Below is the full speech by Alessandra di Castro, President of the Gruppo Apollo, during the panel presentation of the second Italian art market report by Nomisma and Intesa Sanpaolo. The event was organized by the GA in Rome on March 27, 2025, at Palazzo Wedekind. The panel was attended by the Italian Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, as well as Roberto Marti, President of the Senate’s Culture Committee, Federico Mollicone, President of the Chamber of Deputies’ Culture Committee, and Alessandro Amorese, member of the Culture Committee and first signatory of the bill for VAT reduction. The government representatives have confirmed their intention to lower the rate in question, as the Apollo Group has long advocated. Now, the question is when this will happen.
If we were to lower the tax rate to 5%, Italy could become a European hub for imports from non-EU countries, for trade transactions, and for all activities related to the supply chain. And by supply chain, I’m referring to the restorers, transporters, photographers, all the professionals involved in trade fairs, scholars, and top artisans. This is an opportunity worth seizing, as it would safeguard the entire cultural ecosystem while fully valuing all its key players, including artists and young graduates in art-related disciplines, as well as all the sector’s activities. Moreover, it has to be noticed that the implementation of this VAT rate reduction from 22% to 5% would have only resulted in a 10 million euro impact on the state’s coffers. This figure would indeed be sufficient to implement a timely and incisive response to the French and German fiscal policies in this field. It is crucial to take immediate action without further delay. For centuries, Italy has been the world’s leading cultural promoter, thanks to the great artists of the past and the art galleries that supported them, fostering their popularity and success even before they became part of museum and foundation art collections. Today, we are absolutely certain that good politics will lead us into this new kind of cultural renaissance.
Here’s the link to rewatch the panel.
Here’s the link to download the Nomisma-Intesa San Paolo report.
2 April 2025
