FAF Toscana

What FAF Toscana does

FAF Toscana - Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia is a private non-profit foundation established in 2018 in Florence, Italy, to manage, conserve, and publicly disseminate the Alinari photographic archives - the world's oldest photographic archive, originating from the Fratelli Alinari photographic establishment founded in Florence in 1852. The foundation operates from Villa Fabbricotti in Florence and serves cultural tourists, scholars, researchers, publishers, and a wide network of institutional partners through curated exhibitions, digital access platforms, scholarly publications, and print services. Its core asset is the Alinari Archives, containing millions of historical photographs spanning from 1839 to the present, encompassing daguerreotypes, ambrotypes, ferrotypes, and works by major Italian and international photographers. The collection is digitized and managed using the MomaPIX platform by MomaSOFT, with 3,165 unique photographic objects digitized (2,896 accessible online) and an additional 5,200 negatives from the Wulz Photographic Studio Archive under active digitization.

The foundation operates a multi-channel revenue model comprising: (1) print and image sales through the alinari.it website, (2) exhibition admission fees at partner cultural venues (some exhibitions are free, e.g., ITALIAE at Forte di Belvedere, Attorno alla Shoah, Il formidabil monte), and (3) exhibition catalogue sales. Sustained operating funding is provided through public grants from the Italian Ministry of Culture (Strategia Fotografia program - 2020, 2022, 2024 wins), Fondazione CR Firenze, and Regione Toscana. Distribution occurs through physical exhibitions at partner venues across Italy (Scuderie del Quirinale, Museo Novecento, CAMERA Turin, MAV Herculaneum, Casa Museo Ivan Bruschi Arezzo, Museo della Città di Livorno) and internationally (Estorick Collection London, MUSEC Lugano, Marubi Museum Albania), the Bloomberg Connects digital guide for global remote access, and a permanent venue at Galleria Le Scotte in Siena. Strategic core partnerships include Opificio delle Pietre Dure, MUFOCO, CAMERA, Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz (Max-Planck), and the RETE FOTOGRAFIA network.

Governance is provided by a President (Giorgio van Straten) and a Director (Claudia Baroncini), with a Scientific Committee renewed in March 2026 (Antonio Carloni, Nicoletta Leonardi, Claudio Rosati) for a five-year term. The foundation does not have disclosed funding rounds, subsidiaries, or parent company, and operates under public institutional oversight tied to the Region of Tuscany.

Name

FAF Toscana

Legal name

FAF Toscana - Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia

Website

https://alinari.it

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

FAF Toscana (Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia) is a Florence-based non-profit foundation that manages the world's oldest photographic archive, serving cultural tourists, scholars, and institutional partners through exhibitions, digital platforms, and print services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Photographic Archive & Cultural Heritage Services

NAICS

Libraries and Archives (51921), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (519), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Libraries and Archives (519210), Museums (712110), Web Search Portals, Libraries, Archives, and Other Information Services (5192)

SIC

Services-Mailing, Reproduction, Commercial Art & Photography (7330), Miscellaneous Publishing (2741)

akta.pro primary industry

National Archives, Records & Information Governance (BPAIAAAG)

Keywords

• Photographic archive management
• Cultural heritage preservation
• Art exhibition curation
• Historical photography digitization
• Photographic print sales

Headquarters

HQ city

Florence

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Print and image sales: Sale of photographic prints and reproductions from the Alinari Archives through the foundation's website, offering physical print products derived from the photographic heritage.
2. Exhibition admission: Revenue from admission fees to exhibitions at partner venues; some exhibitions are free entrance while others charge admission.
3. Exhibition catalogue sales: Sale of exhibition catalogues and scholarly publications (e.g., 'On Alinari: Archive in Transition', 'Gabriel Lippmann's Colour Photography', 'Michelangelo. Photographs from the Alinari Archives').

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

FAF Toscana is a non-profit foundation that preserves, digitizes and makes publicly accessible the Alinari photographic heritage — the world's oldest photographic archive — through a searchable online image platform, exhibitions at partner cultural venues, a print sales service, scholarly publications and catalogues, and digital guide content via Bloomberg Connects. Its core operational activities are archive curation and conservation, high-resolution digitization of unique photographic objects, exhibition organization, and educational/research access.

