The Secret Collection of Mario Rossello Revealed in New Book

A new book titled 'La collezione segreta' (The Secret Collection), edited by Elisabetta Staudacher and gallerist Francesco Luigi Maspes, uncovers the story of Mario Rossello, a previously unknown Italian collector with a passion for 19th-century art. Rossello, born in Milan in 1877, rose from a difficult childhood to become a prominent accountant and auditor, working with Enrico Cuccia at Mediobanca. He amassed a significant collection of works by Italian masters such as Giovanni Boldini, Tranquillo Cremona, Giuseppe De Nittis, Giovanni Fattori, Giuseppe Grandi, Daniele Ranzoni, Giovanni Segantini, and even older pieces like those by Francesco Guardi. The book includes essays by Saverio Almini, who investigated Rossello's private life, and Annie Paul Quinsac, a leading scholar on Segantini, along with extensive images and documents. Rossello, who died nearly a centenarian in the 1970s, sought to erase his traces, making this publication a key resource for understanding Milanese high bourgeoisie culture in the early 20th century.