Rome Academy of Fine Arts

The Academy has its origins in the “Accademia di San Luca”, which was founded in the late 16th century and became a pontifical seat for artistic studies. It was at that time a prestigious meeting place for artists and at the same time a teaching model to be imitated by similar developing institutions.

With the unification of Italy and with Rome as the capital city, there was a need to start a reform of art education that would meet the needs of the young Italian state. A slow process followed that saw the emergence of teaching types oriented towards cultural research and professionalism linked to industrial and artisanal development. The academy first took the name “Regia Accademia di Belle Arti denominated di San Luca”, then “Istituto di Belle Arti” until it became known as the “Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma”.