The Center of Research and Archiviation of Photography (CRAF) was officially established in July 1993, inheriting the initiatives that had been carried out since 1987 in Spilimbergo on photography. In 1988 the Presidency of the Regional Council of Friuli Venezia Giulia assured its sponsorship of the Friuli Venezia Giulia Photographic Prize instituted the previous year.
And from that year up until the present day in Spilimbergo exhibits of international relevance have been presented, and encounters, workshops, conventions and formative activities have been realized. All of which place photography at the center, understood as a cultural legacy and a contemporary language.
Thanks to the adhesion of the Regional Photography and Prints Informative System (SIRFOST), CRAF has started a systematic campaign of cataloguing  the inventory of its archives, rendering the photographs consultable on line to everyone and imposing itself as a Center specialized in the cataloguing of photographic material.
Since 2006 CRAF has adhered to the Regional Multimedia Archive of the Memory of Emigration (AMMER) in collaboration with the Province of Pordenone and the Museum of Emigration in Cavasso (PN), proposing itself as the regional center of reference for the accumulation of  images of the migratory phenomenon of Friuli Venezia Giulia.

The Activities of CRAF

The realization and transport of exhibits with the commitment to promoting the acquaintance with photography and the culture of photography. The manifestation Spilimbergo Fotografia proposes cultural activities related to photography including the awarding of the prizes the FVG Photographic Prize, the International Award of Photography and the Friends of CRAF Prize as well as the annual market of photographic equipment .

Publishing in support of the exhibits by means of catalogues and publications on photographic subjects.

Photographic education on different levels: courses on photography, seminars, conventions, post-diploma courses, work stages and apprenticeships.

Research Activity, the collection, conservation and cataloguing of photographic archives acquired definitively or on a temporary basis for reasons of study and cultural re-evaluation. Such archives in addition to the photographic material which is property of the Center constitute a photographic and documentary  archive of great interest.

CRAF is furnished besides with a specialized library rich in monographs and periodicals about photography which is open to the public.