Through the case of the Zileri art institute in Rome, the essay reflects on the contribution of
the handicraft schools to the renewal of the repertoires and taste of Italian decorative arts
between the end of the WWII and the affirmation of industrial design. Considering the first
years of activity of this all-girl private high school, run by the Ursuline nuns and specialised
in textile production and leatherwork, is relevant for the quality of the education given to
the students. Responsible for that was the painter Toti Scialoja, headmaster of the school
until 1950, and a very selected teaching staff that included valued artists and/or artisans
like Bice Lazzari (who was starting to affirm herself as an abstract painter), Maria Marino
and Marcella Toppi.
A year-end exhibition hosted in the National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome in the summer
of 1950 demonstrates how the students had developed a modern sensibility in art, embracing
a non-referential language. At the same time, the press reviews of the exhibition
document the reception of their works, giving an insight into the debate around abstract
art. This event and the participation of the school at the 9th Milan Triennial in 1951 reveal
the appreciation recognised to the Zileri institute from two of the most prestigious institutions
active in Italy at that time in support of the contemporary artistic research and the
attention paid by these realities to the new generation in training.