Product overview

FAF Toscana (Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia) operates the Alinari Archives, the world's oldest photographic archive, as its core product. The foundation offers access to millions of historical photographs through its website platform, the Bloomberg Connects digital guide, and physical exhibitions. Supporting products include MIRABILIALINARI video content series, print services for purchasing reproductions, and curated exhibition services at various venues. The collection is digitized and managed using MomaPIX technology, with content accessible for exploration, research, and commercial use.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Alinari Archives The Alinari Archives constitute the world's oldest photographic archive, containing millions of historical photographs from 1839 to the present documenting art, architecture, landscapes and cultural heritage, including works by Alinari, Brogi, Anderson and other major photographic studios. The collection is made accessible through the alinari.it online platform.
• Print Sales Service An online service enabling individual customers, collectors and publishers to purchase physical photographic prints and reproductions from the Alinari Archives via the alinari.it website.
• Exhibition Curation and Organization Services Curatorial services organizing photographic exhibitions at the foundation's own venues and at partner institutions worldwide, showcasing works from the Alinari Archives. Recent exhibitions include 'L'Italia è un desiderio' (400+ works), ITALIAE (75+ photographers), 'MAPPLETHORPE – VON GLOEDEN', 'Hospitalia' and 'From Michelangelo to Rodin through the Alinari Lens'.
• MIRABILIALINARI Video Content Series A video content series of 10 video pills presented by specialists, showcasing remarkable objects and highlights from the Alinari Archives, designed to make the archive more accessible to the general public.
• Bloomberg Connects Digital Guide Free digital guide application providing global, audio-visual access to FAF Toscana exhibitions (such as 'Hospitalia') with audio features, allowing remote and in-person visitors to engage with Alinari exhibition content.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over 2,896 unique photographic objects accessible online through the Unicum archive digitization project.
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature2 records

Partnerships

17 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Opificio delle Pietre DurecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Collaboration with the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, a Central Institute of the Italian Ministry of Culture, for conservation, restoration, and high-resolution digitization of unique photographic objects in the Unicum archive. The Opificio carried out restoration of 55 items and participated in an international workshop on photographic conservation.
• Directorate-General for Contemporary Creativity (Italian Ministry of Culture)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2020Promoter and supporter of the Unicum enhancement project through the 'Strategia Fotografia 2020' call for proposals, providing funding and institutional backing for the conservation of the largest collection of unique photographs in Italy.
• MUFOCO - Museo di Fotografia ContemporaneacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaborating institution for the 'L'Italia è un desiderio' exhibition at Scuderie del Quirinale, bringing together two of Italy's leading public institutions dedicated to photography. The collaboration extends beyond the exhibition as an ongoing partnership to create a national network around photographic heritage.
• Scuderie del QuirinalecoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorExhibition venue and organizer for 'L'Italia è un desiderio', hosting over 400 works from the Alinari and Mufoco collections from June to September 2023.
• Robert Mapplethorpe FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerFundamental contribution provider for the 'MAPPLETHORPE - VON GLOEDEN. Beauty and Desire' exhibition at Museo Novecento, supporting the comparison between Mapplethorpe's work and historical photographs from the Alinari Archives.
• Kunsthistorisches Institut in Florenz – Max-Planck InstitutmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-presenter of the book 'On Alinari: Archive in Transition' (a+mbookstore, 2021) with Fondazione Alinari, with curator Costanza Caraffa from the Institute.
• Calliope Arts FoundationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNon-profit organization based in Florence and London, supporting the FOTOGRAFE! exhibition and the Wanda and Marion Wulz Enhancement Project to promote and safeguard women's cultural heritage.
• Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art (London)coreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorHost venue for the 'Wanda and Marion Wulz: Avant-garde Photography in 20th-Century Italy' exhibition from September to December 2026, organized in collaboration with Fondazione Alinari.
• RETE FOTOGRAFIAcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPhotography network that curates the 'Una Rete in viaggio' program, bringing together photographic archives and institutions in dialogue. Fondazione Alinari participates as a speaker and contributor to network events.
• Azienda Ospedaliero-universitaria Senese (AOUS)minorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorPromoter and producer of the Hospitalia exhibition at Policlinico delle Scotte hospital's new entrance hall, conceived as a space dedicated to art within the medical facility.
• Fondazione Cives-MAVcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorProducer of the 'Il formidabil monte' exhibition on Vesuvius at MAV – Museo Archeologico Virtuale di Ercolano, in collaboration with Fondazione Alinari per la Fotografia.
• Municipality of FlorencecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPromoter of the ITALIAE and PIENOVUOTO exhibitions at Forte di Belvedere in collaboration with Fondazione Alinari and Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
• Ministero degli Affari Esteri e della Cooperazione InternazionalecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerInitiator of the ITALIAE exhibition project 'From Alinari to the masters of contemporary photography', showcasing Italian photographic heritage internationally.
• Fondazione Ivan Bruschi - Intesa SanpaolocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOrganizer and host of 'La sottilità dell'aria' exhibition at Casa Museo Ivan Bruschi in Arezzo, part of the Intesa Sanpaolo heritage network.
• Municipality of LivornocoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorOrganizer and promoter of the 'Sognando i corsari' exhibition at Museo della Città di Livorno - Polo Culturale dei Bottini dell'Olio.
• CAMERA - Centro Italiano per la Fotografia d'Autore (Turin)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-organizer of the 'Nuova Generazione. Sguardi contemporanei sugli Archivi Alinari' project, winner of Strategia Fotografia 2022, commissioning four young artists to create new works from the Alinari collections.
• Marubi National Museum of Photography (Albania)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAlbanian photographic museum participating in the 'Una Rete in viaggio 2026' event on portraiture and national identity, representing international archival collaboration within the Rete Fotografia network.

