Female Perspectives on 1968. Art and Politics in the Writings of Carla Lonzi, Lea Vergine, and Rossana Rossanda

Elisa Bassetto, Ph.D.

The project investigates the relationship between art and politics through the writings and critical positions of Carla Lonzi, Lea Vergine, and Rossana Rossanda. It aims to show how the Student Movement and its contestation of cultural institutions contributed to reshaping debates on artistic autonomy, political commitment, and the social role of art criticism. Although all three figures were militant intellectuals, they articulated divergent understandings of the relationship between aesthetic practice and socio-political engagement. By bringing these positions into dialogue, and by drawing on published writings and archival research conducted in Florence, Milan, and Rome, the project highlights how their affinities and differences illuminate broader debates on participation, autonomy, and commitment in post-1968 Italy.