Salvo Bitonti Leaves Accademia Albertina After Six Years as Director

Salvo Bitonti, known as Salvo, has concluded his six-year tenure as director of the Accademia Albertina in Turin, succeeded by Edoardo Di Mauro. Bitonti, a theater and film director who taught directing at the academy since 2001, took the helm in November 2013 when the institution was in decline. Under his leadership, the academy revitalized its role in Turin's cultural scene, forging partnerships with museums, theaters, and foundations. Visitor numbers surged from 3,000 to 24,000 annually. Bitonti prioritized internationalization, signing over 30 bilateral agreements with non-European institutions and organizing student exhibitions in Russia, Bahrain, Brazil, and Germany. He established the International Festival of Art and Design Schools (FISAD) in 2015, a unique format encompassing visual and performing arts. The second edition in 2019 involved 20 foreign institutions, including first-time participants from Ethiopia, UAE, and Australia. Bitonti also created a scenography hub at the former Incet factory, collaborated with the Teatro Regio di Torino, and secured over €3.5 million from Compagnia di San Paolo for restoring La Rotonda del Talucchi. He advocated for equal status between academies and universities within Italy's AFAM system, a battle he intends to continue at the European level. Bitonti will resume his film career, preparing artist films on mythological figures Phaedra, Helen, Ismene, and Medea.