Fondazione Elpis

What Fondazione Elpis does

Fondazione Elpis is a private nonprofit cultural foundation headquartered in Milan, Italy, founded in 2020 by Marina Nissim to support emerging and young Italian and international artists. It operates through physical exhibition and production venues in Milan—Villa (Via Orti 25, housing offices, public programs, and exhibitions), Lavanderia (Via Lamarmora 26, an exhibition space also hosting the Basement sound-art project), and Atelier Elpis (artist residency studios)—located within a former retirement home in the Porta Romana district repurposed for artistic experimentation and research. The organization runs approximately 8 core staff members and is governed by President Marina Nissim and Director Marcella Ferrari.

The foundation's core program spans exhibitions (Mostre), a public program of workshops and performances, artist residencies (Residenze/Atelier Elpis), special projects (In-ruins art-and-archaeology residency, A Sud di Marte, Prossimi Futuri), and its signature distributed initiative Una Boccata d'Arte, which annually engages 20 artists creating site-specific works across 20 Italian villages, one per region. Across its first five editions the project has reached roughly 100 artists in 100 villages, scaling toward 120. The foundation serves multiple constituencies: young artists seeking exhibitions and professional development, small Italian villages and local communities benefiting from cultural interventions and heritage valorization, curators and partner cultural institutions, and the general public.

Fondazione Elpis operates a non-commercial model. All exhibitions and public programs offer free admission ("Ingresso libero"), and revenue is not publicly disclosed but appears to derive from grants, donations, institutional and public cultural funding, and philanthropic support from the founder. Exhibition-specific funding partners include multiple Danish cultural foundations (New Carlsberg Foundation, Danish Arts Foundation, 15. Juni Fonden, Knud Højgaard Fond) and the Cypriot Ministry of Culture. The foundation operates no proprietary technology platform, offers no API or public application, and functions through physical venues and distributed project management rather than a digital product.

Name

Fondazione Elpis

Legal name

Fondazione Elpis

Website

https://fondazioneelpis.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2020

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Fondazione Elpis is a Milan-based nonprofit cultural foundation, founded in 2020 by Marina Nissim, supporting emerging Italian and international artists through free exhibitions, residencies, and Una Boccata d'Arte—a distributed project placing 20 artists in 20 Italian villages annually.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Contemporary Art Foundation

NAICS

Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712), Historical Sites (71212), Museums (712110)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Art Galleries & Exhibition Spaces (Commercial & Nonprofit) (THAJADAH)

akta.pro secondary industries

Historic Preservation & Landmarks Conservation (BPAGAHAE), Cultural Festivals & Events Organizations (BPAGAHAG), Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI)

Keywords

• Contemporary art exhibitions
• Artist residency programs
• Cultural foundation services
• Site-specific art installations
• Community art programming

Headquarters

HQ city

Milan

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices4 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Foundation Operations (Grant Funded): Fondazione Elpis operates as a non-profit cultural foundation. Revenue appears to come from grants, donations, institutional funding, and potentially public cultural subsidies. No explicit commercial revenue streams are described in the source material.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Fondazione Elpis is a nonprofit cultural foundation that supports emerging and young artists through a structured program of contemporary art exhibitions, artist residencies, workshops, performances, and distributed art projects. Its signature initiative, Una Boccata d'Arte, places 20 artists annually in 20 Italian villages (one per region) to create site-specific works that engage local communities and valorize territorial cultural heritage. The foundation operates two exhibition venues and a residency space in Milan, all offering free public access.

Product overview

Fondazione Elpis operates as a contemporary art foundation offering a multi-faceted program centered on exhibitions, artist residencies, and distributed art projects. The core offerings include Mostre (exhibitions) held at two main venues (Lavanderia and Villa in Milan), a Public Program of workshops and performances, and artist Residenze (residencies) including the Atelier Elpis program. The foundation's signature initiative is Una Boccata d'Arte, a distributed project engaging 20 artists annually in site-specific projects across 20 Italian villages. Special Projects encompass programs like In-ruins (art and archaeology) and A Sud di Marte. The Basement project focuses on sound experimentation. The foundation functions as a single unified program rather than a modular platform.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Una Boccata d'Arte: A distributed initiative that involves 20 artists annually in creating site-specific projects in 20 Italian villages, one per region, born from direct encounter with places and local communities, enhancing territorial cultural heritage.
• Atelier Elpis
• Basement
• Ensemble
• Club Radioso

Products and services

• Mostre (Exhibitions) Exhibition program featuring contemporary art shows at Fondazione Elpis's venues (Lavanderia and Villa in Milan), including solo and group exhibitions by emerging and established artists.
• Public Program Supplementary programming including workshops, performances, poetry sessions, family activities, and educational events accompanying exhibitions.
• Residenze (Artist Residencies) Artist residency programs providing periods of stay and production for young artists in Milan, including the Atelier Elpis program.
• Atelier Elpis Milan-based artist residency program housed in Fondazione Elpis's recently established spaces, where young Italian and international artists spend time exploring and producing work in Milan.
• Una Boccata d'Arte Distributed art project launched in 2020 where 20 artists create site-specific projects in 20 Italian villages (one per region), engaging with local communities and cultural heritage.
• Progetti Speciali (Special Projects) Special projects including In-ruins (art and archaeology residency), A Sud di Marte (Southern Italy residency), and Prossimi Futuri (masterclass program).
• Basement Sound experimentation project held in Fondazione Elpis's basement space, featuring site-specific sound installations and performances.

Named customers3 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

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered supporting, core and major.

