The Fondazione Palazzo Albizzini Collezione Burri was established in 1978 at the behest of Alberto Burri himself who, with an initial donation, endowed it with thirty-two works. It was recognized by decree of the President of the Regional Council of Umbria and took its name from the building that houses it.

The Collection at Palazzo Albizzini was opened to the public in December 1981 and includes about one hundred and thirty works from 1948 to 1989, arranged chronologically in twenty rooms. Together with the other exhibition venue at the Ex Seccatoi del Tabacco opened in July 1990, which houses 128 works from 1970 to 1993, it is the most comprehensive collection on the artist, with works of the highest quality selected by the painter himself. The following are set up at the Foundation: the library, rich in material related to modern and contemporary art (which can be consulted upon prior written request by students and scholars); the photo library, which collects all documentation concerning the work of Alberto Burri; and the archives, which preserves a comprehensive bibliography on the artist. The Foundation periodically organizes lectures on ancient, modern and contemporary art, refresher conferences on contemporary art in collaboration with authoritative parallel institutions, national and international, collaborates directly and indirectly in the publication of catalogs of exhibitions of the artist’s works, and edits the publication of catalogs and brochures of the Collection. He edited the volume “Burri – Contributions to the Systematic Catalog” (1990).

Along the lines expressed in the Statute, the institution works to manage and preserve the permanent exhibition of the artist’s works and “to promote studies on the Master’s art and its place in time.” To this end, the institution manages the opening of the two collections to the public, organizes annual conferences on contemporary art in collaboration with entities such as the Pinacoteca di Brera, the Uffizi Gallery, the Tate Gallery in London, the Academy of France, the University of Paris, and IRRSAE. The Foundation’s activities include curating and participating in exhibitions of international importance with loans of works and collaborative relationships with other national and international institutions, such as: Castello di Rivoli, L. Pecci Center for Contemporary Art in Prato, Fontana Foundation in Milan, Museion Museum of Modern Art in Bolzano, M.A.R.T. Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art in Trento and Rovereto, National Gallery of Modern Art in Rome, Palazzo delle Esposizioni in Rome, Venice Biennale, Städtische Galerie im Lenbachhaus in Munich, Palais des Beaux-Arts in Brussels, Centre Pompidou in Paris, Italian Cultural Institutes abroad, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York, etc.