Gino Nibbi

Gino Nibbi
Born	1896-04-29 Fermo, Italy
Died	1969
Occupation(s)	Author, art critic, gallery owner, intellectual, bookseller
Known for	Educating Melbourne’s modernist artists and fostering their engagement with the public

Gino Nibbi (1896–1969), originally from Italy and later naturalised in Australia, was a distinguished author, art critic, gallery owner, intellectual, and bookseller. He significantly contributed to educating Melbourne’s modernist artists and fostering their engagement with the public.

Early life

Born on 29 April 1896 in Fermo, Italy, Nibbi was the son of Anna (née Spinelli) and Pasquale Nibbi, who worked as a cooper. The family relocated to nearby Porto San Giorgio along the Adriatic Sea. In 1915, Gino completed his studies in accountancy at the Technical Institute of Ascoli Piceno. During World War I, he served as an artillery lieutenant and was awarded for his courage; however, this experience led him to adopt pacifist beliefs. After the war, he found employment as an accountant first with an agricultural cooperative and later at Società Molini e Pastifici, a pasta manufacturing company in Porto San Giorgio. In 1922, he married Elvira Petrelli, a schoolteacher.

Nibbi’s passion for contemporary art developed through his association with Osvaldo Licini, a painter and art instructor from Fermo, who introduced him to the French avant-garde movement and prominent artists including Picasso, Cocteau, and Kandinsky. This relationship profoundly influenced Nibbi’s cultural perspective and artistic connections.

Palmer associates Nibbi with other European émigrés such as Yosl Bergner and Ursula Hoff, emphasizing their migration to Australia amid political turmoil. Haese notes that Nibbi’s relocation was motivated by both political dissent and artistic aspirations; he opposed Mussolini’s fascist regime and supported the liberal Italian Republican Party. Licini’s anti-fascist activities resulted in imprisonment, while Nibbi emigrated with assistance from journalist Margherita Sarfatti. Contrary to some misconceptions, Nibbi was not implicated in anarchist conspiracies against Mussolini.

Prior to leaving Italy, Nibbi edited the anti-Futurist and Dadaist publication Le Pagine (1916–1917) and regularly contributed during the 1920s to La Fiera Letteraria, an Italian literary periodical later renamed l'Italia Letteraria.

Australia and the Pacific

In 1926, Nibbi moved to Melbourne, with his family joining him the following year. Between 1931 and 1932, he journeyed to Tahiti and the Society Islands to investigate the legacy of Paul Gauguin in the South Pacific. His quest focused on uncovering ‘memories [of Gauguin] surviving among the people.’ During this time, he wrote articles for Italian newspapers, Melbourne’s Herald, and covered topics such as Raʻiātea in the Leeward Islands (Polynesia) as well as Tasmania’s natural attractions for L'Illustrazione Italiana.

His research culminated in the publication of The Islands of Happiness (Milan, 1934) by Italian publishers. Sydney’s Il Giornale Italiano highlighted favorable critiques from Rome’s Quadrivio, which commended his thorough observations and insightful depiction of the islands’ landscapes, history, economy, and indigenous cultures. The Roman magazine Augustea characterized his work as a personal account combining vivid imagery with critical realism, setting it apart from conventional travel literature. Additionally, Milan's L'Ambrosiano recognized it among its top three books for the month.

Leonardo Art Shop

After returning to Melbourne in 1928, Nibbi founded the innovative Leonardo Art Shop located at 166 Little Collins Street, near Exhibition Street, in close proximity to Victoria Coffee Palace and F. W. Cheshire's bookshop. Elvira contributed by teaching Italian at both the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music and the Berlitz School of Languages.

In a 1931 advertisement, the shop was described as:

...a genuine slice of Paris—a cozy, vibrant, and delightful book-salon. At the Leonardo Art Shop, one could find books and periodicals in nearly every European language—French, German, Russian, Spanish, Italian, Polish, Yiddish—high-quality reproductions of New Masters such as Cezanne, Van Gogh, Renoir, Manet—art albums for architects and interior designers—and contemporary music as well...evoking the charm of a small friendly bookstore on Rue de l’Odeon.

