Cosa Vostra: Contemporary Art in Italy

Michelangelo Pistoletto

It's sad to report that drastic budget cuts to be enacted in 2011 threaten the health of contemporary art museums in Italy—an area which is already underfunded vis-a-vis the rest of Europe.

AMACI, the association of Contemporary Art Museums in Italy, is launching a campaign "Cosa Vostra" to publicize the imminent cuts and to raise awareness of the importance of contemporary art to Italy's past, present and future.

Among the artists who contributed by allowing their work to be used in promotion of the campaign are Carla Accardi, Stefano Arienti, Maurizio Cattelan, Enzo Cucchi, Marisa Merz, Luigi Ontani, Giulio Paolini, Mimmo Paladino, Michelangelo Pistoletto, Paola Pivi and Francesco Vezzoli.

"COSA VOSTRA. The art of the present is the soul of the future: let's nourish it."

"The title chosen for the campaign promoted by AMACI, through which member museums want to underscore to the general public the community nature of Italy's heritage and artistic production, emphasises a key concept, as "Cosa Vostra" means "your thing." Contemporary art is the soul of the future because, with its ability to offer new scenarios and perspectives, it is a constant stimulus to the creativity of Italians and to social and economic innovation. It is a means through which, thanks also to relations established with leading international museums, Italy offers the world an image that is not built on stereotypes, but is composed of creative and dynamic intelligences.

The decrease in public funding is part of a general policy of cutbacks that have been made over the past few years, in a scenario of public allocations to culture that are far lower than those of other European countries. Consequently, AMACI wants to make people aware of the key role of contemporary art in Italy's cultural, social and economic development."

AMACI, Bergamo, December 31, 2010