Teresa Iarocci Mavica

Together with Leonid Mikhelson, Teresa Iarocci Mavica set up V–A–C Foundation in Moscow in 2009.
Born in the town of Campobasso in Southern Italy, Teresa Iarocci Mavica graduated with a degree in political science from the University of Naples L’Orientale, where she specialised in Soviet Studies. In 1989, she moved to Moscow to continue her studies thanks to a grant from the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Russian Academy of Science.
In 2003, Teresa Iarocci Mavica directed the first Russian gallery showing Western art in Moscow, and in 2006 she co-founded and led the Contemporary City Foundation (Sovremenniy gorod) an experimental platform for young curators and artists in Moscow. The first of its kind in Russia, Contemporary City offered a free space for unknown artists and art professionals in which to create and show their work, recognising and supporting their careers in the arts.
Since 2011, Teresa Iarocci Mavica has been a Member of the Board of Art-Finance, Ltd., and Curator of the Gazprombank Corporate Collection.
Teresa is a collector and keen patron of the arts. In June 2013, she was awarded the Order of the Star of Italian Solidarity by decree of the President of Italy. The honour officially recognises the preservation and promotion of national prestige abroad, the development of friendly relations and collaboration between Italy and other countries.
She was a member of Tate’s Russia and Eastern Europe Acquisition Committee (REAC) from 2015 to 2018, and since 2016 has been on the Supervisory Board of Manifesta, the European Biennial of Contemporary Art.
In May 2019, Teresa became a citizen of the Russian Federation.