Art is in the air
In the old town, when you look around and catch glimpses of the elegant architecture of palaces, churches, courtyards and arcades, you discover art everywhere. Art treasures from the middle ages, Renaissance and present day. A delicate balance between the old and the new, the ancient and the contemporary. Such vast wealth in so small an area has created a city-museum.
The town has always been a crossroads for artistic and cultural movements.
Famous painters and architect were summoned to decorate the town, very important in Renaissance.
During the Renaissance the town was very important and famous painters and architects were summoned to decorate it. One of the first was the young Raphael who produced some of his earliest works between 1499 and 1504.
These are on display in Palazzo Vitelli alla Cannoniera – 15th century, the Municipal Art Gallery – along with some works by Signorelli, Raffaellino del Colle, Lorenzo Ghiberti and Pomarancio. From the italian garden, placed inside the structure, you can also admire the decorated façade designed by Vasari and realized by Gherardi.
Each one with his own cultural identity
There are five museums in town.
Municipal Art and Picture Gallery – Palazzo Vitelli alla Cannoniera is one of the largest museums for Umbrian art, second only to Perugia’s Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria – hosts a number of ancient and modern masterpieces: from the 13th-century Gothic boards by Andrea di Bartolo and Antonio Vivarini to the Domenico Ghirlandaio’s Renaissance pieces of , from Raphael’s “Stendard of the Holy Trinity”, to various works by Luca Signorelli. Last century art is represented, among others, by Mario Mafai, Renato Guttuso and Giorgio De Chirico.
Museo del Duomo – shows an important collection of sacred art as well as two important masterpieces – “Christ in glory” by Rosso Fiorentino and “Madonna and Child” by Pinturicchio.
The elegant Albizzini Palace which houses the Burri Foundation, with works created by the contemporary art master Alberto Burri between 1948 and 1989 (tar, sacks, wood, plastic, cellotex) and the “Ex seccatoi del tabacco” vast spaces home to his paintings and sculptures between 1974 and 1993.
The important ‘Tela Umbra Laboratory’ – a Museum and selling point also – was founded in 1908 by Baron Leopoldo Franchetti and Baroness Alice Hallgarten Franchetti in order to conserve the ancient art of handloom weaving. The production is made up of fabrics of pure linen realized with original designs dating back to late medieval and renaissance times. The materials utilized are of the finest Irish flax and wool. All work is done exclusively by hand, including that during subsequent phases to the actual weaving process. This isn’t a technique of serial machining, every piece is unique. Tela Umbra is a rare experience and one of its kind in Europe. Every artifact is a product of the finest antique skills and one of the best examples in existence today both within Italy and internationally.
Grifani Donati Typography was founded in 1799 in the rooms of a former convent of nuns in Città di Castello old center , a town with a long printing tradition. Little has changed since then… A jump in the past of over 200 years. It can be visited only by reservation from Tuesday to Friday, from 9am to 12:30 pm and from 3pm to 7pm, and on Saturdays from 9am to 1pm. You will be accompanied directly by the owner in a guided tour of about an hour during which you will discover the history and secrets of the press, from Gutemberg to Aloisio Senefelder.
tel. 075 855 4349 – mobile 333 32 32 573
Quick Info
Pinacoteca Comunale
Via della Cannoniera, 22/A
Tel. 075 8520656 – 075 8554202 fax 075 8527574
Hours:
April the 1st through October 31 : 10am -1pm /2.30 -6.30
November the 1st through March 31: 10am -1pm /3 – 6
Closed on Monday – except on public holiday – and the previous day
Fondazione Burri
Via Albizzini,1 – Tel.075 8554649
Palazzo Albizzini, Ex Seccatoi del Tabacco (Grandi Cicli and Opera Grafica Permanente):
Hours: June the 1st through September 30
from Tuesday to Friday: 10am -1pm /2.30 -6.30
Saturday, Sunday and public holidays : 10,30am -6,30 (open all day)
from October the 1st through May 31
from Tuesday to Friday: 9am -12,30pm /2.30 -6
Saturday, Sunday and public holidays: 10am-6pm (open all day)
Closed on Monday – except on public holiday and the previous day
Museo del Duomo
Piazza Gabriotti, 3/a – Tel. 075 8554705
Hours: April the 1st through October 31: 10am – 1pm / 3.30 – 6
From November the 1st through March 31: 10am – 12.30pm / 3 – 5
Closed on Monday
Centro delle Tradizioni Popolari e Museo Malacologico MALAKOS
Villa Garavelle, Garavelle locality – 2 km from the city center – Tel. 075 8552119 – 331 130 8657 (Prof. Bini)
Hours: from April the 1st through October 31: 10am -12.30pm/3 – 6.30
From November the 1st through March 31: 10am – 12.30pm /2.30 – 6
Closed on Monday, except on public holiday
Continue your journey by choosing one of these sections:
- All
- Crafts
- Museums