According to Rees, the shop played a pivotal role in motivating a young generation of artists to adopt a distinctly Australian avant-garde style during Melbourne’s conservative interwar years when modernist art faced resistance. Nibbi was an ardent advocate for modern art and maintained connections with artists like Giorgio de Chirico and Amedeo Modigliani. He imported postcards, magazines including the radical Stream (1931), plays, poetry by local Melbourne writers, and literature on European modernism. The shop also retailed high-quality poster prints from Piper Verlag in Munich. Among its clientele were notable artists such as Clarice Beckett, Russell Drysdale, Albert Tucker, Arthur Boyd, John Perceval, Ian Fairweather, Eric Thake, and Donald Friend. Writer Alister Kershaw famously described it as "the most enchanting bookshop in the world." Len Crawford sought Nibbi’s guidance on his early artworks. Many who faced financial difficulties appreciated being permitted to browse without obligation to buy.

Despite Australia’s physical distance from Europe, young artists accessed modernist developments through this shop, which also served as a networking hub. Fairweather arrived in Melbourne in early 1934 and was introduced by Nibbi to influential figures such as George Bell and William Frater. Tucker acknowledged Nibbi’s efforts to import postcard prints and books addressing contemporary art movements. Harding credits Nibbi with familiarizing Tucker with Edvard Munch’s expressionism during the early 1940s.

Vic O’Connor recalled spending extensive time at Nibbi’s shop around 1932 immersed in books and art discussions; he portrayed Nibbi as an erudite and engaging personality who embodied a passion for culture despite his conservative political views.

Nibbi invited O’Connor to his modest home in Hawthorn where original pieces by De Chirico (including Horses on the Beach), Gino Severini, Carlo Carrà, and Moïse Kisling were displayed. De Chirico’s fascination with melancholic Melbourne was ignited when Nibbi sent him a postcard depicting the city’s Italianate Treasury Building.

As an ambassador for Italian culture through the Australian Broadcasting Commission, Nibbi hosted programs such as ‘The Art of Italy’ starting September 1933 and ‘The Italian Language’ from January 1934 until February 1936. He also produced Gino’s Newest Italian-English Reader (Melbourne, 1936). Additionally, he delivered lectures on Italian literature at Societa Dante Alighieri gatherings covering figures like Gabriel d'Annunzio and Alessandro Manzoni's I promessi sposi.

The couple journeyed to Italy aboard SS Pierre Loti for the release of Nibbi's short story collection Il Volto degli Emigranti (Florence, 1937), which presented narratives from Italian migrants residing in Australia. Prior to arriving in Italy, they paid respects at Gauguin’s grave in Hiva Oa, inspiring Nibbi to write an article about Gauguin’s final days. Their travels included Madeira—with a travelogue published in the Melbourne Herald—followed by visits to Berlin and Paris where Nibbi conducted interviews with De Chirico, Brancusi, Zadkine, and Kisling for his upcoming biography on Modigliani. According to an interview by O'Grady with a then seventy-year-old Nibbi, this journey resulted in acquisitions including works by De Chirico, Kisling, and Severini.

In October 1937, Nibbi lent his Kisling painting to a contemporary European art exhibition at the New South Wales National Gallery; critic Basil Burdett lauded it as 'the most representative modern work' exemplifying French modernism's "Back to Ingres" movement.

Censorship

In 1929, police requested that Nibbi remove a Renoir nude displayed in his window. The following year, February 1930, he was penalized £20 (equivalent to over $1,800 in 2025) for importing a book deemed 'obscene.' During his return from Genoa in September 1937, Nibbi brought back 50 color reproductions of a Modigliani reclining nude, which he retailed at 2/- each. However, in November, Customs confiscated these prints, arguing that their low price and appeal extended beyond serious collectors. The Victorian Artists' Society protested this action, asserting the print was neither indecent nor lascivious and emphasizing Modigliani's international artistic stature.

