The first results of the studies on sources were presented by Margherita d’Ayala Valva to the students of the course Dal Divisionismo al Futurismo. La pittura italiana alle soglie del moderno (Modern and Contemporary Art History), held by Mattia Patti. The lecture highlighted the theoretical and didactical premises of the debate on painting techniques and materials in Italy (particularly in Milan) at the turn-of-the-century. D’Ayala has examined the connection between scientific literature on color theories and the historical treatises on ancient techniques, focusing on the writings by Gaetano Previati, a determinant father-figure for Umberto Boccioni’s own artistic apprenticeship and for the genesis of the Technical Manifesto of Futurist Painting.