Museo Ginori towards reopening: renovation works begin

The concept of the new museum setup is entrusted to the Fondazione Ginori, which coordinates the scientific and cultural activities of the museum.

“The Museo Ginori – Tomaso Montanari, President of the Fondazione Ginori explains – survived the bankruptcy of Richard-Ginori thanks to an extraordinary popular movement that was able to transform its love for this memory chest into a highly effective means of persuasion that convinced the State to invest in the future of the museum and the territory. The Foundation is pleased to finally witness the start of the renovation and expresses its gratitude to Minister Sangiuliano and the Tuscany Regional Directorate of National Museums, which is responsible for coordinating the work. In agreement with the Ministry of Culture, we are working to prepare the installation project, in order to minimize the time before the opening of the new Museo Ginori.”

Built in 1965 based on a design by architect Pier Niccolò Berardi, who had envisioned it as a perfect container to preserve the jewels of the Ginori collection following the closure of the historic Manifattura di Doccia headquarters (1957), the building housing the Museo Ginori is an important example of rationalist architecture, whose forms and spatial layout closely recall the Santa Maria Novella train station in Florence, on whose design Berardi had worked thirty years earlier alongside the master Giovanni Michelucci.

Today, the internal layout of the museum respects the original plan drafted by Berardi, except for some modifications made during construction and in the following years, especially in the ground floor rooms. The renovation work, in terms of architecture, form, and choice of materials, will continue in line with what was foreseen by the original project, without altering the rationalist language with which the building was conceived.

“At Ginori – explained Eugenio Giani, President of the Tuscany Region – art and work have intertwined for three centuries, creating a story of excellence entirely Tuscan that is recognized worldwide. The Doccia manufactory products are synonymous with style and beauty, and the start of the museum’s renovation works, which will display these pieces in their natural home in Sesto Fiorentino, is a very important moment for all of Tuscany. The Region is actively committed to the reopening and full valorization of this heritage, convinced that Museo Ginori will assume the leading role it deserves in Tuscany’s museum offerings, benefiting visitors from all over the world, as well as the local community.”

 “Ten years after its closure, which took place in May 2014 amid great uncertainty about its future” – commented Lorenzo Falchi, Mayor of Sesto Fiorentino – the new life of Museo Ginori finally truly begins. In the following years, thanks to the constant work of all the institutions involved, but above all thanks to the response of Sesto and its citizens who never gave up in front of that closed gate, important efforts were made, with economic investment from the Ministry and the shared commitment with the Municipality and the Region to establish the Foundation. The administrative process was very complex, but finally a new chapter truly opens.”