Arte e diplomazia: il caso dell’Arte italiana al Musée du Jeu de Paume negli anni Trenta

Abstract

Art and Diplomacy: The Case of Italian Art at the Jeu de Paume Museum in the 1930s

The Jeu de Paume Museum in Paris, being the Musée des écoles étrangères contemporaines, was a cultural institution with a pivotal role in the development of diplomatic relations between France and the other nations in the 1930s. Considering and highlighting the importance of the Jeu de Paume Museum, the study aims to offer a wider perspective on the museum activities under the direction of the enlightened curator André Dezarrois, considering both the collection management and the exhibition policy. The essay is based on a documentary research mainly conducted at the Archives Nationales de France and the Kandinsky Library (Centre Georges Pompidou), combined with a broad bibliographic research. The article focuses especially on the attitude toward Italian contemporary art and its political meanings, thus outlining a complex network of events and relations in order to integrate the studies developed so far. The essay strives to go beyond a simple analysis of the major exhibition Art italien des XIX et XX siècles, which was strongly supported by the fascist regime, highlighting the interconnections between the mentioned event, donations and acquisitions, institutional relations, and smaller, but still meaningful, exhibitions. Furthermore, the scope of the research was widened in order to consider the influence of French cultural and political forces on the managerial attitude displayed at the Jeu de Paume Museum toward Italian art.