Primo studio di insieme sul collezionista e committente inglese (1810-1903) - personalità poliedrica e geniale, notissima ai suoi tempi - il saggio ne ricostruisce la storia, analizza i suoi rapporti con l'ambiente di Oxford e con la società culturale di Firenze Capitale e racconta l'affascinante avventura del restauro 'in stile' del medievale Castello di Vincigliata sulle colline fiesolane. Fondamentale la ricostruzione della dispersa collezione d'arte che il mecenate allestì scenograficamente all'interno del castello e la riscoperta di artigiani e artisti attivi a Vincigliata e poi impegnati nei più celebri cantieri di restauro di edifici monumentali fiorentini.
Le Stanze dei Tesori. collezionisti e antiquari a Firenze tra Ottocento e Novecento ; [Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Firenze, 3 ottobre 2011 - 15 aprile 2012], 2011
The essay is part of the exhibition catalogue "The Treasure Rooms. Collectors and Antique Dealers... more The essay is part of the exhibition catalogue "The Treasure Rooms. Collectors and Antique Dealers in Florence between the 19th and 20th centuries" edited by Lucia Mannini (Palazzo Medici Riccardi, Firenze settembre 2011-aprile 2012), Firenze, Polistampa, 2011.
Edifir , 2018
This is a catalogue of a contemporary photography exhibition at Villa La Pietra, Florence, Italy.... more This is a catalogue of a contemporary photography exhibition at Villa La Pietra, Florence, Italy. The photographer Abelardo Morell, born in Cuba and immigrated to the United States in 1962, visited Villa La Pietra in the summer of 2017. Walking through the Acton collection, looking out from the large windows to the gardens, Morell realized that his well experimented technique of the 'camera obscura' was the perfect medium through which to capture the mystery of the exchange between garden and villa. The catalogue is curated by Ellyn Toscano and Francesca Baldry, with texts by Toscano and the artist's statement. I also wrote the essay: Villa La Pietra, The Secret Behind the Beauty, focusing on the bond between Sir Harold Acton and the villa, and shedding light on the origin of the perfect concept of the humanist Renaissance Villa.
Associazione Il Palmerino, 2018
Un viaggio di stile nella bottega degli Angeli (p. 10_ translation J. Costa):
The fortune of the ... more Un viaggio di stile nella bottega degli Angeli (p. 10_ translation J. Costa):
The fortune of the Angeli family, with their work as copyists, conservators, and period decorators for Palazzo Davanzati in 1908-1910, followed immediately by their painted interiors in Castel del Diavolo (viale Michelangelo), property of the Detroit painter Julius Rolshoven (1858- 1930), and their migration in 1923 to the luxury coasts of Florida and California, then on to the French Riviera (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Montecarlo, 1929-30) and Paris (1928) with the magnate Paris Eugene Singer (1867-1932), was the result of an ideal partnership in Florence, and then in the United States, between a language that harked back to an earlier time in terms of technique and subjects and the demand, as Praz writes, “of consolidated social ambition”. An encounter and a fruitful exchange between the artisanal tradition – that authentic tradition that dated back to the medieval bottega – and the rich clients of America’s Gilded Age who, as collectors and lovers of the fine arts, found their raison d’être in commissioning and collecting ancient and revival works (or “copies”) of art, thereby creating a taste and a style that was the heir of the “Florentine style.”
Sillabe Livorno, 2009
Essay on the relationship between Italian artists, dealers and decorators and the Anglo-American ... more Essay on the relationship between Italian artists, dealers and decorators and the Anglo-American community in Florence at the end of the 19th century. New insight on the workshop of the Angeli Family in Florence, France and USA.
The paper is published in Arte Veneta and its is part of a project carried out by Fondazione Cini... more The paper is published in Arte Veneta and its is part of a project carried out by Fondazione Cini (Monica De Vincenti and Simone Gurriero).
This section is about the collecting of the Veneto statues in the Acton Garden and the taste of the Neo Renaissanbte / Settecento La Pietra garden designed by Arthur Acton.
