Vittorio Umberto Antonio Maria Sgarbi (born 8 May 1952 in

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

) is an Italian art critic, art historian, writer, politician, cultural commentator and television personality. He is President of the

Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto The Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto (MART) (''Museo d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Trento e Rovereto'', in Italian) is a museum centre in the Italian province of Trento. The main site is in Rovereto, and contains m ...

. He was appointed curator of the Italian Pavilion at the 2011 Venice Biennale. Several times a member of the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: Representation (politics), representing the Election#Suffrage, electorate, making laws, and overseeing ...

, in 2008 he served as Cabinet Member for Culture, Arts and Sports in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

's municipal government for six months when Mayor Letizia Moratti terminated his mandate as she saw him 'unfit for the job'. In 2012, he was removed as Mayor of

Salemi Salemi is a town and ''comune'' in southwestern Sicily, Italy, administratively part of the province of Trapani. History Salemi is where Giuseppe Garibaldi announced the annexation of Sicily on May 14, 1860, as part of the Expedition of the T ...

by the Ministry of Interior after he failed to acknowledge

Mafia "Mafia" is an informal term that is used to describe criminal organizations that bear a strong similarity to the original “Mafia”, the Sicilian Mafia and Italian Mafia. The central activity of such an organization would be the arbitration of d ...

interferences in his cabinet.

Biography

Vittorio Sgarbi attended the Classical Lyceum "Ludovico Ariosto" in Ferrara and then graduated in

Philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

"cum laude" at the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continuo ...

, where he also specialized in History of Art. He has a younger sister,

Elisabetta Sgarbi Elisabetta Sgarbi (born 1956) is an Italian filmmaker, publisher and editorial director based in Milan. Career Sgarbi was born in Ferrara. She is the younger sister of art historian and politician Vittorio Sgarbi. After obtaining a degree i ...

, an Italian film producer and writer. Sgarbi made his debut on National TV as art expert on the

Maurizio Costanzo Maurizio Costanzo (born 28 August 1938) is an Italian television host, journalist, screenwriter and film director. Biography Costanzo began his career as a journalist, first as a contributing writer to ''Paese Sera'' and then as managing editor ...

Show on

Canale 5 Canale 5 () is an Italian free-to-air television channel of Mediaset, owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. It was the first private television network to have a national coverage in Italy in 1980. On 4 December 2012, Mediaset launched Canale 5 HD, a s ...

. In the 1990s he had his own show, ''Sgarbi Quotidiani''. (a pun on his name that can be read as "Daily Sgarbi" or "Daily Offences"). The show was a 15-minute recapitulation of current events. On a few episodes Sgarbi furiously attacked the Italian judges working on the

Tangentopoli ''Mani pulite'' (; Italian for "clean hands") was a nationwide judicial investigation into political corruption in Italy held in the early 1990s, resulting in the demise of the so-called " First Republic" and the disappearance of many Italian ...

corruption scandal. Sgarbi also criticized the use of

preventive detention Preventive detention is an imprisonment that is putatively justified for non- punitive purposes, most often to prevent (further) criminal acts. Types of preventive detention There is no universally agreed definition of preventive detention, and m ...

in prison. Although Sgarbi has strongly defended the role of

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

as a foundational element of Italian culture, he defines himself as an

atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

. On ethical issues — for example, that of

euthanasia Euthanasia (from el, εὐθανασία 'good death': εὖ, ''eu'' 'well, good' + θάνατος, ''thanatos'' 'death') is the practice of intentionally ending life to eliminate pain and suffering. Different countries have different eut ...

or in the case of

Eluana Englaro Eluana Englaro (25 November 1970 – 9 February 2009) was an Italian woman from Lecco, who entered a persistent vegetative state on 18 January 1992, following a car accident, and subsequently became the focus of a court battle between supporters ...

