Galleria d'Arte Moderna e Contemporanea di Villa Franceschi

Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art

Close to Viale Ceccarini stands Villa Franceschi, a charming early – twentieth – century seaside dwelling now housing the Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art.
The villa, outstanding both in its details and in the harmony of its overall design, was built during the first decade of the twentieth century, inspired by the eclecticism then sweeping Europe, a confusion of neo – Gothic, neo-classic and art nouveau styles.

The quiet simplicity of the architecture is embellished by the semi –hexagonal room, with terrace above, overlooking the garden, and by the little tower which has a belvedere with windows.
The exterior decorations are especially fine, and the wrought-iron and cast-iron details with elements of Liberty-style decorations lend rhythm and charm to the façade.
The rooms of the Villa are now the setting for the Municipal Art Collection, here exhibited in happy combination with part of the original furnishings, including some interesting paintings.
This Collection developed side by side with the development of Riccione as a twentieth-century seaside resort. It includes donations, purchases, and mayor prizes, and the prestigious Arcangeli Collection belonging to the Emilia. Romagna Region, a collection representative of the especially lively art scene in Bologna immediately after World War Two.

The exhibition opens with an eighteenth-century work by the Bolognese artist Mauro Tesi, and continues through nine rooms, illustrating the salient features of twentieth-century italian art, especially in the later half of the century.

Visitors can admire paintings, sculpture, drawings, and graphic art exemplifying the figurative poetics of contemporary art, including works by Alberto Burri, Alberto Sughi, Vincenzo Satta, Virgilio Guidi, Pompilio Mandelli, Mattia Moreni, Luciano Minguzzi, Renato Birolli and Ennio Morlotti.
Villa Franceschi is also the venue for temporary exhibitions which accompany the permanent collection at various times of the year.