Rediscovered Archive of Paolo Di Paolo's Postwar Italian Photography at Palazzo Ducale
From October 23, 2025, to April 6, 2026, the Palazzo Ducale in Genoa will host an exhibition featuring 300 previously unseen photographs by Paolo Di Paolo, curated by Giovanna Calvenzi and Silvia Di Paolo. Di Paolo, who was born on May 17, 1925, in Larino and passed away on June 12, 2023, was a self-taught photographer known for his portrayal of Italy's post-war reconstruction between 1953 and 1969. After moving to Rome in 1949, he began his career and worked with 'Il Mondo' and 'Tempo,' photographing icons such as Marcello Mastroianni and Sophia Loren. His daughter uncovered his extensive archive of 250,000 negatives in 1995. The exhibition catalog will be published by Marsilio Arte, and Silvia Di Paolo's biographical novel, 'Qualcosa dovrà succedere,' is set for release in March 2026.
Key facts
- Exhibition runs October 23, 2025 - April 6, 2026 at Palazzo Ducale, Genova
- Features 300 photographs from a rediscovered archive of 250,000 negatives
- Paolo Di Paolo was born May 17, 1925 in Larino and died June 12, 2023
- His photographic career spanned 1953 to 1969, documenting postwar Italy
- He was a self-taught photographer who worked for 'Il Mondo,' 'Tempo,' and 'Successo'
- Collaborated with Irene Brin, gaining access to exclusive cultural events
- His daughter Silvia Di Paolo discovered the archive in 1995
- Received an honorary degree from La Sapienza University on May 16, 2023
Entities
Artists
- Paolo Di Paolo
- Giovanna Calvenzi
- Silvia Di Paolo
- Robert Capa
- Henri Cartier-Bresson
- Giulio Turcato
- Carla Accardi
- Mario Mafai
- Pietro Consagra
- Mimmo Rotella
- Rodolfo Sonego
- Cesare Zavattini
- Ugo Pirro
- Cardarelli
- Gatto
- Penna
- Mario Trevi
- Brianna Caraffa
- Mario Pannunzio
- Eugenio Scalfari
- Benedetto Croce
- Roberta Valtorta
- Arturo Tofanelli
- Aldo Palazzi
- Irene Brin
- Maria Vittoria Rossi
- Giò Ponti
- Marcello Mastroianni
- Sofia Loren
- Pier Paolo Pasolini
- Enzo Ferrari
- Elvina Pallavicini
- Camilla Pallavicini
- Lucia Bosè
- Luis Miguel Dominguín
- Reza Pahlavi
- Farah Diba
- Umberto II
- Giorgio de Chirico
- Gina Lollobrigida
- Salvatore Quasimodo
- Anita Ekberg
- Luchino Visconti
- Mina
- Nilde Iotti
- Renato Rascel
- Vittorio Gassman
- Bruce Weber
- Isabella Rossellini
- Arrigo Benedetti
- Giuseppe Ungaretti
- Oriana Fallaci
- Anna Magnani
- Lucia Bosé
- Faye Dunaway
- Monica Vitti
- Michelangelo Antonioni
- Raquel Welch
- Vittorio De Sica
- Alfred Hitchcock
- Grace Kelly
- Sophia Loren
- Brigitte Bardot
- Franco Zeffirelli
- Alberto Sordi
- Linda Kaiser
- Silvia di Paolo
- Palmiro Togliatti
Institutions
- Palazzo Ducale
- Guida Monaci
- Quadriennale
- C.I.T. (Compagnia Italiana Turismo)
- Ferrovie dello Stato
- Il Messaggero
- l'Unità
- Università La Sapienza
- Trattoria Menghi
- Montaggio
- Il Mondo
- Tempo
- Mondadori
- La settimana Incom Illustrata
- Bellezza
- Domina
- Domus
- Harper's Bazaar
- Successo
- MAXXI
- Marsilio Arte
- Marsilio Romanzi
- La Sapienza
- Marsilio
- Arma dei Carabinieri
- Artribune
- L'Unità
- MoMA
- Festival dei due mondi di Spoleto
- Biennale di Venezia
- segnonline.it
Locations
- Genova
- Italy
- Larino
- Campobasso
- Molise
- Roma
- Piazza del Popolo
- Via Margutta
- Palazzo Rospigliosi Pallavicini
- Persia
- Portogallo
- Ventimiglia
- Trieste
- New York
- Spoleto
- Venezia
- Rome
- Termoli
- Liguria
- Monte dei Cocci
- Lido di Venezia
- San Felice Circeo
- Alto Adige
- Forchia
- Beneventano
- Genoa
- Switzerland
Sources
- Artribune —
- segnonline —
- Rivista Segno —