Museum of the 20th century, Milan, Italy

The Museum of the twentieth century in Milan is a permanent exhibition of 20th century works of art housed in the Palazzo dell’Arengario and the adjacent Royal Palace in Milan. The museum absorbed the collections of the previous Civic Museum of Contemporary Art (CIMAC) which was located on the second floor of the Royal Palace and which was closed in 1998.

The Museum of the twentieth century, located inside the Palazzo dell’Arengario in Piazza del Duomo, hosts a collection of over four thousand works that catalyze the development of 20th century Italian art.

The Museum of the twentieth century was established on 6 December 2010 with the goal of spreading knowledge of 20th century art and offering a more comprehensive insight into the collections that the city of Milan has inherited over time. Beside its core exhibition activity, the Museum is active in the conservation, investigation and promotion of 20th century Italian cultural and artistic heritage with the final aim of reaching an ever wider audience.

Apart from a single room housing works by foreign artists including Braque, Kandinsky, Klee, Léger, Matisse, Mondrian and Picasso, the majority of the works exhibited in the museum are by Italian artists. A major section is devoted to the Italian Futurists, with works by Giacomo Balla, Umberto Boccioni, Carlo Carrà, Fortunato Depero, Luigi Russolo, Gino Severini, Mario Sironi and Ardengo Soffici. Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo’s large canvas Il Quarto Stato (1902) is also exhibited in a room on its own.

Other sections of the museum are dedicated to individual artists such as Giorgio de Chirico, Lucio Fontana and Morandi. There are also sections devoted to art movements of the twentieth century, including Abstractionism, Arte Povera, the Novecento Italiano, Post-Impressionism and Realism, and to genres such as landscape and monumental art.

Architecture
An outstanding example of architecture and, today, an impressive installation communicating directly with the city, since 2010 the Palazzo dell’Arengario has accommodated the Museum of the twentieth century. This landmark building, designed by Griffini, Magistretti, Muzio, and Portaluppi, was renovated by the Rota Group to host a richly layered collection of 20th century Italian art.

The transformation of the Palazzo dell’Arengario was dictated by the need to organize the composition of Milan’s Civiche Raccolte d’Arte (Municipal Art Collections) around two distinct poles. While the historic premises of Villa Reale were meant to host collections dating from the 19th century, the Palazzo dell’Arengario was singled out for the exhibits of 20th century artwork. The latter was particularly meaningful for the harmony existing between its architecture and the collection it was meant to display.

This project enabled to best exploit the interior premises, while turning the building into one of the major cultural places in Milan. The grand spiral staircase inside the building is probably the most impressive architectural feature of the Museum: a functional element that connects several levels, from the subway up to the panoramic terrace overlooking the Duomo.

The Museum
The Museum of the twentieth century, located inside the Palazzo dell’Arengario in Piazza del Duomo, hosts a collection of over four thousand works that catalyze the development of 20th century Italian art.

The Museum of the twentieth century was established on 6 December 2010 with the goal of spreading knowledge of 20th century art and offering a more comprehensive insight into the collections that the city of Milan has inherited over time. Beside its core exhibition activity, the Museum is active in the conservation, investigation and promotion of 20th century Italian cultural and artistic heritage with the final aim of reaching an ever wider audience.

With an eye toward the city, the Museum of the twentieth century develops around multiple locations. The Permanent Collection follows a chronological path where collective exhibitions alternate with solo art shows. The grand spiral staircase inside the building welcomes visitors and introduces them to the visit of the Museum with the Il Quarto Stato (The Fourth Estate) by Pellizza da Volpedo. The bookshop and the restaurant are the Museum’s meeting places. The Neon by Lucio Fontana represents a final embrace to the city. Reflecting Milan’s feverish cultural dynamism, the Permanent Collection is essentially the story of several private collections that have been brought together thanks to the generosity and passion for art of many private collectors. Since its inception, the collection has been augmented by major gifts from artists, collectors and philanthropists who play an active role in the growth of the Museum’s heritage, which today reflects the rich trajectory of art from the early 20th century through the present.

Collection
Established and developed thanks to the generosity of Milanese private collectors and philanthropists, the Collection of the Museum of the twentieth century is one of the important 20th century Italian art selections. The exhibition gathers approximately 400 works displayed in chronological order. The initial date is 1902, the year of the Quarto Stato (The Fourth Estate) by Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo, to whom is dedicated an entire hall along the free access helical staircase.

The Collection then begins with a tribute paid to international avant-garde movements, with paintings from the early 1900’s by Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Paul Klee, Kandinsky, and Amedeo Modigliani. The exhibition continues with Futurism, represented by a nucleus of artwork unique the world over, displaying Umberto Boccioni, Giacomo Balla, Fortunato Depero, Gino Severini, Carlo Carrà, and Ardengo Soffici. The Twenties and Thirties, moving between the Novecento movement and Abstract Art, develop through a sequence of solo art show ‘islands’ devoted to Giorgio de Chirico, Giorgio Morandi, Arturo Martini, and Fausto Melotti. To Marino Marini is devoted a proper hall, aimed to describe the artist’s rich and nuanced production.