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Broad incumbents

• Rijksmuseum: Major Dutch national museum holding extensive photographic collections alongside broader fine-art holdings. Comparable as a museum institution running digitization, exhibitions, scholarly publishing, and image licensing at scale, though broader in scope than Alinari's photography-only focus.
• Getty Research Institute: Research arm of the J. Paul Getty Trust with major photographic and visual-culture archives, producing scholarly publications and supporting conservation. Comparable to Alinari in operating a research-grade photographic archive with international scholarly and licensing reach.

Regional players

• Fondazione Palazzo Strozzi: Florence-based cultural foundation producing major temporary exhibitions and educational programming. Comparable as a Tuscany-rooted cultural foundation reliant on public-private funding partnerships and exhibition-driven audience engagement, though focused on contemporary art rather than photography specifically.
• Marubi National Museum of Photography: Albanian national museum of photography, participating alongside Fondazione Alinari in the RETE FOTOGRAFIA 'Una Rete in viaggio 2026' event. Comparable as a national-level photographic archive and museum, but operating in a different (Albanian/Balkan) geography.

Direct peers

• George Eastman Museum: International museum of photography and film in Rochester, NY, holding one of the world's largest photography collections. Directly comparable as a photography-dedicated museum/archive combining conservation, exhibitions, and publishing, though operating at significantly larger scale in the US market.
• MUFOCO - Museo di Fotografia Contemporanea: Italian public museum dedicated to photography, co-organizer with Fondazione Alinari of the 'L'Italia è un desiderio' exhibition at Scuderie del Quirinale. Operates a national-level photography archive and exhibition programme, making it the closest direct peer in mission and scale.
• Estorick Collection of Modern Italian Art: London museum focused on modern Italian art, host venue for the Wanda and Marion Wulz exhibition organized with Fondazione Alinari. Comparable as a small specialized museum with a curatorial programme dependent on loaned and partnered collections.
• International Center of Photography (ICP): New York-based institution dedicated to photography and visual culture, combining a school, museum, and archive. Comparable to Fondazione Alinari as a non-profit that runs exhibitions, scholarly programming, and public access to historical photographic collections.
• Magnum Foundation: Non-profit affiliated with Magnum Photos that supports documentary photography through grants, exhibitions, and archive access. Comparable to Fondazione Alinari in its non-profit structure, photographic-heritage mission, and grant-driven operating model.
• CAMERA - Centro Italiano per la Fotografia d'Autore: Italian center for auteur photography based in Turin, co-organizer of the 'Nuova Generazione' project with Fondazione Alinari. Both institutions run exhibitions, educational programming, and archival work in the Italian photography space.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@fondazionealinariperlafoto3071
• Facebookfacebook.com/fondazione.alinari.fotografia
• Xx.com/fratellialinari
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/societ-alinari-24-ore-s-p-a-

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about FAF Toscana