Renato Barilli argues art academies should teach technique, not style

In an article on Artribune, critic and art historian Renato Barilli (born 1935), professor emeritus at the University of Bologna, argues that painting and sculpture should be removed from professional disciplines in Italian Academies of Fine Arts and offered only as free high-culture courses. He contends there is no daily professional demand for painters and sculptors, unlike graphic designers for advertising, comics, animation, and photographers for video art. Barilli warns against having great artists teach in academies, as they risk breeding imitators of figures like Marco Lodola or Banksy. Instead, he advocates teaching technical secrets and skills—such as how to create street art or erect sculptures in traffic roundabouts—without stylistic directives. He suggests using hospital walls for child-friendly cartoons and roundabouts for original sculptures, not copies of Consagra or Franchina. Barilli proposes that major artists be treated as emeritus professors, funded to create without teaching obligations. The article appears in Artribune Magazine #71 and is part of a series of newsletters (Incanti, Render, PAX) on art market, urban regeneration, and cultural tourism.