Lacerba

Lacerba was an Italian literary and cultural review published in Florence from 1 January 1913 until 22 May 1915. It emerged during a period of intense experimentation in European literature, visual art, and political thought, and became one of the most important Italian periodicals connected with the early Futurist movement. The review took its name from Acerba, a fourteenth-century poem by Cecco d'Ascoli. The reference to an anti-establishment medieval writer helped signal the publication's hostility to cultural conformity and its interest in intellectual provocation. The periodical began as a fortnightly magazine and later changed to a weekly schedule. It did not have a formal editor in the conventional sense. Ardengo Soffici and Giovanni Papini were among its principal organizers and contributors, while a wider circle of writers and artists supplied poems, essays, manifestos, criticism, and polemical commentary. Its opening program called for the complete autonomy of art, the exaltation of individual genius, a radical renewal of literature, and a rejection of established cultural conventions. These principles gave Lacerba a deliberately confrontational profile. Papini wrote attacks on the intellectual and social conformism of contemporary culture, while Soffici discussed avant-garde developments including Futurism and Cubism. Other contributors used irony, irreverence, and iconoclasm to challenge accepted literary, moral, and political assumptions. Beginning in March 1913, Futurist writers and artists became increasingly prominent in the magazine. Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, Luciano Folgore, Umberto Boccioni, Carlo Carrà, Corrado Govoni, and others contributed to its pages. Lacerba published important Futurist manifestos, including the Futurist Political Programme associated with the 1913 Italian elections. The publication therefore served not only as a literary review but also as a platform for debates about modernity, nationalism, electoral politics, artistic autonomy, and the relationship between culture and social action. Its contributors included Dino Campana, Aldo Palazzeschi, Piero Jahier, Giuseppe Ungaretti, Luigi Russolo, and Guillaume Apollinaire, alongside the better-known Futurist figures. The relationship between Lacerba and Marinetti's Futurism was influential but short-lived. In February 1914, Papini began criticizing Marinetti's unqualified faith in progress. The Florentine group around Papini and Soffici increasingly distinguished its own position from the Milan-centered movement associated with Marinetti. The collaboration with the Futurists lasted roughly a year and encompassed 24 issues from March 1913 to March 1914. By the end of 1914, the review and the Futurist movement had formally and intellectually separated. The outbreak of the First World War transformed the review. From August 1914, Lacerba devoted itself heavily to politics and adopted a strongly interventionist position. Its articles advocated violent action against pacifists and socialists, marking a sharp movement away from its earlier emphasis on literary and artistic renewal alone. In 1915, Papini assumed sole control of the periodical, although Soffici continued to contribute. Palazzeschi's return and his recurring column, titled 'Rubbish', restored a stronger presence for literature and art alongside political writing. A February 1915 article signed by Palazzeschi, Papini, and Soffici, 'Futurism and Marinettism', publicly expressed their break with the Milanese Futurists and their claim to represent an alternative Florentine Futurism. Lacerba ceased publication on 22 May 1915, shortly before Italy entered the war. Although its publishing life lasted only a little more than two years, it played a major role in the development and dissemination of Italian avant-garde culture. Its legacy rests on the combination of literary experimentation, visual-art criticism, Futurist manifestos, political polemic, and its role as a meeting point fo…

Lacerba was founded in Florence and issued its first number on 1 January 1913. Its title referred to Acerba, the medieval poem by Cecco d'Ascoli, whose opposition to Dante and eventual persecution made him a useful symbol for a publication that wanted to challenge cultural authority. The review's initial program called for freedom and autonomy in art, an exaltation of exceptional creative individuality, and a complete renewal of literature. It adopted a deliberately provocative tone rather than the neutral posture of a conventional literary magazine. The publication was not organized around a formally designated editor. Giovanni Papini and Ardengo Soffici were its principal figures, with Papini supplying polemical cultural commentary and Soffici writing on modern artistic movements. The review also published poetry and prose by Aldo Palazzeschi and essays by Italo Tavolato, whose provocative pieces attacked conventional morality and democratic ideals. The combination of literary experimentation, cultural criticism, and deliberate provocation established Lacerba as an important Florentine avant-garde outlet. From March 1913, the magazine developed a close relationship with Futurism. Filippo Tommaso Marinetti and other Futurists, including Luciano Folgore, Umberto Boccioni, Carlo Carrà, and Corrado Govoni, became frequent contributors. Lacerba published Futurist manifestos and helped circulate the movement's ideas among readers interested in modern art and literature. Its publication of the Futurist Political Programme during the 1913 election period demonstrated that the review could act as a political platform as well as an artistic one. The program called on voters to reject several established political groupings and reflected the movement's effort to convert avant-garde cultural energy into political intervention. The relationship with Marinetti's Futurism soon became strained. Papini objected to Marinetti's confidence in progress and began a public polemic in February 1914. The Florentine contributors increasingly asserted an independent position, distinct from the Milanese Futurists associated with Marinetti. The collaboration, which lasted approximately from March 1913 to March 1914 and covered 24 issues, had nevertheless made Lacerba one of the most visible Italian publications of the early Futurist period. By the end of 1914, the institutional and intellectual connection between the review and the Futurist movement had ended. The First World War brought another transformation. From August 1914, Lacerba moved decisively toward political interventionism. It devoted its pages to political arguments and adopted an aggressive position against pacifist and socialist opponents. In 1915, Papini took sole control of the review, while Soffici remained involved as a contributor. The magazine did not completely abandon literature and art: Palazzeschi returned and wrote a recurring column called 'Rubbish', and the review continued to publish cultural material beside its political articles. A February 1915 article signed by Palazzeschi, Papini, and Soffici, 'Futurism and Marinettism', crystallized the split between the Florentine writers and the Milanese Futurists. The authors presented themselves as representatives of an authentic Florentine Futurism and used 'Marinettists' as a dismissive label for Marinetti's circle. This episode marked the close of the first phase of Florentine Futurism and demonstrated how Lacerba had become a site for internal movement disputes as well as external cultural criticism. Lacerba published its final issue on 22 May 1915, two days before Italy entered the war. It left no continuing corporate structure or successor brand documented in the supplied references. Its historical importance comes from the density and influence of its short run: it brought together major Italian writers and artists, printed manifestos that shaped public discussion of Futurism, and connected avant-garde aesthetics with increasingly radical political positions.