• New Carlsberg FoundationsupportingOthers · 1 January 2026Funding supporter for 'Smooth Operator' exhibition by Villiam Miklos Andersen. One of several Danish cultural foundations providing generous support for the exhibition.
• 15. Juni FondensupportingOthers · 1 January 2026Danish cultural foundation providing funding for 'Smooth Operator' exhibition.
• Danish Arts FoundationsupportingOthers · 1 January 2026Danish Arts Foundation providing funding support for 'Smooth Operator' exhibition.
• Knud Højgaard FondsupportingOthers · 1 January 2026Danish cultural foundation supporting 'Smooth Operator' exhibition by Villiam Miklos Andersen.
• Den Hielmstierne-Rosencroneske StiftelsesupportingOthers · 1 January 2026Danish cultural foundation supporting 'Smooth Operator' exhibition.
• Museo Archeologico di MilanosupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Collaboration for 'Di pietra e di cielo' exhibition. Artists Caterina Morigi and Gabriele Ermini engaged with the museum for research on archaeological artifacts.
• Dipartimento di Archeologia dell'Università CattolicasupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Academic partnership for 'Di pietra e di cielo' exhibition, providing scholarly perspective on archaeological themes.
• Fondazione RovatisupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026Cultural foundation providing research collaboration and reflection on cultural heritage transmission for 'Di pietra e di cielo' exhibition, focusing on Etruscan artifacts.
• Toast ProjectcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Collaboration for 'Paesi miei. Storie e gesti di Una Boccata d'Arte' exhibition at Manifattura Tabacchi, Florence. Joint exhibition presenting works from Una Boccata d'Arte project with curated public program.
• Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici, Artistici e Paesaggistici delle province di Foggia e BATcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Official archaeological heritage authority partnership for In-ruins 2025 residency in Canosa di Puglia, enabling access to archaeological sites.
• Art-Heritage-Archeology Network (AHA) at UCLsupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Academic network providing scientific collaboration for In-ruins 2025 residency, enhancing scholarly approach to archaeological-artistic exploration.
• Comune di Canosa di PugliacoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025Municipal partnership hosting In-ruins 2025 residency, providing local institutional support and access to urban archaeological sites.
• Musei Nazionali di MaterasupportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2025National museum partnership for In-ruins 2024 residency, providing access to archaeological collections and sites in Basilicata.
• Fondazione Matera-Basilicata 2019supportingStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2024Cultural foundation providing patronage for In-ruins 2024 residency program.
• Ministero della Cultura della Repubblica di CiprosupportingOthers · 1 January 2024Official cultural ministry support for 'Un palazzo in esilio' exhibition by Theodoulos Polyviou, examining Cypriot cultural heritage.
• Threes ProductionscoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Ongoing collaboration for Basement project - a sound art experimentation project at the underground level of Fondazione Elpis. Threes curates the annual Basement programming featuring sound installations and performances.
• In-ruins / Archeofuturo APScoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Collaboration since 2023 for In-ruins residency program exploring connections between contemporary art and archaeology. Foundation hosts related exhibitions and provides support for residencies at archaeological sites in Calabria and Basilicata.
• RamdommajorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2022Collaboration on 'A Sud di Marte' residency program (2022-2023) and 'Prossimi Futuri' masterclass program at KORA Contemporary Arts Centre in Castrignano de' Greci. Joint programming for cultural production in peripheral areas.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Fondazione Prada: Major Milan-based contemporary art foundation operating large-scale exhibitions and a permanent cultural venue. Comparable as an Italian contemporary art nonprofit foundation in the same city, though vastly larger in scale and resources than Fondazione Elpis.
• Pirelli HangarBicocca: Milan-based contemporary art institution presenting major exhibitions and commissioned installations by international artists in a converted industrial space. Comparable as a Milan nonprofit contemporary art venue but operates at substantially larger scale.
• Triennale Milano: Major Milan-based design and contemporary art institution hosting exhibitions, residencies, and public programs. Comparable as a Milan-based cultural institution with exhibition and public programming but operates as a major established institution.
• Castello di Rivoli Museo d'Arte Contemporanea: Italian contemporary art museum near Turin focused on emerging artistic research and major exhibitions. Comparable to Fondazione Elpis in focus on contemporary art and artist development but as an established public museum institution.
• MAXXI - Museo nazionale delle arti del XXI secolo: Italy's national museum of 21st-century arts in Rome, focused on contemporary art and architecture. Comparable as an Italian contemporary art institution with residency and exhibition programs but operating at national-museum scale.

Direct peers

• Fondazione Zegna: Italian nonprofit foundation supporting contemporary art, craft, and culture through exhibitions and residencies in Biella. Comparable as an Italian family/corporate-founded cultural foundation supporting emerging artists with exhibition and residency programming.
• Manifesta: European nomadic biennial foundation that hosts rotating contemporary art biennials in different cities across Europe, with strong focus on peripheral communities and cultural regeneration. Highly comparable to Fondazione Elpis's Una Boccata d'Arte distributed-community model and emerging-artist focus.
• Fondazione Querini Stampalia: Venice-based nonprofit cultural foundation operating exhibition programs, residencies, and public programs in a historic palazzo setting. Comparable as a nonprofit Italian cultural foundation combining historic-venue operation with contemporary artist support.
• Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo: Turin-based nonprofit foundation dedicated to promoting emerging contemporary artists through exhibitions, residencies, and the prestigious Re Rebaudengo Prize. Closely comparable to Fondazione Elpis in mission (supporting emerging artists) and nonprofit funding model.
• Centro per l'arte contemporanea Luigi Pecci: Contemporary art museum and cultural center in Prato, Italy, focused on emerging art, residencies, and experimental programming. Comparable in scale, nonprofit funding model, and emerging-artist mission to Fondazione Elpis.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/fondazioneelpis
• Instagraminstagram.com/fondazioneelpis
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/fondazione-elpis

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 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 Fondazione Elpis