Museo Ardengo Soffici
Museum in the Scuderie Medicee (Medici stables) of Poggio a Caiano, dedicated to the painter and writer Ardengo Soffici, with over fifty paintings on display.
Have only individual sections read aloud
About the museum
The Museo Ardengo Soffici e del ’900 italiano has been active since 2009 in the Scuderie della Villa Medicea di Poggio a Caiano. It was set up as a centre for exhibitions and study dedicated to Ardengo Soffici (1879–1964), painter, poet, novelist and literary critic who moved through the European avant-gardes of the 20th century. The municipality of Poggio a Caiano, which became an independent municipality in 1962, wished to honour the artist, who came from the area, and to preserve his legacy.
The Scuderie were built around 1548 to a design by Niccolò Tribolo, at the foot of the villa commissioned by Lorenzo de’ Medici, to house the horses and dogs of the grand ducal family's great hunting parties. The original structure survives on the ground floor, with a row of columns in pietra serena (grey sandstone) and cross vaults. The museum occupies the first floor.
The rooms permanently display over fifty paintings that trace the full span of Soffici's work: the Paris years, his original Cubo-Futurist phase of 1911–1916, his dialogue with Valori Plastici and his “synthetic realism” from 1919 onwards. Alongside the paintings the museum holds documents on the artist's exchanges with journals and figures of his time, and it organises exhibitions, conferences and book presentations on 20th-century Italian art.
Highlights
- Over fifty paintings by Ardengo Soffici
- The Cubo-Futurist phase of 1911–1916
- Seat in the ancient Scuderie Medicee by Tribolo
- Documents on the journals La Voce and Lacerba
- Route through “synthetic realism” after the war
Permanent exhibition
- Collezione permanente di Ardengo Soffici – Over fifty paintings documenting the artist's entire career, from the Paris years through Cubo-Futurism to synthetic realism.
- Founded
- 2009
- Operated by
- Comune di Poggio a Caiano
- Director
- Giulia Ballerini
- Visitors per year
- approx. 1,611
Admission & discounts
| Adults | €3 |
|---|---|
| Children & teens | freefree up to age 17 · Free admission for under 18s. |
| Visitors with disabilities | –companion free · Free admission for people with disabilities and one companion. |
| Students & apprentices | –Free admission for teachers and students of the Accademie di Belle Arti (academies of fine art) and of university courses in architecture, conservation of cultural heritage, educational sciences or literature with an archaeological or art-historical focus, with a certificate of enrolment. |
Free admission also for residents of the municipality of Poggio a Caiano, school groups with accompanying teachers, tourist guides and interpreters, journalists registered on the professional roll (albo) and ICOM members.
Accessibility
- Wheelchair accessible
- Elevator
- Accessible restroom: no information
- Accessible parking: no information
- Service dogs welcome: no information
- Tactile models & exhibits: no information
- Sign language tours: no information
- Easy-to-read materials: no information
- Audio description: no information
The museum is on the first floor of the Scuderie Medicee. Access is by an external staircase; an external lift is available for visitors.
Kids & families
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Getting there & parking
By public transit
Poggio a Caiano, Scuderie Medicee
From Florence's Stazione di Santa Maria Novella by train to Prato Centrale, then the CAP bus line LAM Azzurra, with a stop at the museum. From Florence the COPIT 51 and CAP PF lines also run from piazzale Vittorio Veneto.
The museum is at Via Lorenzo il Magnifico 9, next to the Villa Medicea.
Get directionsAmenities & dining
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Events & venue rental
The museum hasn’t published any information on this.
Plan your visit
| School programs | yes |
|---|---|
| Good to know | For the educational programme and school bookings, you can write to info@museoardengosoffici.it. |
