Fototeca di Sardegna

The Fototeca di Sardegna is a historical photographic archive owned by the Biblioteca di Sardegna, a private institution founded in 2005 and based in Cargeghe, in the province of Sassari, Sardinia. Established in 2008, the Fototeca was created to recover, protect, enhance, and promote the island's historical memory through the collection of vintage images. It operates as a specialized archival and cultural brand under the Biblioteca di Sardegna, which is recognized nationally for its historical and ethnographic collections and is part of the Italian National Library System (Sistema Bibliotecario Nazionale) and the Regional Library System of Sardinia. The archive holds more than 200,000 photographs dating from the second half of the 19th century to the 1970s. These images cover places, events, and people from 263 municipalities across Sardinia — about 70% of the island's towns — and span a wide range of themes including politics, economy, society, customs, religious and secular rituals, and recreational activities. Most of the photographs are previously unpublished and were gathered from the personal collections of approximately 28,000 Sardinian families, representing over 25% of the island's households. The images were digitized and accompanied by catalog records indicating the year and place of shooting, the individuals portrayed, and anecdotes recorded through oral testimony from the original owners of the physical documents. Since its inception, the Fototeca di Sardegna has been characterized as a "pink project" (progetto in rosa), entirely directed, coordinated, and curated by women, both internally and in external collaborations, with over 400 women involved to date. Beyond archiving, the brand has promoted a publishing series with more than 350 titles and over 70,000 published photos, organized over 350 documentary exhibitions with more than 120,000 visitors, and conducted educational activities with 75 lessons offered in primary schools across the island. In 2011, the archive became the subject of a specialist thesis in cultural demo-ethno-anthropology at the University of Sassari. Images from the archive were published in 2014 in the monographic issue "Il Novecento in Italia. Fotostoria di un secolo" by the monthly magazine Focus Storia. In 2018, the Biblioteca di Sardegna celebrated the archive's tenth anniversary with a traveling exhibition at Sardinian emigrant clubs in Brazil and Argentina, and in 2019 it organized exhibitions in Melbourne, Australia, and Montreal, Canada. The Fototeca di Sardegna continues to operate as an active cultural heritage brand, with its parent institution also running the Editoriale Documenta publishing house and promoting events internationally.

The Fototeca di Sardegna was established in 2008 as a specialized photographic archive under the Biblioteca di Sardegna, a private institution founded in 2005 and based in Cargeghe, in the province of Sassari, Sardinia. The Biblioteca di Sardegna is a member of the Italian National Library System (Sistema Bibliotecario Nazionale) and the Regional Library System of Sardinia, and holds over 210,000 documents, including rare and unpublished materials, recognized as a nationally valuable archival resource in historical and ethnographic matters. The Fototeca was created with the aim of recovering, for historical, archival, and pedagogical purposes, the historical memory of the island through the collection, protection, enhancement, and promotion of its heritage of vintage images. From its origins, the archive was distinguished as a "pink project" (progetto in rosa), entirely entrusted to the direction, coordination, and curation of women, both in its internal components and external collaborations. Over 400 women have been involved in the project to date. The archive has grown to hold more than 200,000 photographs dating from the second half of the 19th century to the 1970s. These images relate to places, events, and people from 263 municipalities across Sardinia — about 70% of the island's centers — homogeneous by province and heterogeneous by population, from the 83 inhabitants of Baradili in the province of Oristano to the 60,000 of the city of Olbia. The subjects cover a wide range of humanity, from politics to economy, society to customs, religious and secular rites to recreational activities. The photographs, almost exclusively unpublished, were collected from the personal holdings of approximately 28,000 Sardinian families, representing over 25% of the island's households, and were acquired digitally with catalog records indicating the year and place of shooting, the individuals portrayed, and anecdotes recorded through oral testimony from the original owners of the physical documents. In 2011, the archive became the subject of a specialist thesis in cultural demo-ethno-anthropology at the University of Sassari. In 2014, images from the Fototeca di Sardegna were published in the monographic issue "Il Novecento in Italia. Fotostoria di un secolo" by the monthly magazine Focus Storia. In 2018, the Biblioteca di Sardegna celebrated the tenth anniversary of the archive's founding with a traveling exhibition held at Sardinian emigrant clubs in Brazil and Argentina, in the cities of Buenos Aires, S.M. de Tucuman, Rosario, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Villa Bosch, and San Isidro. In 2019, with the collaboration of local Sardinian emigrant clubs, it organized the exhibition "Album of Sardinia" at the Assisi Centre in Melbourne, Australia, and the exhibition "Faces of Sardinia" at Casa d'Italia in Montreal, Canada. Beyond its archival work, the Fototeca di Sardegna has promoted collateral activities including a publishing series that has exceeded 350 titles in catalog and 70,000 published photos, the staging of over 350 documentary exhibitions with more than 120,000 visitors, and educational activities with 75 lessons offered at primary schools across the island. The parent institution, Biblioteca di Sardegna, also presides over the Scientific Committee of Editoriale Documenta, a publishing house with international distribution that has published over 650 titles and promoted over 1,800 events in 31 countries, states, and regions across 5 continents. The Fototeca di Sardegna remains an active brand within this broader cultural and publishing ecosystem.

• 2019

  Exhibitions "Album of Sardinia" in Melbourne, Australia, and "Faces of Sardinia" in Montreal, Canada.

• 2018

  Tenth anniversary celebrated with a traveling exhibition at Sardinian emigrant clubs in Brazil and Argentina.

• 2014

  Images from the archive are published in the monographic issue "Il Novecento in Italia. Fotostoria di un secolo" by Focus Storia.

• 2011

  The archive becomes the subject of a specialist thesis in cultural demo-ethno-anthropology at the University of Sassari.

• 2008

  Fototeca di Sardegna is established as a historical photographic archive.

• 2005

  Biblioteca di Sardegna, the parent institution, is founded.

A nationally recognized archival institution for historical and ethnographic memory of Sardinia, operating as a women-led cultural heritage brand under the Biblioteca di Sardegna.

• Historical photographic archive

  Over 200,000 vintage photographs from the mid-19th century to the 1970s, covering 263 Sardinian municipalities.

• Publishing series

  Over 350 titles in catalog and over 70,000 published photos.

• Documentary exhibitions

  Over 350 exhibitions with more than 120,000 visitors.

• Educational activities

  75 lessons offered at primary schools across Sardinia.

1. 1Home - Biblioteca di Sardegnabibliotecadisardegna.com
2. 2Fototeca di Sardegna - Wikipediait.wikipedia.org
3. 3Fototeca di Sardegna - Wikidatawikidata.org