Renato Birolli Archives

The Renato Birolli Archive was established through the initiative of the artist’s wife, Rosa Rossi, affectionately known as Rò, and his son Zeno Birolli. Together, they organised and expanded the extensive body of documentation relating to the creation of Birolli’s works, his exhibition history, catalogues and publications, a process that Rosa Birolli herself had already begun during her husband’s lifetime. The systematic organisation of the Archive, undertaken by Rosa and Zeno Birolli from the 1960s onwards, culminated in 1978 in the publication of the artist’s catalogue raisonné by Feltrinelli.

Following Rosa Birolli’s death in 1996, her sons Marco and Zeno Birolli decided to donate the artist’s library and correspondence to the Gabinetto G.P. Vieusseux in Florence. A comprehensive catalogue of Birolli’s library was subsequently published in 2014 by the Milanese publisher Scalpendi.

From that point onwards, the Archive was managed by Marco and Zeno Birolli, who continued the systematic organisation and cataloguing of its documentary holdings.

In 2003, the complete digitisation of the Renato Birolli Archive was successfully completed by Marco Birolli. Today, the Archive brings together records of all known works by the artist, together with a comprehensive register of exhibitions and publications and an extensive collection of high-resolution photographic documentation.

The Renato Birolli Archive is currently directed by Viviana Birolli, art historian, President of the Fondazione Renato Birolli ETS, and granddaughter of the artist. Although the Archive is not open to the general public, its documentary holdings may be consulted by appointment, and materials may be made available to scholars and researchers upon request.

The Renato Birolli Archive works closely with museums and cultural institutions to foster the study, scholarly reassessment and international recognition of the artist’s work. It is supported by a Scientific Committee, comprising art historian Viviana Birolli, Professor Elena Pontiggia, Professor Paolo Rusconi and Ernesto Damiani, which assists the Archive in assessing the authenticity of works attributed to Renato Birolli, combating forgery and ensuring their proper inclusion in the artist’s archival records.