L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico

L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico is an Italian antiquarian book business founded in 1980 and run by Dott. Paolo Tonini. It is based at Via Aldo Moro 43 in Cellatica, in the province of Brescia, and receives visitors only by appointment. The firm describes itself as "antiquarian booksellers active since 1980, specialized on history of the avant-gardes, artist's books and culture of protest." Its stock therefore centers on twentieth-century avant-garde movements — Futurism, visual poetry, conceptual and experimental publishing — alongside artist's books, photographic documents and material linked to political and social movements. The business operates as a dealer rather than a conventional retail chain: it issues printed and digital catalogues, sells by mail order and at specialist fairs, and maintains archives and collections. Its catalogue series, branded CATALOGUS, documents the catalogues it has produced from 1980 to 2020. L'Arengario also presents at events such as Lucca Art Fair, where it shows selections of books and documents. Beyond buying and selling, L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico provides a range of professional services. These include authentication and certificates of authenticity, appraisals (perizie) with published conditions and a request form, loans of books and documents for exhibitions at a fee of 5% of the insured value plus VAT, supply of images, and cultural services such as lectures and text production. This combination of dealership, scholarly expertise and archival activity positions it as a specialist resource for institutions, collectors and researchers. The firm's identity is closely tied to the Tonini family. The about page recounts the history and chronology of the "Arengari" and notes that on 1 March 2023 Bruno Tonini founded, together with his wife Sandra, Studio Bruno Tonini, associated with Tonini Editore (a publishing house founded by his son Valentino), while L'Arengario continues its activity under the direction of Paolo. The business is private and independent, with no listed status, and its public face is its website, arengario.it, through which it distributes catalogues and news.

L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico traces its activity to 1980, the year its own materials cite as the start of its work as antiquarian booksellers. It was built around the Tonini family and is directed by Dott. Paolo Tonini. The name "Arengario" evokes the historic Italian civic meeting places, and the firm's own about page includes a chronology titled "Storia e cronologia degli Arengari" alongside a text by Giampiero Mughini, "L'Arengario dei Tonini" ("The Tonini's Arengario"), indicating that the business is understood as a family enterprise with a distinct identity. From its base in the province of Brescia — currently Via Aldo Moro 43, 25060 Cellatica (BS) — the studio developed a specialization unusual among general antiquarian dealers: the history of the avant-gardes, artist's books and the culture of protest. This focus shaped its stock and its catalogues. Over four decades it produced a long series of catalogues, later documented in its own CATALOGUS, described as the catalogue of the catalogues of L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico 1980–2020. The catalogues function both as sales lists and as bibliographic reference tools. L'Arengario's inventory has included major avant-garde concentrations, such as the "fondo marinettiano" (the Marinetti collection) connected to Futurism, visual poetry materials, and photographic documents. Its website highlights, among recent acquisitions, a 1971 photograph by the American photographer Elizabeth Richter titled "Woman's Lib," and a presentation of "Poesia visiva – 38 documenti e libri d'artista" (Visual poetry – 38 documents and artist's books). It also maintains a dedicated section for the photographer Tano D'Amico, whose work from 1970 onward documents student demonstrations, women's emancipation, housing struggles, strikes and occupations — material the studio notes was largely ignored by mass media. Alongside dealing, the firm built a service and scholarly profile. Its services page lists sale and shipping (with DHL for foreign shipments), guarantees and professional ethics, authentication and certificates of authenticity, appraisals with published conditions and a request form, loans of books and documents for exhibitions at 5% of insured value plus VAT, image supply, and cultural activities such as conferences (€500 per hour plus VAT) and text production (€400 per folder plus VAT). It also maintains archives and collections and participates in events and exhibitions, including Lucca Art Fair. A significant structural development came on 1 March 2023, when Bruno Tonini, together with his wife Sandra, founded Studio Bruno Tonini, associated with Tonini Editore, the publishing house founded by his son Valentino. L'Arengario continued its activity under the direction of Paolo Tonini. This arrangement kept the family's bibliographic and publishing interests linked while separating the two operating identities. The studio remains a private, independent business, receiving visitors only by appointment and communicating with clients through its website and email.

• 2026

  L'Arengario announces participation in Lucca Art Fair, 25–27 September 2026.

• 2023

  On 1 March, Bruno Tonini and his wife Sandra found Studio Bruno Tonini, associated with Tonini Editore; L'Arengario continues under Paolo Tonini.

• 2020

  CATALOGUS documents the catalogues of L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico from 1980 to 2020.

• 1980

  L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico begins activity as antiquarian booksellers.

Specialist antiquarian dealer and scholarly resource for the history of the avant-gardes, artist's books and the culture of protest, serving collectors, institutions and researchers.

• CATALOGUS – catalogue of the catalogues 1980–2020

• Poesia visiva – 38 documenti e libri d'artista

• Futurism / fondo marinettiano

• Tano D'Amico photography

• Elizabeth Richter, Woman's Lib, 1971

1. 1L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico – official websitearengario.it
2. 2ABOUT – L'Arengario Studio Bibliograficoarengario.it
3. 3SERVICES – L'Arengario Studio Bibliograficoarengario.it
4. 4L'Arengario Studio Bibliografico – Wikidatawikidata.org