From 7 May to 18 October 2026, Villa Bardini presents Firenze ’50 ’60 ’70. Images from the Foto Locchi Archive, a photographic journey through three crucial decades in the history of the city.
Curated by Giovanna Uzzani and promoted by Fondazione CR Firenze and the Foto Locchi Archive, the exhibition brings together 150 photographs that document not only major events, but also the atmosphere, social transformations and everyday life of Florence.
The exhibition explores the 1950s, 1960s and 1970s, portraying a city rebuilding after the war, opening up to the international scene and experiencing profound cultural and social change.
Three decades that transformed Florence
In the 1950s, Florence appears optimistic, elegant and looking towards the future. The city became an international centre for art, fashion and craftsmanship, while its squares and palaces welcomed leading figures from cinema, culture and entertainment.
The 1960s reveal a more complex city. Economic growth and modernisation were accompanied by new social movements, the first student protests and the tragedy of the 1966 flood, one of the events that left the deepest mark on Florence’s collective memory.
During the 1970s, Florence became more reflective and experimental. Culture, art and social customs recorded the changes taking place in a rapidly evolving society, while the reassuring image of the Renaissance city was confronted by a new urban reality.
An exhibition divided into ten thematic sections
The exhibition is organised into ten thematic sections, offering different perspectives on the history of Florence: post-war reconstruction, work, social change, everyday life, sport, art, music and fashion.
The photographs document a hard-working city in which economic growth was accompanied by strong civic engagement. Workers’ movements, educational and religious experiences and new social groups reveal a Florence that actively participated in the changes taking place throughout Italy.
The everyday life of the Florentines
An important part of the exhibition is devoted to everyday life: popular traditions, Sundays at the stadium, excursions outside the city, swimming in the Arno, the first supermarkets and the new habits that accompanied the transformation of Italian society.
Alongside major historical events, the photographs capture simple gestures, faces and apparently ordinary situations. These images convey with particular immediacy the atmosphere of the city and the way Florentines experienced its streets, squares and neighbourhoods.
Work and civic engagement in Florence
The photographs also tell the story of labour struggles, workers’ demonstrations and the experiences that made Florence an important centre of political, social and educational experimentation.
The exhibition explores the history of the Pignone factory, the experiences associated with Don Lorenzo Milani and the School of Barbiana, the Isolotto community and the demonstrations that filled the city’s squares during the years of protest.
The photographs of the 1966 flood are particularly powerful: they show a city submerged in water and mud, but also a community capable of reacting and mobilising to save people, works of art, books and evidence of its history.
Sport, entertainment and culture
One room is devoted to the history of Fiorentina, its victories and the players who inspired the city’s passion for football. Sport thus becomes an integral part of the story of Florentine society and identity.
The photographs also lead visitors into theatres, artists’ studios, exhibition spaces and behind the scenes of cultural events. Florence emerges as a meeting place between tradition and contemporary life, attracting writers, actors, musicians and international personalities.
Florence and the birth of Made in Italy
The final part of the exhibition is devoted to fashion and the gradual international success of Made in Italy. Fashion shows, ateliers and presentations held in the Sala Bianca of Palazzo Pitti helped transform Florence into one of the world’s capitals of style.
The photographs from the Foto Locchi Archive document the moment when the Renaissance city also became an internationally recognised brand, capable of combining art, craftsmanship, elegance and innovation.
The Foto Locchi Archive
Foto Locchi was founded in 1924 by Tullio Locchi as a studio devoted to photographic art and technique. After his death, the work was continued by his collaborators and, under the direction of Silvano Corcos, it became the leading photographic agency for news and events in Florence.
During the busiest years after the Second World War, the agency employed as many as thirty photographers. Generations of professionals documented public ceremonies, cultural events, demonstrations, performances, political life and private moments, helping to create an extraordinary visual memory of Florence.
Thanks also to more recent acquisitions, the Foto Locchi Archive now holds more than five million images. The 150 photographs selected for the exhibition therefore represent only a small part of a much larger historical and cultural heritage.
Why visit Firenze ’50 ’60 ’70
Firenze ’50 ’60 ’70 offers a different perspective on the city from the usual itineraries devoted to the Renaissance. The photographs show how Florence changed during the twentieth century and how its contemporary identity emerged from the interaction between memory, innovation and civic participation.
The exhibition is particularly interesting for visitors who already know Florence. Its monuments, squares and neighbourhoods appear populated by faces, cars, signs and habits that allow the city of the past to be compared with the Florence of today.
Include the exhibition in your Florence itinerary
A visit to the exhibition can be combined with the Bardini Garden, the Oltrarno district, the San Niccolò neighbourhood or an itinerary devoted to twentieth-century Florence and the transformation of the modern city.
I am Giulia Bacci, an art historian and licensed tour guide in Florence. I can help you organise an itinerary connecting the images in the exhibition with the places, events and transformations documented by the Foto Locchi Archive.
