Giosuè Prezioso on Art, Economy, and Protection in Italy

Giosuè Prezioso, director of Unicollege Torino, discusses the interplay between art, economy, and legal protection in an interview. He highlights a systemic lack of economic education in art, noting that most students cannot value artworks. Prezioso advocates for integrating business and management courses into humanities curricula. He praises Italy's recent reduction of VAT on art sales from 22% to 5%, a move that could help Italy reclaim market share lost by the UK after Brexit. He criticizes the underfunding of AFAM (Higher Education in Art, Music, and Dance) institutions, which receive less than universities, and notes that the 2025 budget cuts culture funding from 0.4% to 0.3% of GDP, redirecting funds to defense. Prezioso discusses the challenges of selling performance and digital art, citing Federico Clapis (Pak) as the highest-paid digital artist with The Merge selling for $91.8 million. He introduces DNArt, a technology from Ca' Foscari University that uses transparent ink and infrared readers to authenticate physical artworks. He calls for more specialized legal professionals to protect cultural heritage and expresses optimism about younger generations' interdisciplinary interests.