Sartorio Collection

The story of Giulio Aristide Sartorio's collection of paintings at the Farnesina

Linea di sbarramento sulla strada di Giavera Nervesa (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

Story of a collection

The story of Giulio Aristide Sartorio's paintings represents a piece of Italian art history and of the relationship between Italy and South America.

Il Draken a Porte Grandi (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

In 1924, the artist was invited to represent, among others, Italian contemporary art from 1850 to 1910 in a touring event of cultural promotion in Latin America.

Allagamento e Batteria Raganelle (1917) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

The Regia Nave ‘Italia’

On board the Regia Nave 'Italia', Sartorio carried with him 100 paintings, including 61 works that documented the Battle of the Piave which took place during the First World War.

Tigre (1917) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

The exhibition in São Paulo

In São Paulo, Sartorio's works were exhibited with great success at the Hotel Esplanada on 21 April 1924. 

Gli austriaci ripassano il Piave (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

Donation of the Paintings

On this occasion, a group of Italians decided to buy and donate the entire series of paintings to the Casa d'Italia in São Paulo, as a gesture of esteem and recognition of the Italian artistic genius.

81° passa il Piave Vecchio (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

In 2000, the collection was broken up and the paintings auctioned individually.

Dal Dente del Pasubio (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

Thanks to the joint and timely action of the diplomatic authorities of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, the Circolo degli Italiani in São Paulo and private citizens...

Rastrellamento dei campi (1918) by Giulio Aristide SartorioMinistero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione Internazionale. Collezione Farnesina

...the Italian Cultural Institute of São Paulo was able to acquire the series, guaranteeing its integrity and conservation.

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The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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