1. 1915Papini assumes sole control

   Papini became the sole controlling figure of the magazine while Soffici continued to contribute.

   Source
2. 1915Final issue

   Lacerba ceased publication on 22 May, shortly before Italy's entry into the war.

   Source
3. 1914Break with Marinetti's Futurism

   Papini's criticism of Marinetti's belief in progress helped end the review's close collaboration with the Futurist movement after 24 issues.

   Source
4. 1914Shift to interventionist politics

   Following the outbreak of the First World War, the review devoted itself increasingly to political writing and supported interventionist positions.

   Source
5. 1913First issue published

   Lacerba began publication in Florence on 1 January as a fortnightly literary and cultural review.

   Source
6. 1913Futurist collaboration begins

   From March, Futurist writers and artists became regular contributors, making the review a major platform for the movement.

   Source
7. 1913Futurist Political Programme published

   Lacerba printed a Futurist political program related to the Italian elections and expanded its role into political advocacy.

   Source

A Florentine avant-garde review positioned at the intersection of literary experimentation, modern art criticism, Futurist theory, and political polemic. Lacerba presented itself as an anti-conformist publication committed to artistic autonomy and radical cultural renewal, before becoming increasingly interventionist during the First World War.

• Lacerba periodicalLiterary and cultural magazine1913

  The core product was a Florence-based literary and cultural review launched in 1913. It published poetry, prose, criticism, cultural polemics, political writing, and contributions from leading Italian and international avant-garde figures. Initially issued fortnightly, it later adopted a weekly frequency. Its short publication run made it an influential document of early twentieth-century Italian modernism and Futurism.

• Futurist manifestos and political programsManifestos and political writing1913

  Lacerba published several Futurist manifestos, including a political program directed at the 1913 electorate. These texts presented artistic and political positions in a compressed, confrontational form and helped spread Futurist ideas beyond specialist artistic circles.

• Avant-garde criticism and creative writingLiterature and art criticism1913

  The review featured discussions of Futurism, Cubism, and other avant-garde practices, together with poetry, prose, and irreverent columns. Contributors included Papini, Soffici, Palazzeschi, Campana, Ungaretti, Boccioni, Carrà, Russolo, Apollinaire, and other writers and artists associated with modernist culture.

• 1914Separate the review from Marinetti's FuturismStrategy

  Papini criticized Marinetti's unqualified faith in progress, and the Florentine contributors increasingly rejected the authority of the Milanese Futurist group.

  What changed. Lacerba ended its close collaboration with the Futurist movement and articulated an independent Florentine position.

  Aftermath. The split marked the end of the first phase of Florentine Futurism and divided the review's former collaborators.

  Source
• 1914Adopt an interventionist wartime editorial lineStrategy

  The outbreak of the First World War prompted the review to move from relative political disengagement toward direct political advocacy.

  What changed. From August, Lacerba devoted itself largely to politics and attacked pacifist and socialist positions.

  Aftermath. The change intensified the review's political identity but also preceded its closure in May 1915.

  Source
• 1913Use the review as an anti-conformist avant-garde platformStrategy

  The founding program rejected cultural conformity and called for artistic autonomy, individual genius, and a renewal of literature.

  What changed. Lacerba combined experimental writing, avant-garde art criticism, and provocative cultural polemic rather than operating solely as a conventional literary review.

  Aftermath. The approach attracted major Italian avant-garde writers and artists and established the review as an important early Futurist publication.

  Source
• 1913Expand into Futurist political advocacyStrategy

  The review's contributors sought to connect avant-garde culture with contemporary political intervention during the 1913 Italian elections.

  What changed. Lacerba published the Futurist Political Programme and related political commentary.

  Aftermath. The publication became a venue for disputes about elections, nationalism, modernity, and the political role of the avant-garde.

  Source

• 1915Lacerba ceases publication

  The review ended publication on 22 May, shortly before Italy entered the First World War.

  Other
  Source
• 1914Papini's criticism contributes to the break with Marinetti

  Papini challenged Marinetti's strong belief in progress, contributing to the end of Lacerba's close collaboration with the Futurist movement after approximately 24 issues.

  Other
  Source
• 1914Lacerba adopts a strongly interventionist political line

  After the outbreak of the First World War, the review shifted toward political writing and advocated forceful action against pacifists and socialists.

  Other
  Source
• 1913Lacerba begins publication in Florence

  The new literary and cultural review was launched on 1 January as a fortnightly publication, presenting an anti-conformist program centered on artistic autonomy and cultural renewal.

  Product launch
  Source
• 1913Futurist writers become prominent contributors

  From March, Lacerba increasingly published work by leading Futurist writers and artists, strengthening its role as a major platform for the movement.

  Other
  Source
• 1913Lacerba publishes a Futurist political program

  The review published a Futurist political program connected with the Italian elections, extending its activity from literary and artistic debate into electoral and ideological polemic.

  Other
  Source

1. Lacerba
2. Past-Loving Florence and the Temptation of Futurism