L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 4 I talian conservation scientist Francesca C a s a d i o h a s b e e n appointed Director of the Getty Con- servation Institute, a role that marks not only a new beginning but also the culmi- n a t i o n o f a j o u r n e y t h a t b e g a n m o r e t h a n t w e n t y y e a r s a g o . I n 2 0 0 2 , s h e arrived in the United States as a graduate intern at the Getty before building a dis- tinguished career at the Art Institute of Chicago, where she founded the museum's scientific research laboratory and, since 2018, has served as Executive Director of Con- servation and Science. Casadio will return to Los Angeles in a leadership role, guided by a belief that has s h a p e d h e r e n t i r e c a r e e r : c o n s e r v a t i o n i s n o t o n l y about preserving works of art, but also about making them truly accessible to pre- sent and future generations. "Returning here as director is a source of great pride. At the same time, it represents an extraordinary launching pad. It is a leading institu- tion in the field, with enor- m o u s p o t e n t i a l , a n d t h e opportunity to help shape its future gives me tremendous satisfaction." Holding both a degree and a Ph.D. in Chem- istry from the University of Milan, with research experi- e n c e a t I t a l y ' s N a t i o n a l Research Council (CNR) and the Polytechnic University of Milan, Casadio is now recog- nized as one of the leading i n t e r n a t i o n a l e x p e r t s i n applying scientific methods to the conservation of cultur- al heritage. F o r r e a d e r s w h o d o n ' t know it, the Getty Conserva- tion Institute is one of the most influential organiza- tions of its kind anywhere. Founded in 1985, it is one of the four arms of the J. Paul Getty Trust, alongside the famous Getty Museum, the Getty Research Institute, and the Getty Foundation, and it works across the globe on the science of keeping cultur- al heritage alive. From its home at the Getty Center in Los Angeles, the Institute runs scientific research, field projects, and training pro- grams on nearly every conti- nent, tackling everything from the wall paintings of ancient tombs to the chem- istry of modern paint, and sharing what it learns with c o n s e r v a t o r s a r o u n d t h e world. It is, in short, a place where laboratory science and art history meet in the ser- vice of the world's treasures, which is exactly the intersec- tion where Casadio has spent her career. She takes up the p o s t i n t h e f a l l o f 2 0 2 6 , reporting to Getty president and chief executive Kather- ine E. Fleming, and stepping into one of the most conse- quential roles in her field. For an Italian scientist who first arrived at the Getty as a n i n t e r n i n 2 0 0 2 , i t i s a h o m e c o m i n g o f t h e b e s t kind. You began your career in the United States at t h e G e t t y . D i d y o u r internship have a specif- ic focus? My research was based in the Department of Historic Architecture and focused on architectural conservation. After completing my degree and Ph.D. at the Polytechnic University of Milan, where I worked on the Milan Cathe- dral, my training was pri- marily centered on architec- ture and mural painting. The Getty's internship program is p a r t i c u l a r l y i n t e r e s t i n g because it brings together more than twenty young pro- fessionals and recent gradu- ates from a wide range of backgrounds. It gave me the opportunity to work not only with fellow conservation sci- entists but also with future curators and museum educa- tors. Those years led to pro- fessional and personal rela- t i o n s h i p s t h a t h a d a significant impact on my career. H o w m u c h h a v e t h e I t a l i a n s c i e n t i f i c approach and Italy's cul- tural heritage preserva- tion tradition influenced your work in the United States? A great deal. In the Italian educational system, there is no sharp division between scientific and humanistic disciplines. When I earned my Ph.D., it felt perfectly n a t u r a l t o b e a c h e m i s t applying science to cultural heritage. In the early 2000s, there was also considerable funding inspired by Leonar- do da Vinci's legacy and the idea of the scientist-human- ist, a model with which I have always strongly identi- fied. In the United States, this kind of interdisciplinary approach is less common. Even today, when I lecture to e n g i n e e r s , c h e m i s t s , a n d materials scientists, many are surprised by the idea that a scientific background can be applied to the world of culture. There is also a more practical aspect. In the Unit- Francesca Casadio to lead the Getty Conservation Institute SILVIA NITTOLI NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS CONTINUED TO PAGE 6 Francesca Casadio examining Claude Monet's Bordighera (1884). In September, she will become Director of the Getty Conservation Institute, marking a return to the institution where she began her US career as a graduate intern in 2002 (Photo: Imaging Department, the Art Institute of Chicago)

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