Bevilacqua La Masa Rebuts Vettese's 'Decadent' Characterization

Bruno Bernardi, president of Fondazione Bevilacqua La Masa in Venice, has issued a detailed rebuttal to Angela Vettese's article in Artribune (May-June 2026) that portrayed the foundation as decadent since 2016. Bernardi counters that under his leadership, the number of artist studios increased from 12 to 22, including 10 new studios at the Emeroteca dell'Arte in Mestre via an agreement with Fondazione Musei Civici Venezia. He notes that curator Milovan Farronato continued to work with the foundation, mounting exhibitions in 2024 (Guglielmo Castelli), 2025 (Patricia Leite), and May 2026 (Giangiacomo Rossetti). The foundation's collection was reconstructed by Claudio Donadel, recovering works acquired before 2016, and exhibited for the first time outside Venice at Museo Ettore Fico in Turin, curated by Stefano Coletto. Financially, exhibitions generated €1 million in cash from 2022 to April 2026, with Arte Fiera Bologna doubling its free stand space to 32 square meters. The foundation secured €437,000 from European CreArt and national PAC grants between 2023 and 2026. Collaborations include Gallerie Contini, Saatchi Yates (2023 exhibition 'Captcha 2826' with Pascal Sender), Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) in Long Beach (2024 Betsabeé Romero), and Tornabuoni Art Paris (funding renovations at San Marco). From January 2023 to mid-2026, the foundation produced 47 exhibitions, 62 events, and six residencies. The last call for studios attracted 132 applicants versus 22 in 2016.