Universidad Torcuato Di Tella was founded in 1991, with the mission of educating new generations of academic, business, social and political leaders. It was founded by the Torcuato di Tella Foundation, making use of the experience and resources of the Torcuato di Tella Institute. The latter, a non-profit institute founded in 1958 to promote research in the scientific, cultural and artistic development of Argentina, became a leading local center for avant-garde art during the 1960s. The establishments' namesake, Torcuato di Tella, had been a leading Argentine industrialist through his Siam di Tella conglomerate founded in 1911.