After working for about 10 years in the Human Resources sector, he began his career as a lecturer in History of Printing and Publishing at LABA in Rimini in 2017. Over the years, he has taught the subject in various academies, including ISIA Florence, IED and Domus Academy in Milan, and the Academies of Fine Arts in Bologna and Frosinone.
He was a lecturer in Theory and Technique of New Media at LABA in Rimini and LABA in Florence. Since 2016, he has directed the publishing house and website Edizioni del Frisco, through which he has published the magazines Friscospeaks: magazine of independent graphic design and CONTESTO: biannual journal of independent communication and text sciences.
Among his books: The Big Lebowski Art Collection, Edizioni del Frisco, 2016; Underground. Rise and Fall of Another Publishing Industry, Costa&Nolan, 2007; Jack. An Illustrated Biography, Goodfellas, 2019; Phenomenology of Independent Publishing. A Historical Analysis of Free Press from the 20th Century to Today, Edizioni del Frisco, 2020; Fanzine Culture, Flaco, 2024.
In 2024, he curated, together with Silvia Sfligiotti for Lazy Dog, the second volume in the graphic design history series titled Countercultures 1956–1995.
Today, Francesco Ciaponi teaches History of Printing and Publishing at the Academy of Fine Arts of Brera in Milan and Visual Communication at Accademia Modartech in Pontedera.
