Ettore Guatelli, Museo del quotidiano/Museum of everyday life

pictures courtesy of Michael Werth, Flickr, july 2011 

The objects in this north-italian museum represent the obvious utensils and objects of everyday life. Each individual unit may make no special impression, but many thousands of objects grouped together in geometric decorative patterns, transform the farm that houses them, into a work of art as such. 

Life and works

The collection has been assembled by Ettore Guatelli (1921-2000). Born in the community of Collecchio in the Parma area, in his youth he would not enjoy much schooling, also because of health problems. However, later in life, by studying on his own merits, he succeeded in getting a diploma as a teacher.

For many years he has been teaching children of a primary school.

In the fifties of the former century Ettore Guatelli began collecting all kind of utensils and objects of daily life, like hammers, screwdrivers, pliers, suitcases, clocks, shoes.....

In western Europe, this period saw the transition of small scale craftmanship and farming into a more large scale and industrialized method of production, which entailed the discarding of hitherto used craft objects. 

Ettore Guatelli would regularly visit the second-hand shops in the area and buy as many objects he could afford. Eventually the collection would include some 60.000 items.

   

Bringing together all these crafts, as such is already a major etnographic venture, but what's more, these items have been displayed in a unique way on the walls and the floor of the farm where mr Guatelli lived. 

The rhytmic geometric patterns as manifested on all walls make one forget this is about utensils and daily objects.

In the course of the years Ettore Guatelli's collection ever more became seen as an important one, both from an etnographic and from an artistic point of view, and mr Guatelli himself became convinced the farm should become kind of a museum. He also would write many articles about anthropological, ethnographic and other themes.

So it happened that in 1986 the provincial authorities decided to ask a committee of experts to advise about future actions. It took a lot of time and discussion and when Ettore Guatelli died in 2000 no final decision had been reached.

The farm has become a museum

However, in 2002 the province decided to buy the collection and to continue its exposition in the farm. In 2003 the Fondazione Museo Ettore Guatelli was officialy entrusted to manage the museum, which is done with a small staff and an enthusiastic group of friends and volunteers.

More pictures, documentation
* Series of pictures on the museum's Flickr page
* Website of the Museum
* Website of the friends of the Museum (with video's in english)
* Video (Youtube, 5'08, 2011)

Museo Ettore Guatelli

Via Nazionale 130

43044 Ozzano Taro, Collecchio, IT

open saturdays/sundays from march on