The Minister's office, guided by Robert Garran's advice, countered that these inexpensive postcard-like reproductions were likely marketed for their sensationalism rather than artistic value—a rarity among Australian artworks. Nibbi lodged an appeal, and the incident garnered extensive media attention, enhancing the Leonardo Art Shop's public profile.

In December 1939, Nibbi publicly refuted claims published in the Herald concerning modernist pieces chosen by the National Gallery trustees, challenging accusations that personal matters disqualified these works from the institution’s collection.

Art critic

According to Chanin, Keith Murdoch’s December 1931 exhibition titled Modern Masters in Colour Reproduction, held at the Herald and Weekly Times assembly hall, presented European art posters as a response to Gino Nibbi’s criticism of Australian art’s provincialism. In his Herald review of the Australian Art Association exhibition, Nibbi contended that local artists lacked distinctiveness and remained bound by academic traditions. He referenced William Moore’s critiques which echoed similar sentiments but also noted supporters such as Rah Fizelle, Daryl Lindsay, and Arnold Shore who acknowledged the increasing acceptance of modern art. Conversely, figures like A.M.E. Bale and Jo Sweatman opposed modernism, dismissing it as a transient trend.

In a column dated 10 December 1931 in the Herald, Nibbi defended modern art as more than a fleeting fashion. He highlighted visionary creators including Cézanne, Gauguin, Van Gogh, De Chirico, Utrillo, Derain, Dufy, Segonzac, Braque, Rouault, Gromaire, Kisling, and Lurçat for their emotive and pioneering styles that surpassed mere photographic realism.

Having acquired Australian citizenship in February 1939, Nibbi helped establish and served as treasurer of the Contemporary Art Society (C.A.S.) Melbourne branch in 1938 and was elected lay vice-president in 1941. The C.A.S., partly founded within his bookshop to oppose Robert Menzies’ conservative Australian Academy of Art, championed contemporary art through exhibitions such as the June showing at McAllen Gallery. In Art in Australia, Nibbi articulated the society’s commitment to modernism and commended artists like Russell Drysdale for merging cubism with realism; Eric Thake for his abstract imaginings; Albert Tucker’s movement towards abstraction; James Gleeson’s surrealist works; sculptors Clive Stephen and David Strachan for their inventive methods; along with Erik Dorn, Louise Thomas, Peter Purves Smith, Sali Herman, Joan Yonge, Marjorie North, and Edith Hughston. He criticized the academy’s promotion of a "mythical" national art identity and advocated valuing individual artists rather than enforcing a collective style.

Nibbi delivered public presentations for the C.A.S., including a brief lecture on abstract art during an exhibition where he announced joint recipients of a £50 award: James Gleeson and Eric Thake. Additionally, he contributed essays on French modernists to Cyril Pearl’s journal Stream, and wrote about Sicilian playwright Luigi Pirandello for Manuscripts: A Quarterly Of Art And Letters, published by a rival bookshop.

On 30 April 1940, Nibbi endorsed Adrian Lawlor’s work at the Atheneum as among Australia’s few maintaining international creative standards. The following month he spoke to Melbourne’s Dante Alighieri Society about modern art’s roots—Cubism and Futurism—and Italy’s role through artists such as Carrà, Modigliani, Morandi, De Chirico, and Severini.

For Max Harris’s Angry Penguins (1940), Nibbi translated his poetic essay on Rousseau Le Douanier from Italian and authored an article on Arthur Rimbaud. In 1941 for Cecily Crozier’s A Comment, he lauded El Greco’s distinctive style characterized by gothic verticality and vivid contours. In 1955’s Ern Malley’s Journal, he examined Arthur Boyd’s terracotta sculptures for their anti-romantic qualities.

Return to Italy

After the expiration of Nibbi's lease and his inability to find another comparable venue, he moved back to Italy in 1947. There, he established the bookstore Ai Quattro Venti located at the southern tip of via della Scrofa in Piazza di S. Luigi de' Francesi, within a building that would later house the Institut Français Centre Saint Louis.