An Essay dedicated to the Acton tapestries at Villa La Pietra in the contest of early Twentith ce... more An Essay dedicated to the Acton tapestries at Villa La Pietra in the contest of early Twentith century textile interest. The essay is part of the catalogue of the 18 tapestries of the collection.
F. Baldry, H. Spande (ed.), The Tapestries of the Acton Collection at Villa La Pietra, Firenze, Edifir, 2010.
Living and Collecting in Florence between the Nineteenth and Twentieth Century. An analysis of th... more Living and Collecting in Florence between the Nineteenth and Twentieth Century. An analysis of the British and American collecting taste in connection with the local arts and artists.
The essay is part of the catalogue "The Treasure Rooms. Collectors and Antique Dealers in Florenc... more The essay is part of the catalogue "The Treasure Rooms. Collectors and Antique Dealers in Florence between the 19th and 20th centuries" edited by Lucia Mannini (Florence, Polistampa, 2011). It analyzes three categories of 19th century home displays. The author organizes the homes-collections according to the inspirational theme: the dream of the Middle-Ages settings; the Antique-Dealers Collectors show room models and the scholarly houses of the Renaissance. Collections created by Temple Leader, Stibbert, Bardini, Volpi, Horne, Acton, Loeser and Berenson are compared and discussed.
Papers by Francesca Baldry
https://lapietra.nyu.edu/project/the-travel-experience-and-the-construction-of-the-garden-researc... more https://lapietra.nyu.edu/project/the-travel-experience-and-the-construction-of-the-garden-research-in-the-photograph-and-book-collections-of-villa-la-pietra/
This digital exhibition uses exclusively historical material, often unpublished, linked to the personalities of Hortense and Arthur: photographs, films, postcards, drawings, road maps, books and some works of art. The aim of the exhibition is to tell the garden’s story from its conception to its design, use and success, from a privileged perspective made possible by the richness, variety and integrity of the heritage preserved inside the Villa.
The five main sections unfold around two fundamental moments. The first is that of the discovery of Italy and its historic gardens: sections I, II and III, in fact, explore the ways in which Hortense and Arthur were able to assimilate the “methods” and “principles” codified by scholars such as Wharton and Sitwell. In particular, the exhibition aims at highlighting the fundamental role of travel in the creation of the couple’s mental vision: if section II investigates the tools of travel, section III describes one of the itineraries traveled by Hortense and Arthur aboard their new automobile to discover the Old Gardens of central Italy; in these sections, the picture postcards take on particular relevance as an invaluable tool for studying the travels undertaken by the Acton Mitchells as well as their stops. The second moment, instead, is dedicated to the creation of the garden: the images in sections IV and V show the processing of experiences, images and words collected over the years, but also the actual realization of the project and the intertwining of the family’s life with the growth of the garden itself. A final section (VI) provides information on NYU’s care and enhancement of the garden and the estate: from the restoration to visits, shows, lessons, and agricultural production, with a careful and sustainable approach in line with the most modern principles of English gardening.
The Travel Experience and the Construction of the Garden: Research in the Photograph and Book Collections of Villa La Pietra Curated by Francesca Baldry and Lorenzo Fecchio, 2023
Desiderio da Settignano, 2011
L'opera di Desiderio di Settignano ebbe nuova grande fama a partire dagli anni Sessanta e Ottanta... more L'opera di Desiderio di Settignano ebbe nuova grande fama a partire dagli anni Sessanta e Ottanta dell'Ottocento, quando l'artista fu studiato nuovamente nel contesto delle celebrazioni donatelliane (mostre del Bargello 1865 e 1886). L'articolo presenta l'opera di due artisti che ne recuperano la grande capacità di lavorare la pietra serena e il marmo nei dettagli (il settignanese Angelo Maruccelli) e l'attenzione per i valori tattili soprattutto nei ritratti e osservazione dal vero (Dante Sodini).