On the third floor is a hall devoted to Alberto Burri and Art Informel by major Italian masters: Emilio Vedova, Giuseppe Capogrossi, Gastone Novelli, Tancredi, Carla Accardi, and Osvaldo Licini. The exhibition devoted to the Fifties and Sixties displays artwork by Piero Manzoni and the artists from the Azimuth group, from Enrico Castellani to Agostino Bonalumi. The top floor of the Palazzo dell’Arengario is devoted entirely to Lucio Fontana. The Fontana Hall was designed as an environmental immersion work. The protagonists are the landmark Ceiling from 1956, initially created for the dining room of the Hotel del Golfo on the Island of Elba and granted by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities; the Neon owned by the Fondazione Fontana; and the Spatial Concepts from the 1950’s.

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Walking on the suspended footbridge that connects the Museum to Palazzo Reale, visitors access the final section focusing on the Sixties and the Eighties. Starting from the Kinetic and Programmed Art, the exhibition follows with the Pop experiences and the Analytical Painting, while the Conceptual art is represented in its Italian and international interpretations.

The exhibition continues with the hall dedicated to Luciano Fabro eventually starting to focus on installation, by the works of artists such as Jannis Kounellis, Eliseo Mattiacci and Amalia Del Ponte. It concludes then at the beginning of the Eighties with Nunzio Di Stefano, Paolo Icaro, Giuseppe Spagnulo and Alighiero Boetti.

Exhibition itinerary
Established and developed thanks to the generosity of Milanese private collectors and philanthropists, the Collection of the Museum of the twentieth century is one of the important 20th century Italian art selections. The exhibition gathers approximately 400 works displayed in chronological order. The visit is opened by two sculptures by De Chirico dei Bagni Misteriosi della Triennale, accompanied by an ancient Roman floor and by The fourth state of Pellizza da Volpedo.

On the first floor there are works from the Jucker collection and the futurists, on the second floor the abstractionists and the classicists of the twentieth century, the third floor will host conceptual art and the tour ends with the poor art.

The Civic Museum of Contemporary Art (CIMAC) is located inside the Royal Palace in Piazza del Duomo 12 in Milan. The initial date is 1902, the year of the Quarto Stato (The Fourth Estate) by Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo, to whom is dedicated an entire hall along the free access helical staircase.

The Collection then begins with a tribute paid to international avant-garde movements, with paintings from the early 1900’s by Pablo Picasso, Georges Braque, Paul Klee, Kandinsky, and Amedeo Modigliani. The exhibition continues with Futurism, represented by a nucleus of artwork unique the world over, displaying Umberto Boccioni, Giacomo Balla, Fortunato Depero, Gino Severini, Carlo Carrà, and Ardengo Soffici.

The Twenties and Thirties, moving between the Novecento movement and Abstract Art, develop through a sequence of solo art show ‘islands’ devoted to Giorgio de Chirico, Giorgio Morandi, Arturo Martini, and Fausto Melotti.

On the third floor is a hall devoted to Alberto Burri and Art Informel by major Italian masters: Emilio Vedova, Giuseppe Capogrossi, Gastone Novelli, Tancredi, Carla Accardi, and Osvaldo Licini. The exhibition devoted to the Fifties and Sixties displays artwork by Piero Manzoni and the artists from the Azimuth group, from Enrico Castellani to Agostino Bonalumi.

The top floor of the Palazzo dell’Arengario is devoted entirely to Lucio Fontana. The Fontana Hall was designed as an environmental immersion work. The protagonists are the landmark Ceiling from 1956, initially created for the dining room of the Hotel del Golfo on the Island of Elba and granted by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage and Activities; the Neon owned by the Fondazione Fontana; and the Spatial Concepts from the 1950’s.

Walking on the suspended footbridge that connects the Museum to Palazzo Reale, visitors access the final section focusing on the Sixties and the experiments of Kinetic and Programmed Art, beginning with the sculpture by Bruno Munari entitled “AconaBicombì”. The last halls exhibit artwork by the T Group and large format paintings from Italian Pop Art and Analytical Painting. The exhibition concludes with a hall devoted to some of the major exponents of Italian Arte Povera (literally poor, basic art), from Luciano Fabro to Mario Merz, and from Gilberto Zorio to Giuseppe Penone.

Program
The educational activities enable the public to experience the Museum as a place for encounter, learning and experimentation. It is indeed a space to live and inhabit, providing a multidisciplinary schedule while focusing on accessibility, mediation and cultural exchanges.

In collaboration with Ad Artem the Museum provides a rich and various educational program: individual and collective guided tours, worklabs for a public from 11 to 99 years old, laboratories for kids and teenagers, summer camps and more. In order to bring children closer to the art world, the Museum endorses some special projects such as F@MU (The National Family Day at the Museum), while joining “Il Mio Amico Museo” – a network gathering the best activities for kids in Milan. Furthermore in 2016 the collaboration with La Grande Fabbrica delle Parole – started with the creative writing labs for schools in 2014 – has been opened to the public, becoming inclusive for deaf children and parents thanks to the contribution of the Istituto dei Sordi in Milan and to the special support of LIS interpreters.

The main purpose, which is the accessibility and valorization of the Museum cultural heritage, is achieved through an inclusive and participatory perspective: the Museum is a place for collaboration, always ready to find new ways to narrate the cultural and artistic scenario of the XXth century. Collaborating with several public and private institutions, the Museum schedule is enriched by experimental projects, whose aim is to also involve individuals with disabilities and frail publics. From the tactile paths for visually-impaired visitors to the latest challenge promoted by “DescriVedendo” – the accessibility project created with Associazione Nazionale Subvedenti and based on the evocative power of words. From the Living Library created in 2015 for the National Mental Health Day to the Empathic Tales collected with Fondazione Empatia Milano, and presented in 2018 during Bookcity.

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