Lavinia

A project that places the beauty of the 17th century in dialogue with contemporary art, to enhance a recently reopened place in the city, the Loggia dei Vini at Villa Borghese, an elegant Baroque pavilion embellished with decorations and frescoes where Cardinal Scipione Borghese entertained his guests with banquets and convivial feasts. Long closed to the public, the loggia has in fact returned to welcome visitors at the end of the first phase of restoration work carried out thanks to a donation from the Italian and multinational company Ghella, which specializes in the construction of large infrastructural works, with the scientific direction of the Capitoline Superintendency.

Curated by Salvatore Lacagnina, realized by Ghella and promoted by Roma Capitale, Assessorato della Cultura, Sovrintendenza Capitolina ai Beni Culturali, with the collaboration of Zètema Progetto Cultura, the project pays tribute to the “pittora” Lavinia Fontana, the first female professional artist in the history of art, whose paintings have been in the Borghese collection since the early 17th century. The initiative will appeal to anyone walking through the park, dialoguing with the loggia and all the stages of its renovation and encouraging us to reflect on the relationship between art and architecture, public art and tradition.

In the new contemporary art program, the space will then be animated with works, performances, readings, workshops and educational activities, orchestrated according to a unified narrative. In this first phase, the Loggia is hosting an exhibition of site-specific works by artists Ross Birrell & David Harding, Monika Sosnowska, Enzo Cucchi, Gianni Politi, Piero Golia, and Virginia Overton, which can be visited with free admission Thursday through Sunday. Each project opening is associated with an ice cream flavor designed especially for the occasion, in memory of the delicious sorbets that were served along with fine wines at this evocative reception venue. The first flavor is “orange and lemongrass”.