From the joy of art to the mysteries surrounding the Agnelli family collection

Italy has never lacked large families of collectors who, over time, have been able to collect real masterpieces and then choose to sell part of them or make them available to everyone.

Among them the lawyer Giovanni Agnelli, a key figure in contemporary Italian history and the face of FIAT, but not only, shared his passion for art with his wife Marella, building a noteworthy private collection. Over 400 works of art collected by artists such as Picasso, Freud, Gericault, but also Corot, Fontana, De Chirico, Schifano and many others for a value, according to experts, of 2.5 billion euros.

As often happens to the most passionate collectors, for the lawyer and his wife, the joy of art has been a complement to their lives that they could not do without, and then they shared it with as many people as possible: hence the desire to exhibit a small selection of their works, through a Foundation created with the aim of spreading knowledge and love for art, especially among young people.

Inaugurated in September 2002 on the roof of the Lingotto in Turin, home of the first large Fiat factory, the Pinacoteca Agnelli is a “treasure chest” of about 400 square meters created by architect Renzo Piano that houses twenty-five extraordinary masterpieces of art ranging from the eighteenth to mid-twentieth century with artists such as Matisse, Severini, Modigliani, Tiepolo, Canaletto, Picasso, Renoir and Manet.

The selection of the works was made personally by the Agnelli couple, as well as the installation inside the gallery is the result of a shared choice. According to the lawyer, the beauty of the works and the taste for art are also educated through museums, where we learn to look at and appreciate art, and where our aesthetic sense is refined. It is no coincidence that he maintained that creativity is the really relevant aspect of our existence.

After Donna Marella’s death on 23 February 2019, a large part of the Agnelli Collection was inherited by her daughter Margherita Agnelli and distributed in three Italian residences – previously located abroad in New York, St. Moritz, London, Paris, Alzi Pratu.

For the transfer of ownership a complete and detailed list of the works in the collection, including paintings, sculptures and tapestries, was drawn up in 2004, making it possible to verify the main information for a possible sale, loan and location of the works.

In fact, it is good that every collector, prepare for his collection a complete inventory, now more easily achievable thanks to the use of professional digital tools such as Art Rights.

Complete platform that allows passionate collectors to create, update and enhance their digital archive, making it easier and more immediate the management of their collection anywhere and anytime from pc, smartphone and tablet.

Even for a large collection, therefore, it is always good practice to be able to document one’s own history and one of the best ways to do this is to compile an archive in which documents and all the information about the life of the work are kept from the moment of its purchase until the moment it is sold, bequeathed or donated to a third party.

Today existing and future art collectors can take care of their works thanks not only to the support of a community of professionals, but also thanks to new technologies that, through platforms such as Art Rights, make it possible to create digital archives always ordered and updated.

And you, are you ready to start your collection?