Accademia degli Euteleti di San Minianto al Tedesco, n. 65, 1998
Noto per i suoi restauri in stile a Santa Croce, cappella Bardi, Gaetano Bianchi ( 1819-1892) fu ... more Noto per i suoi restauri in stile a Santa Croce, cappella Bardi, Gaetano Bianchi ( 1819-1892) fu un personaggio poliedrico e una figura chiave nella cultura e nell'ambito della promozione delle arti e dell'artigianato della Firenze dell'Ottocento. Questo studio ricostruisce la formazione del pittore-restauratore dagli anni dell'Accademia fiorentina con Stefano Ussi fino alle decorazioni in stile per il Bargello, le dimore Stibbert, Vincigliata, Malaspina a Sarzana, Corsini a Le Corti.
Preventive Conservation in Historic Houses and Palace Museums: Assessment Methodologies and Applications, 2020
The article is part of the symposium proceedings :
“Preventive Conservation in Historic Houses a... more The article is part of the symposium proceedings :
“Preventive Conservation in Historic Houses and Palace Museums: Assessment Methodologies and Applications”
Palace of Versailles, 29 th of November -1st December 2017, Milan, Silvana Editoriale, 2020 [online http://www.europeanroyalresidences.eu/epico/].
ABSTRACT
From the outset of its stewardship of the Acton collection at Villa La Pietra Florence, New York University turned to the Institute of Fine Arts to assess the condition of the collection and determine a protocol for its care. The IFA established a holistic approach for the care of the estate, revised in 2008, in partnership with the Italian State Fine Arts authorities. Collaboration between the IFA conservation faculty and conservators and local authorities is an essential component of the Villa’s sustainable conservation plan. Within the larger mandate for education at NYU, the IFA’s Conservation Center has been providing expertise for conservation projects performed by faculty and students. The preventive conservation projects aim to offer the students training in the conservation challenges particular to historic homes, within the larger context of museum exhibition practice and an educational mandate. The presentation highlights the collaboration and educational aspects of collection care as applied at Villa La Pietra and the lessons learned from this model.
Stefano Bardini "estrattista". Affreschi staccati nell'Italia Unita fra antiquario, collezionsimo e musei, 2019
Stefano Bardini and Vincenzo Ciampolini -painters, dealers and art managers in Florence were resp... more Stefano Bardini and Vincenzo Ciampolini -painters, dealers and art managers in Florence were responsible for the removal - at the turn of the 19th c.- early 20th c.- of most of the scenes painted by Giovanni da San Giovanni around 1634 for the Marchese Alessandro Pucci in his palazzo on via de’ Pucci, as carefully described by Filippo Baldinucci. For the first time with this study, nearly all the paintings of the series have been found and the history of the detachment and dispersion is illustrated. The scene with the Carità was acquired by the Actons in the early 20th c. and it is still preserved at Villa La Pietra. In 2013 it was examined by a group of conservators on New York University, IFA, Conservation Cenetr and the ‘stacco’ technique was analyzed and compared with the other scenes of the Pucci cycle..
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Books by Francesca Baldry
New catalogue on 2023 exhibition at Palazzo Medici Riccardi cocurator with Daniela Magnetti (Palazzo Bricherasio, Banca Patrimoni Sella).
Il progetto espositivo, curato da Francesca Baldry e Daniela Magnetti, nasce e si sviluppa attorno a due grandi dipinti in pendant di Federigo Angeli (1891-1952) dal titolo “Dama a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco” e “Signore a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco”, appartenenti alla collezione di Sella Sgr su cui il laboratorio Thierry Radelet di Torino ha effettuato un importante lavoro di restauro. Grazie alla collaborazione con diversi storici dell’arte e alla sinergia con enti pubblici e istituzioni private, le ricerche hanno permesso di giungere ad una corretta attribuzione delle opere; inoltre, attraverso le preziose testimonianze documentali conservate presso l’Associazione Il Palmerino aps, si è potuto ricostruire il viaggio dei due dipinti, riscrivendo una pagina di storia dell’arte altrimenti sconosciuta.
