The Foundation supports the forging of cultural bridges between the United States and Italy, thus honoring the legacy of Romeyne Robert (1878-1951) and her son Uguccione Ranieri di Sorbello (1906-1969). During their lifetime these two individuals tirelessly promoted links between the United States and Italy. Romeyne was an American, married into an Italian family: a woman of culture, a philanthropist, and an entrepreneur who established a school of embroidery that revived a waning art and offered a measure of economic opportunity to rural women. She also pioneered the project to display the collections of the Marquises Ranieri di Sorbello in their residence, thus creating a museum.
The Palazzo Sorbello House Museum is now open daily in the town of Perugia, Italy, and there the public may see examples of the embroidery from the school together with the family’s art collections. Uguccione Ranieri di Sorbello was a scholar, writer, and international civil servant. His documents and books provide the intellectual focus of the Sorbello Library, also open to the public in the Palazzo, where it is visited by Italian and American students and scholars. The Foundation fosters links between the Sorbello House Museum, Library, and Archives and academic and cultural institutions in Italy and the United States, notably study abroad and exchange programs. It supports creative research in history, including cultural, economic and social history, and history of art including the decorative arts, with a focus on research that bridges the United States and Italy and fosters a better understanding between the two countries. It encourages the strengthening of the links between these countries by organizing lectures, internships, research projects and cultural events such as conferences as well as the publication of papers and books. The aim of these programs is to enhance the study and knowledge of the art and political history of the United States in Italy and elsewhere in Europe, and the appreciation of Italian history and the arts in the United States with the aim of advancing intercultural exchange.