, whose life was artificially prolonged by 17 years in a vegetative coma, he sided with the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He has also declared his opposition to

gay marriage Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being Mexico, constituting ...

and to marriage in general. While he was mayor of the Sicilian city of

, he was removed from his role and the administration of the city got commissioned. According to the Minister of Interior

Anna Maria Cancellieri Annamaria Cancellieri (born 22 October 1943) is an Italian official and prefect who served as Minister of Interior in the Monti Cabinet and Minister of Justice in the Letta Cabinet. Early life and education Cancellieri was born in Rome on 22 Oct ...

, Sgarbi had responsibilities in the infiltration of

in the management of the city, for example through the creation of fake protocols and making the administrative process slower. In November 2017, Sgarbi was chosen by President-elect of Sicily

Nello Musumeci Sebastiano "Nello" Musumeci (born 21 January 1955) is a right-wing Italian politician. Musumeci is serving as Minister for Civil Protection and Sea Policies since 22 October 2022 in the government of Giorgia Meloni. He previously served as Presi ...

as new Regional Assessor of Cultural Heritage. He was re-elected as MP for

Forza Italia Forza ItaliaThe name is not usually translated into English: ''forza'' is the second-person singular imperative of ''forzare'', in this case translating to "to compel" or "to press", and so means something like "Forward, Italy", "Come on, Ital ...

for the 2018 general election, and was successively elected as Mayor of

Sutri Sutri (Latin ''Sutrium'') is an Ancient town, modern ''comune'' and former bishopric (now a Latin titular see) in the province of Viterbo, about from Rome and about south of Viterbo. It is picturesquely situated on a narrow tuff hill, surrounded ...

later in June of the same year. Candidate to the Senate in the

2022 Italian general election The 2022 Italian general election was a snap election held in Italy on 25 September 2022. After the fall of the Draghi government, which led to a parliamentary impasse, President of Italy, President Sergio Mattarella dissolved the parliament on 2 ...

, he has not been elected. Despite that, he has been nominated Undersecretary to the Culture in the

Meloni Cabinet The Meloni government is the 68th government of the Italian Republic, the first led by the president of Brothers of Italy, Giorgia Meloni, who is also the first woman to hold the office of Prime Minister of Italy. The government was announced on ...

. Sgarbi is also a columnist for ''

il Giornale ''il Giornale'' ( en, The Newspaper) is an Italian language daily newspaper published in Milan, Italy. History and profile The newspaper was founded in 1974 by the journalist Indro Montanelli, together with the colleagues Enzo Bettiza, Ferenc ...

'' and works as an art critic for ''

Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...

'' newsmagazine.

Gallery

File:Sgarbi casalpusterlengo 01 15 lug 2020.jpg, Sgarbi, in

Casalpusterlengo Casalpusterlengo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lodi in the Italian region Lombardy, located about southeast of Milan and about southeast of Lodi. It received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on October 3 ...

, on 15 July 2020, just before the

lecture A lecture (from Latin ''lēctūra'' “reading” ) is an oral presentation intended to present information or teach people about a particular subject, for example by a university or college teacher. Lectures are used to convey critical infor ...

''I tesori di Lodi, Codogno e Casalpusterlengo''. File:Sgarbi casalpusterlengo 02 15 lug 2020.jpg, Sgarbi during the

''I tesori di Lodi, Codogno e Casalpusterlengo''.

Publications

*''Carpaccio'' - Bompiani (1979) *''Palladio e la Maniera'' - Electa (1980) *''Gnoli'' -

Franco Maria Ricci Franco Maria Ricci (2 December 1937 – 10 September 2020) was an Italian art publisher and magazine editor. Amongst his publications is '' FMR'', a Milan-based bi-monthly art magazine published in Italian, English, German, French, and Spanish for ...