The fortune of the Angeli family, with their work as copyists, conservators, and period decorators for Palazzo Davanzati in 1908-1910, followed immediately by their painted interiors in Castel del Diavolo (viale Michelangelo), property of the Detroit painter Julius Rolshoven (1858- 1930), and their migration in 1923 to the luxury coasts of Florida and California, then on to the French Riviera (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Montecarlo, 1929-30) and Paris (1928) with the magnate Paris Eugene Singer (1867-1932), was the result of an ideal partnership in Florence, and then in the United States, between a language that harked back to an earlier time in terms of technique and subjects and the demand, as Praz writes, “of consolidated social ambition”. An encounter and a fruitful exchange between the artisanal tradition – that authentic tradition that dated back to the medieval bottega – and the rich clients of America’s Gilded Age who, as collectors and lovers of the fine arts, found their raison d’être in commissioning and collecting ancient and revival works (or “copies”) of art, thereby creating a taste and a style that was the heir of the “Florentine style.”
This section is about the collecting of the Veneto statues in the Acton Garden and the taste of the Neo Renaissanbte / Settecento La Pietra garden designed by Arthur Acton.
F. Baldry, H. Spande (ed.), The Tapestries of the Acton Collection at Villa La Pietra, Firenze, Edifir, 2010.
Papers by Francesca Baldry
This digital exhibition uses exclusively historical material, often unpublished, linked to the personalities of Hortense and Arthur: photographs, films, postcards, drawings, road maps, books and some works of art. The aim of the exhibition is to tell the garden’s story from its conception to its design, use and success, from a privileged perspective made possible by the richness, variety and integrity of the heritage preserved inside the Villa.
The five main sections unfold around two fundamental moments. The first is that of the discovery of Italy and its historic gardens: sections I, II and III, in fact, explore the ways in which Hortense and Arthur were able to assimilate the “methods” and “principles” codified by scholars such as Wharton and Sitwell. In particular, the exhibition aims at highlighting the fundamental role of travel in the creation of the couple’s mental vision: if section II investigates the tools of travel, section III describes one of the itineraries traveled by Hortense and Arthur aboard their new automobile to discover the Old Gardens of central Italy; in these sections, the picture postcards take on particular relevance as an invaluable tool for studying the travels undertaken by the Acton Mitchells as well as their stops. The second moment, instead, is dedicated to the creation of the garden: the images in sections IV and V show the processing of experiences, images and words collected over the years, but also the actual realization of the project and the intertwining of the family’s life with the growth of the garden itself. A final section (VI) provides information on NYU’s care and enhancement of the garden and the estate: from the restoration to visits, shows, lessons, and agricultural production, with a careful and sustainable approach in line with the most modern principles of English gardening.
The exhibition narrates in six sections the garden of the Mitchell Acton family: from its conception to its design, use and fortune, as if on a journey through places and times. Thanks to the variety and integrity of the photographic and library heritage preserved inside the Villa, enhanced in recent years through the digitisation project, the exhibition illustrates the evolution of the ‘Italian’ garden, conceived by Hortense Mitchell and Arthur Acton starting since 1903, when they moved to Villa La Pietra.
“Preventive Conservation in Historic Houses and Palace Museums: Assessment Methodologies and Applications”
Palace of Versailles, 29 th of November -1st December 2017, Milan, Silvana Editoriale, 2020 [online http://www.europeanroyalresidences.eu/epico/].
ABSTRACT
From the outset of its stewardship of the Acton collection at Villa La Pietra Florence, New York University turned to the Institute of Fine Arts to assess the condition of the collection and determine a protocol for its care. The IFA established a holistic approach for the care of the estate, revised in 2008, in partnership with the Italian State Fine Arts authorities. Collaboration between the IFA conservation faculty and conservators and local authorities is an essential component of the Villa’s sustainable conservation plan. Within the larger mandate for education at NYU, the IFA’s Conservation Center has been providing expertise for conservation projects performed by faculty and students. The preventive conservation projects aim to offer the students training in the conservation challenges particular to historic homes, within the larger context of museum exhibition practice and an educational mandate. The presentation highlights the collaboration and educational aspects of collection care as applied at Villa La Pietra and the lessons learned from this model.
