Fondazione Memmo Wins 2018 Montblanc de la Culture Award

The Fondazione Memmo has been named the Italian winner of the 2018 Premio Montblanc de la Culture, Arts et Patronage, an award that for 27 years has recognized patrons across 17 countries. The Montblanc Cultural Foundation annually grants a monetary contribution to distinguished initiatives and produces a limited-edition writing instrument inspired by a historical patron—this year, King Ludwig II of Bavaria, patron of Richard Wagner. The award ceremony took place at the Fondazione Memmo in Rome, where Anna d'Amelio Carbone (co-director with Fabiana Marenghi Vaselli Bond) received the prize from Montblanc Cultural Foundation presidents Till Fellrath and Sam Bardaouil. Ilaria Bonacossa, director of Artissima, nominated the foundation for its "virtuous program." Previous Italian winners include Giorgio Marconi (2016) for the Fondazione Marconi di Arte Moderna e Contemporanea, and the Fondazione Morra Greco per l'Arte Contemporanea (2017), led by Maurizio Morra Greco. With the award, Fondazione Memmo will launch a four-year residency program starting January 2020, enabling Italian artists to travel to London for exchanges with the local art scene, providing a studio, accommodation, and a daily stipend. The residency is organized in collaboration with Gasworks, a UK non-profit promoting contemporary visual art. Anna d'Amelio Carbone stated that the foundation's goal is to create a bridge between international artists and Rome, connecting past to present and future.