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How Mussolini's Jewish lover changed Fascist art and design

JL;DR SUMMARY Margherita Sarfatti, a Venetian Jew and Benito Mussolini's lover, significantly influenced the visual language of Italian Fascism through her advocacy for Futurist art. A way out west there was a fella, fella I want to tell you about, fella by the name of Jeff Lebowski. At least, that was the handle his lovin' parents gave him, but he never had much use for it himself. This Lebowski, he called himself the Dude. Now, Dude, that's a name no one would self-apply where I come from. But then, there was a lot about the Dude that didn't make a whole lot of sense to me. And a lot about where he lived, likewise. But then again, maybe that's why I found the place s'durned innarestin'.

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Tags

Jewish HistoryHolocaustFascismPropagandaFuturismExhibitionItalian JewsMussoliniMargherita SarfattiItalian Art

Places mentioned

Bologna, Italy
"Featuring 75 works on loan from the Fondazione Massimo e Sonia Cirulli in Bologna and curated by photographic artist and author B.A. Van Sise, the show explores how the regime used bold design, vivid color and modernist imagery to shape the nations self-image and fuel the Futurist movement."
Manhattan, New York, United States
"Now on view at Manhattans Poster House, the exhibition examines the intersection of propaganda and art in Mussolinis Italy."
Venice, Italy
"The visual language of Italian Fascism was partly defined by Margherita Sarfatti, a Venetian Jew."
Italy
"Not even 70 years after Italy unified, Benito Mussolinis staged march on Rome so unnerved the government that King Victor Emmanuel III named him prime minister, opening the door to Fascist rule."
Milan, Lodi, Italy
"He provides the exhibitions stark coda: a small black-and-white photograph showing the corpses of Mussolini and others hanging by their heels in Milans Piazzale Loreto."
Argentina
"Sarfatti spent her exile in Switzerland, Argentina, and Uruguay before returning after the war, only to learn her sister was among the more than seven thousand Italian Jews murdered in the Holocaust."
Switzerland
"Sarfatti spent her exile in Switzerland, Argentina, and Uruguay before returning after the war, only to learn her sister was among the more than seven thousand Italian Jews murdered in the Holocaust."
Uruguay
"Sarfatti spent her exile in Switzerland, Argentina, and Uruguay before returning after the war, only to learn her sister was among the more than seven thousand Italian Jews murdered in the Holocaust."

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Cairo Item ID 67213
Cairo Source ID 35
Retrieved 2025-11-18 05:30:42 UTC
Curated 2025-11-18 08:30:49 UTC