The woodcut of Mimì Buzzacchi Quilici : sentimental landscapes between antiquity and modernity

Abstract

Since her training in the 1920s, Mimì Buzzacchi Quilici’s artistic practice was characterised by painting and a significant interest in printmaking, which led her to explore various techniques and subjects. Over the years, she honed her woodcut skills, achieving particularly intriguing results during the 1930s and 1940s that attracted critical attention. This paper focuses on this aspect of her production, retracing the years of her artistic training through excerpts from her artist’s diary, leading up to her participation in the Biennale and Quadriennale during the Fascist Ventennio, while reconstructing the corpus of woodcuts exhibited on these occasions. Reconsidering Mimì Buzzacchi’s role within her cultural context, in light of the recognition she received as a woodcut artist, alongside the connections and relationships she cultivated, allows for a reassessment of her work, which remains relatively unknown, from a fresh perspective.