Patricia's journey in the World of culture

Born in Brazil but raised in Liguria, Patricia Buffa is now Director of Digital Strategy at the Fine Art Museums of San Francisco. She always knew she wanted to work in the cultural sphere, although building a career in Italy, she explains, was difficult (her word). As she tells us: “I graduated from Bocconi in Milan at CLEACC [Economics and Management for Art, Culture and Communication] with the idea of working in the cultural sector. I also did a Master’s in Media and Cultural Management at Sciences Po in Paris. And I liked writing, so I was thinking about the publishing field.” 

 As a recent graduate, however, she found herself a little frustrated, in part by the 2008 crisis. What’s more, the only work opportunities available were short-term project contracts, which put her in a precarious position. “I had a degree from a prestigious university; I did an internship in London at the freesheet Metro, too. I thought that with this résumé my path would be straightforward, but instead I found that I didn’t have many options. It wasn’t easy to gain experience as a manager in museums because they still wanted art history degrees for management positions, and publishing was a closed door.”

So Buffa tried her hand at various jobs, writing about culture as a journalist for D di Repubblica and for Edizioni Zero, and working for some festivals. “I worked as a freelancer, either with temporary contracts or project contracts. Not that it wasn’t frustrating, I admit. At one point I even thought about giving up my career in culture.” But then came the chance to enter into the world of museums. “In 2009, I worked in Naples for Mondadori-Electa on a project for the cultural enhancement of museums in the Campania Region, and then in Rome for the grand opening of the MAXXI Museum in 2010.” But when that publicly funded project came to an end, the museum opened and the staff contracts, including Buffa’s, were terminated. So she was back to square one. “I was fed up with the Italian scene, I felt that the cultural world was exclusive, elitist, and very masculine. As a young woman, I didn’t feel like I was being taken seriously,” she adds.

So she decided to go abroad. She found an internship in New York for the Italian daily Il Sole24 Ore and decided to stay in the Big Apple as a freelancer, “with financial help from my parents,” she is careful to clarify. It was the sliding door moment of her career. Buffa would stay in the city for six years while she took the exam required to become a professional journalist in Rome in 2013. Then, thanks to a simple reply to job vacancy published on the museum’s website for a junior but very challenging position, she ended up working at MoMA. “That’s when my luck changed. I had won the green card lottery in 2012 and could stay in the US. I spent my days applying for jobs. I was looking in journalism, museums, and I had even offered to work for some Italian brands.” 

Then she applied to MoMA to work on the museum’s international program and got the job. In the meantime, she also received an offer to work at the International Road Transport Union, a nonprofit partner organization of the United Nations that deals with road safety.  On the one hand, art, but on a temporary contract; on the other, a permanent, well-paid position. “I followed my instincts, turned down the nonprofit’s offer, which was worth twice as much as MoMA’s, and joined the museum.” From there, her career in the art world began. After New York, she decided to return to Europe and looked for a job in Paris. From 2015 to 2020, she was in charge of digital communications at the Louis Vuitton Foundation, managing its website, social networks, and YouTube channel.

Her return to America ties into her personal life. “My partner, who is an engineer, was going to San Francisco. I started networking there and got an offer from the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco,” which led her to join the museum’s management team as director of the digital division. Today, Buffa designs digital strategies and manages a team of fifteen. “Finally taken seriously,” she smiles.