Nibbi managed this bookstore for ten years while preserving close connections with Australia. He authored pieces on notable individuals such as Raffaello Carboni, known for his role in the Eureka Stockade, and curated exhibitions showcasing artists like Sidney Nolan and Albert Tucker. From 1954 to 1963, he traveled regularly between Italy and Australia, expressing feelings of "intolerance toward Europe, yet dissatisfaction with Australia."

In his contributions to the Giornale di Trieste, Nibbi analyzed Australian urban development, emphasizing the contradiction of a nation often viewed as predominantly rural but actually dominated by densely inhabited coastal cities restricting natural resource use. He promoted increased immigration as a means to encourage "biological renewal" and cultural enrichment, both vital for Australia's progress and to counteract its geographic remoteness. Nevertheless, he remained critical of governmental immigration strategies, particularly Prime Minister Ben Chifley's condescending approach toward Britain. In 1949, Nibbi described Sydney optimistically as the "Sibari of the other hemisphere," highlighting its hospitable atmosphere and scenic ocean vistas; he also wrote on New Zealand and Maori culture during this time.

During these years, in his fifties, Nibbi was diagnosed with diabetes and developed a gastric ulcer that necessitated partial removal of his digestive organs.

Writer

In 1953, alongside reviewing works by Jacques Chardonne and Barbara Hepworth for the Italian cultural weekly Idea, Nibbi published in Florence his philosophical text Oracoli sommessi: pagine di breviario ('Whispered Oracles: Breviary pages'). This book consisted of concise reflections covering a range of topics such as ethics, artists, and the natural world.

Nibbi returned to Italy in 1957 via a route through the Panama Canal and Spain to visit his son and participate in the 52nd Dante Alighieri congress before heading back to Melbourne in 1958. He contributed articles to publications including La Fiera letteraria, L'Osservatore Politico Letterario, and Australian periodicals like Art in Australia, Broadsheet, and Modern Art News. In 1959, he asserted that Australian avant-garde art was consistent with prevailing European and American movements. In 1961, he briefly took on the role of art critic for the English-language Japan Times in Japan and created an unpublished manuscript titled Variazioni Nipponiche focusing on Japanese art. Prior to his permanent relocation to Italy in 1963, he attended the first gathering of Australian members of the International Association of Art Critics held in Melbourne.

Settling near Rome from 1963 onward, Nibbi served as an art correspondent for several Italian newspapers and magazines including Il Tempo, Il Resto del Carlino, and Il Giornale d'Italia; contributed to the Spanish publication Goya; as well as Melbourne's Herald and Sydney's Italian-language paper Il Giornale Italiano. His literary output played a significant role in strengthening cultural exchanges between Italy and Australia.

In 1965, Milan published his short story collection titled Cocktails d'Australia, which primarily explored themes related to the Italian immigrant experience. He also completed an unpublished biography of Amedeo Modigliani within a larger work called Galleria, which examined one hundred classical and contemporary artists from both Italy and abroad.

Later years

During the last six years of his life, Nibbi returned to Italy, where he and his wife shared a deep interest in linguistics. Together, they undertook the task of creating a dictionary documenting endangered dialects from the provinces of Macerata and Ascoli Piceno.

Nibbi passed away on 17 December 1969 near Grottaferrata, close to the historically significant location believed to be Cicero's villa. He left behind his wife Elvira, daughter Sandra (born 1923), and son Tristano (born 1925). His final resting place is in Porto San Giorgio, where a street has been named in his honor.

Works published

• Nelle Isole della Felicita: Tahiti e Isole Sottovento (Carabba, Milan, 1934) – travelogue focusing on Tahiti and the Leeward Islands
• Newest Italian-English reader: bilingual: text with translation on the opposite page (Leonardo Art Shop, Melbourne, 1936) – educational material for language learners
• Il volto degli emigranti: scene di vita in Australia (Parenti, Florence, 1937) – depiction of immigrant experiences in Australia
• Oracoli sommessi: pagine di breviario (Giacomo Agnell, Florence, 1953) – collection of literary meditations
• Cocktails d'Australia (Aldo Martello Editore, Milan, 1965) – exploration of Australian drink culture