New catalogue on 2023 exhibition at Palazzo Medici Riccardi cocurator with Daniela Magnetti (Palazzo Bricherasio, Banca Patrimoni Sella).
Il progetto espositivo, curato da Francesca Baldry e Daniela Magnetti, nasce e si sviluppa attorno a due grandi dipinti in pendant di Federigo Angeli (1891-1952) dal titolo “Dama a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco” e “Signore a cavallo con corteo cavalleresco”, appartenenti alla collezione di Sella Sgr su cui il laboratorio Thierry Radelet di Torino ha effettuato un importante lavoro di restauro. Grazie alla collaborazione con diversi storici dell’arte e alla sinergia con enti pubblici e istituzioni private, le ricerche hanno permesso di giungere ad una corretta attribuzione delle opere; inoltre, attraverso le preziose testimonianze documentali conservate presso l’Associazione Il Palmerino aps, si è potuto ricostruire il viaggio dei due dipinti, riscrivendo una pagina di storia dell’arte altrimenti sconosciuta.
The fortune of the Angeli family, with their work as copyists, conservators, and period decorators for Palazzo Davanzati in 1908-1910, followed immediately by their painted interiors in Castel del Diavolo (viale Michelangelo), property of the Detroit painter Julius Rolshoven (1858- 1930), and their migration in 1923 to the luxury coasts of Florida and California, then on to the French Riviera (Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat and Montecarlo, 1929-30) and Paris (1928) with the magnate Paris Eugene Singer (1867-1932), was the result of an ideal partnership in Florence, and then in the United States, between a language that harked back to an earlier time in terms of technique and subjects and the demand, as Praz writes, “of consolidated social ambition”. An encounter and a fruitful exchange between the artisanal tradition – that authentic tradition that dated back to the medieval bottega – and the rich clients of America’s Gilded Age who, as collectors and lovers of the fine arts, found their raison d’être in commissioning and collecting ancient and revival works (or “copies”) of art, thereby creating a taste and a style that was the heir of the “Florentine style.”
This section is about the collecting of the Veneto statues in the Acton Garden and the taste of the Neo Renaissanbte / Settecento La Pietra garden designed by Arthur Acton.
F. Baldry, H. Spande (ed.), The Tapestries of the Acton Collection at Villa La Pietra, Firenze, Edifir, 2010.
This digital exhibition uses exclusively historical material, often unpublished, linked to the personalities of Hortense and Arthur: photographs, films, postcards, drawings, road maps, books and some works of art. The aim of the exhibition is to tell the garden’s story from its conception to its design, use and success, from a privileged perspective made possible by the richness, variety and integrity of the heritage preserved inside the Villa.
The five main sections unfold around two fundamental moments. The first is that of the discovery of Italy and its historic gardens: sections I, II and III, in fact, explore the ways in which Hortense and Arthur were able to assimilate the “methods” and “principles” codified by scholars such as Wharton and Sitwell. In particular, the exhibition aims at highlighting the fundamental role of travel in the creation of the couple’s mental vision: if section II investigates the tools of travel, section III describes one of the itineraries traveled by Hortense and Arthur aboard their new automobile to discover the Old Gardens of central Italy; in these sections, the picture postcards take on particular relevance as an invaluable tool for studying the travels undertaken by the Acton Mitchells as well as their stops. The second moment, instead, is dedicated to the creation of the garden: the images in sections IV and V show the processing of experiences, images and words collected over the years, but also the actual realization of the project and the intertwining of the family’s life with the growth of the garden itself. A final section (VI) provides information on NYU’s care and enhancement of the garden and the estate: from the restoration to visits, shows, lessons, and agricultural production, with a careful and sustainable approach in line with the most modern principles of English gardening.