(1983) *''Tutti i musei d'Italia'' - Domus (1984) *''Antonio da Crevalcore e la pittura ferrarese del Quattrocento a Bologna'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1985) *''Carlo Guarienti'' - Fabbri (1985) *''Il sogno della pittura'' - Rizzoli (1985, winner of Premio Estense) *''Carlo Mattioli: Antologia 1939-1986'' - Il Bulino (1987) *''Rovigo: Le chiese. Catalogo dei beni artistici e storici'' - Marsilio (1988) *''Chaim Soutine'' - L'Obliquo (1988) *''Storia universale dell'arte'' -

Mondadori Arnoldo Mondadori Editore () is the biggest publishing company in Italy. History The company was founded in 1907 in Ostiglia by 18-year-old Arnoldo Mondadori who began his publishing career with the publication of the magazine ''Luce!''. In 1 ...

(1988) *''Davanti all'immagine'' - Rizzoli (1989, winner of

Premio Bancarella The Premio Bancarella is an Italian literary prize established in 1953; it is given in Pontremoli Pontremoli (; local egl, Pontrémal; la, Apua) is a small city, ''comune'' former Latin Catholic bishopric in the province of Massa and Carrara, Tu ...

) *''Giovanni Segantini: i capolavori'' - Reverdito Editore (1989) *''Il pensiero segreto'' - Sonzogno (1990) *''Botero: Dipinti Sculture Disegni'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1991) *''Dell'Italia. Uomini e luoghi'' - Bompiani (1991, winner of Premio Fregene) *''Lo Sgarbino. Dizionario della lingua italiana'' - Larus (1993) *''Le mani nei capelli'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1993) *''Lezioni private'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1996) *''A regola d'arte. Libri, quadri, poesie: nuove lezioni sul bello'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1998) *''Alfredo Protti: 1882-1949'' - Giorgio Mondadori (1998) *''Aroldo Bonzagni: Pittore e illustratore'' (1887-1918). Ironia, satira e dolore - Mazzotta (1998) (with Antonio Forchino and Elena Bastelli) *''Gli immortali'' - Rizzoli (1998) *''La casa dell'anima. Educazione all'arte'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (1999) *''Notte e giorno d'intorno girando'' - Rizzoli (1999) *''Giotto e il suo tempo'' - Federico Motta (2000) *''Le tenebre e la rosa. Un'antologia'' - Rizzoli (2000) *''Onorevoli fantasmi: Due anni di polemiche'' - Arnoldo Mondadori (2000) *''Balthus'' - Giunti (2001) *''Elogio della medicina di Jacovitti'' - Mazzotta (2001) *''Percorsi perversi'' - Rizzoli (2001) *''Giorgio De Chirico. Dalla Metafisica alla "Metafisica". Opere 1909-1973'' - Marsilio (2002) *''Il Bene e il Bello. La fragile condizione umana'' - Bompiani (2002) *''Il sogno della pittura. Come leggere un'opera d'arte'' - (2002) *''Wolfgang Alexander Kossuth 1982-2002'' - Skira (2002) (with Michael Engelhard and Mario De Micheli) *''La stanza dipinta. Saggi sull'arte contemporanea'' - Rizzoli (2002) *''Da Giotto a Picasso: Discorso sulla pittura'' - Rizzoli (2003) *''La ricerca dell'identità da Antonello a De Chirico'' - Skira (2003) *''L'Odéo Cornaro'' - Allemandi (2003) (with Lorenzo Cappellini) *''Parmigianino'' - Rizzoli (2003) *''Scaramuzza'' - Allemandi (2003) (with Lina Bolzoni and Simone Verde) *''Un paese sfigurato. Viaggio attraverso gli scempi d'Italia'' - Rizzoli (2003) *''Dell'anima'' - Gribaudo (2004) (with Massimo Listri) *''Gaspare Landi'' - Skira (2004) *''Guercino. Poesia e sentimento nella pittura del Seicento'' -

RAI RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana (; commercially styled as Rai since 2000; known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane) is the national public broadcasting company of Italy, owned by the Ministry of Economy and Finance. RAI operates many ter ...

