FERCAM Fine Art brings to light the portraits of the Pio Albergo Trivulzio and the ancient orphanages of Milan
During the summer, FERCAM Fine Art took care of the transfer of 240 paintings from the Albergo Pio Trivulzio’s deposit to the Martinitt and Stelline Museum. Thanks to the operation, this precious historical resource is now finally available to researchers and scholars.
Pio Albergo Trivulzio is a historic institution in the Milanese health and social landscape, intended for hosting poor elderly people. Founded in 1766 by the will of a Milanese noble philanthropist and always intended to offer hospice to the needy, it opened its doors to the first hundred assisted in 1771.
Since then it has undergone several extensions and renovations, before being transferred at the beginning of the twentieth century to a new site, the one still existing today, located in via Antonio Tolomeo Trivulzio. The Pio Albergo Trivulzio today is a Personal Services Institute that also brings together the management of the two ancient orphanages in Milan, the Martinitt and the Selline, still active today with numerous communities for minors in difficulty.
In over 250 years of history, the institution has had the opportunity to accumulate a very rich artistic, historical and archival heritage. In particular, since the foundation of the Albergo, it was customary to create a portrait of each benefactor who made a donation to support the institute. FERCAM Fine Art was entrusted with the transfer of a significant part of the portrait collection from the premises of the Pio Trivulzio to the spaces of the Martinitt and Stelline Museum.
“It was not a simple transport operation: we embarked on a process of museumizing these works”, explains Cristina Cenedella, Museum Director. “Previously, these paintings were kept in our warehouse, inaccessible, while today – thanks to this intervention done with FERCAM Fine Art’s support, they are accessible to the public. Our main concern was to make them accessible to researchers and students, for whom we plan to develop a dedicated digital educational platform”.
Two picture galleries have been set up, thanks to which, on request, it will be possible to access the paintings to examine them, and some of the most significant artworks are now displayed in the Museum. The Fine Art team’s activity also involved assisting in the drafting of condition reports, an important operation for conservative monitoring. In the near future, the paintings will undergo restoration and will be the subject of historical studies.
“We are very happy with the collaboration with FERCAM’s team, they operated with great organization and precision. We now believe in the possibility that this heritage of great historical importance may arouse greater interest and be better known outside our institution too”, concludes Dr. Cenedella.
Since then it has undergone several extensions and renovations, before being transferred at the beginning of the twentieth century to a new site, the one still existing today, located in via Antonio Tolomeo Trivulzio. The Pio Albergo Trivulzio today is a Personal Services Institute that also brings together the management of the two ancient orphanages in Milan, the Martinitt and the Selline, still active today with numerous communities for minors in difficulty.
In over 250 years of history, the institution has had the opportunity to accumulate a very rich artistic, historical and archival heritage. In particular, since the foundation of the Albergo, it was customary to create a portrait of each benefactor who made a donation to support the institute. FERCAM Fine Art was entrusted with the transfer of a significant part of the portrait collection from the premises of the Pio Trivulzio to the spaces of the Martinitt and Stelline Museum.
“It was not a simple transport operation: we embarked on a process of museumizing these works”, explains Cristina Cenedella, Museum Director. “Previously, these paintings were kept in our warehouse, inaccessible, while today – thanks to this intervention done with FERCAM Fine Art’s support, they are accessible to the public. Our main concern was to make them accessible to researchers and students, for whom we plan to develop a dedicated digital educational platform”.
Two picture galleries have been set up, thanks to which, on request, it will be possible to access the paintings to examine them, and some of the most significant artworks are now displayed in the Museum. The Fine Art team’s activity also involved assisting in the drafting of condition reports, an important operation for conservative monitoring. In the near future, the paintings will undergo restoration and will be the subject of historical studies.
“We are very happy with the collaboration with FERCAM’s team, they operated with great organization and precision. We now believe in the possibility that this heritage of great historical importance may arouse greater interest and be better known outside our institution too”, concludes Dr. Cenedella.
