Papini, Roberto, 1883-1957

Roberto Papini, architect, art historian, critic and teacher, was born in 1883 in Pistoia. He attended courses of drawing and architecture at the Politecnico in Milan; then he studied mathematics and physics at the University of Pisa. From 1908-1910 he studied history of art with Adolfo Venturi at the University of Rome.

He held a number of important appointments throughout his life, including the directorships of the Galleria Comunale di Prato (1912), the Pinacoteca di Brera (1920), the Galleria Nazionale d'arte Moderna in Rome (1933), and the Museum of Arts and Industry. He also worked for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the superintendant for the furnishing of embassies, consulates, and legations abroad from 1921 to 1926. He was a founder of the magazine Architettura e arti decorative, as well as the author of numerous journal and magazine articles on contemporary art and urbanism including Conciliatore, Corriere della Sera, Il Mondo, Rassegna italiana, Dedalo, and Emporium. He was also the author of many art history publications. After the second world war, Papini was appointed to the commission to reconstruct Florence's historic center. He also taught art history at various universities, first at the Museo Artistico Industriale di Roma, then the University for Foreigners in Perugia. In 1934 he was appointed professor of Florentine art at the Istituto Superiore d'Architettura. In 1941 he became professor of architectural history in the architecture department. Roberto Papini died in Modena on November 10, 1957.

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