Libri (2004) *''Le ceneri violette di Giorgione. Natura e Maniera tra Tiziano e Caravaggio'' - Skira (2004) *''"San Giuseppe con il bambino" di Giovan Battista Piazzetta'' - Allemandi (2004) *''Un capolavoro di Rubens. L'adorazione dei pastori'' - Skira (2004) *''Aroldo Bonzagni'' - Mazzotta (2005) (with Antonio Forchino and Elena Bastelli) *''Caravaggio e l'Europa. Il movimento caravaggesco internazionale da Caravaggio a Mattia Preti'' - Skira (2005) *''Catalogo generale delle opere di Vincenzo Napolitano'' - Giorgio Mondadori (2005) *''Catalogo generale delle opere di Antonio Nunziante'' - Giorgio Mondadori (2005) (with Paolo Levi) *''I giudizi di Sgarbi. 99 artisti dai cataloghi d'arte moderna e dintorni'' - Giorgio Mondadori (2005) *Il ritratto interiore da Lotto a Pirandello - Skira (2005) *''Ragione e passione contro l'indifferenza'' - Bompiani (2005) *''Le meraviglie della pittura tra Venezia e Ferrara dal Quattrocento al Settecento'' - Silvana (2006) *''Francesco del Cossa'' - Skira (2007) *''Clausura a Milano (e non solo). Da suor Letizia a Salemi (e ritorno)'' - Bompiani (2008) *''L'Italia delle meraviglie. Una cartografia del cuore'' - Bompiani (2009) *''Donne e dee nei musei italiani'' – Bompiani (2009) *''Klaus Karl Mehrkens: opere 1983-2008'' - Protagon (2009) *''Viaggio sentimentale nell'Italia dei desideri'' - Bompiani (2010) *''Lo stato dell'arte/State of the Arts'' -

Skira The festival of the Skira ( grc, Σκίρα) or Skirophoria ( grc, Σκιροφόρια) in the calendar of ancient Athens, closely associated with the Thesmophoria, marked the dissolution of the old year in May/June. Description At Athens, t ...

(2011) *''L'Italia delle meraviglie'' - Bompiani (2011) *''Le meraviglie di Roma. Dal Rinascimento ai giorni nostri'' - Bompiani (2011) *''Piene di grazia. I volti della donna nell'arte'' - Bompiani (2011) *''L'ombra del Divino nell'arte contemporanea'' - Cantagalli (2012) *''L'arte è contemporanea. Ovvero l'arte di vedere l'arte'' - Bompiani (2012)

TV Shows

*Sgarbi quotidiani (

, 1992-1999) * Dalla vostra parte (

Rete 4 Rete 4 (in English Network 4) is an Italian free-to-air television channel operated by Mediaset Italia and owned by MFE - MediaForEurope. Presently the director is Sebastiano Lombardi. Programs TV Programmes (currently) Rete 4's strengt ...

, 2018) * Cartabianca, (

Rai 3 Rai 3 (formerly Rete 3) is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It was launched on 15 December 1979 and its programming is centred towards cultural and ...

, 2018)

Notes

References

* Sciarrone, Rocco (1998).
Mafie vecchie, mafie nuove: Radicamento ed espansione
', Rome: Donzelli Editore

External links

* * *
Articles written on
''

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Sgarbi, Vittorio 1952 births Living people Writers from Ferrara Italian Liberal Party politicians Forza Italia politicians Forza Italia (2013) politicians Deputies of Legislature XI of Italy Deputies of Legislature XII of Italy Deputies of Legislature XIII of Italy Deputies of Legislature XIV of Italy Deputies of Legislature XVIII of Italy Politicians from Ferrara MEPs for Italy 1999–2004 Italian art critics Italian art curators Bancarella Prize winners Mayors of places in Sicily Mayors of places in Lazio