Through a selection of 25 original photographic prints, Touring Club of Italy’s Documentation Centre presents over 400,000 historic images that have been collected into its Photo Archive since 1894: rare albumen prints and cyanotypes from the late 19th century, society photos from the 1920s and 1930s, landscapes, works of architecture and portraits, taken by David Seymour and Gianni Berengo Gardin, and by other as yet unknown photographers.

The sheer quality and the variety of subject matter – merely hinted at on this occasion – give some idea of the importance of this collection, which presents a social and cultural history of our country (and others) at work and at play, as well as providing a reminder of the role photography has always played in preserving the past.