In the upcoming auction of fine Furniture and Paintings of 5 November 2015, Bolaffi will present a collection of art objects that belonged to Bettino Craxi (1934-2000) until 1997, when they were seized by the Italian government following an attempt to export them from Livorno to Hammamet. The collection consists of works of modern art, prints, sculptures, archeological findings, gifts from other politicians and many other curiosities. Among these, several items depicting the historical figure of Giuseppe Garibaldi (Nice 1807 – Caprera 1882): the starting price for the lot, which is offered in block as consigned by the Government, is 70,000 Euro.
Bettino Craxi was known to have been an enthusiastic admirer of the “Hero of Two Worlds”. In a famous speech made by him at the centennial celebrating Garibaldi’s death (Marsala, 15 April 1982) it became clear that he loved to consider Garibaldi the precursor of his socialism. We read “: […] the socialism of which he [Garibaldi] speaks and of which he considered himself a defender against reactionaries and against other types of socialism, is a humanitarian socialism, composed of ethical principles and Christian values. […]. Anyone who wishes to trace the roots of modern Italy, and understand the national tendency to aspire to freedom, progress, equality, independent spirit and peace, will not fail to encounter the figure and achievements of this great Italian. We socialists who, in the many struggles of the generations that followed him, have gone in search of our roots, in search of the origins of the path we are travelling today, and we find them in our continuity with Garibaldi’s tradition of men who fought with coherence and spirit of sacrifice, paying with their lives for the freedom and independence of their country.
In Craxi, his admiration for Garibaldi, and the political tradition inspired by him, were expressed in a collectionism that focused on representations of the hero of every possible kind. Anna Craxi once remarked in an interview that she and her husband often spent their weekends combing flea markets for Garibaldi relics.
The immense popularity of Garibaldi led to the production of all sorts of everyday objects: he was one of the characters most often most replicated of all time. Among the many curiosities are: a butter dish showing Garibaldi with the Italian flag, three bottles in the shape of Garibaldi busts, a handkerchief, the famous trading cards that could be found in boxes of Liebig bouillon cubes, depicting the episodes of the Mille and its raids, a bronze cast of the general’s hand. Other works worthy of note from the historical and artistic standpoint are the three busts produced in the last two decades of the 19th century. The most intense and true-to-life is the one in terracotta by Ettore Ximenes (Palermo 1855 – Rome 1826 or 1827), signed and dated Florence 1882, year of the general’s death. Another bust, striking for its immediate expressivity, is in marble, sculpted by a student of Vela, Vincenzo Giani (Como 1831- 1900), along the lines of the model by his master. Another work of fine quality, but not signed, is a marble bust showing Garibaldi with the typical jacket buttons at the sides. There is also a bas relief sculpture in the Neoclassical taste by Achille Bianchi (Milan 1838-1889) showing Garibaldi and his wife Anita, still young and in profile. Enrico Butti (Viggiù 1847 – 1932) is also represented with his bronze sculpture of a Garibaldian.
The Garibaldians are also celebrated in two oil paintings, one of which is signed, dedicated and dated 1865 by Giovanni Carnovali, known as Piccio (Montenegrino, Varese 1804 – Cremona 1874) portraying Ettore Tasca, one of the Mille. The other oil is not signed but is painted in bright colours and is rather complex in composition, showing the Garibaldians at relaxing at a country inn. Two works on paper are excellent: one signed by Sebastiano De Albertis (Milan 1828 – 1897) with the meeting at Teano between Garibaldi and King Victor Emanuel II (16 October 1860) and the other signed by Consalvo Carelli (Naples 1818 – 1900) entitled “Italian Flag on the Battlefield. Completing the catalogue of the Craxi inheritance is a series of metals, as well as a number of autographs, biographies and bibliographies concerning the historical figure of Giuseppe Garibaldi relics.
By Maria Ludovica Vertova