The exhibition narrates in six sections the garden of the Mitchell Acton family: from its conception to its design, use and fortune, as if on a journey through places and times. Thanks to the variety and integrity of the photographic and library heritage preserved inside the Villa, enhanced in recent years through the digitisation project, the exhibition illustrates the evolution of the ‘Italian’ garden, conceived by Hortense Mitchell and Arthur Acton starting since 1903, when they moved to Villa La Pietra.
“Preventive Conservation in Historic Houses and Palace Museums: Assessment Methodologies and Applications”
Palace of Versailles, 29 th of November -1st December 2017, Milan, Silvana Editoriale, 2020 [online http://www.europeanroyalresidences.eu/epico/].
ABSTRACT
From the outset of its stewardship of the Acton collection at Villa La Pietra Florence, New York University turned to the Institute of Fine Arts to assess the condition of the collection and determine a protocol for its care. The IFA established a holistic approach for the care of the estate, revised in 2008, in partnership with the Italian State Fine Arts authorities. Collaboration between the IFA conservation faculty and conservators and local authorities is an essential component of the Villa’s sustainable conservation plan. Within the larger mandate for education at NYU, the IFA’s Conservation Center has been providing expertise for conservation projects performed by faculty and students. The preventive conservation projects aim to offer the students training in the conservation challenges particular to historic homes, within the larger context of museum exhibition practice and an educational mandate. The presentation highlights the collaboration and educational aspects of collection care as applied at Villa La Pietra and the lessons learned from this model.
The paper also discusses the source of inspiration for these two displays and their legacy.
In sei sezioni la mostra racconta, come in un viaggio attraverso luoghi e tempi, il giardino della famiglia Acton Mitchell: dalla sua ideazione, alla sua progettazione, uso e fortuna. Grazie alla varietà e integrità del patrimonio fotografico e librario conservato all'interno della Villa, valorizzato in questi anni tramite il progetto di digitalizzazione, la mostra illustra l'evoluzione del giardino 'all'italiana', concepito da Hortense Mitchell e Arthur Acton a partire dal 1903, quando si trasferirono a Villa La Pietra. La presentazione introdurrà le tematiche ed i materiali inediti della mostra pubblicata sul sito PaTos, Centro Internazionale di Studi sul Paesaggio in Toscana, e in seguito sul sito di Villa La Pietra, New York University Florence.
Interverranno: Larry Wolff, Director NYU Florence; Giuseppe Marrani, Direttore del Dipartimento di Studi Umanistici dell’Università per Stranieri di Siena; Alessandra Giannotti, Direttrice del Centro Internazionale di
Studi sul Paesaggio in Toscana dell’Università per Stranieri di Siena; i curatori della mostra Francesca Baldry, Collection Manager Villa La Pietra NYU Florence e Lorenzo Fecchio, Assegnista di ricerca dell’Università per Stranieri di Siena; Claudia Baroncini, Direttrice FAF Toscana – Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia.
Prima della presentazione alle 16:00 sarà possibile visitare il giardino con i giardinieri di Villa La Pietra, su prenotazione.
https://www.centropatos.it/
Villa La Pietra stood as the cherished residence of the Acton Mitchell family for nearly a century, from 1903 to 1994. Since 2003, it has opened its doors to the public as a museum, faithfully preserving and showcasing the personal belongings and art collection of the Acton family. These treasures were generously donated by the estate’s last owner, Sir Harold Acton, to New York University, under the protection of the Italian Ministry of Culture.
Recent initiatives in digitization, cataloging, and scholarly research within the photograph archive and libraries have unearthed a wealth of new insights. By juxtaposing these findings with the pages of Harold Acton’s autobiography, Memoirs of An Aesthete (1948), researchers, in collaboration with students from New York University, have gained valuable insights into the family dynamics and formative years of Harold (1904-1994) and William Acton (1906-1945). Although the Villa may appear to bear few visible traces of their childhood, this comprehensive endeavor has unveiled a rich tapestry of experiences. We hope that viewers will come away from this digital exhibition with a deeper understanding of the enduring power of familial love and the indomitable human spirit in the face of daunting world changes.