Museo Civico Basilio Cascella

About the museum

The museum is housed in the chromolithographic works built in 1895 by Basilio Cascella, founder of a family of artists active between the 19th and 20th centuries. The building, in the Porta Nuova district, was the family home and a meeting place for intellectuals such as D'Annunzio, Pirandello and Pascoli. The villa was donated to the municipality in 1966 and opened as a house museum in 1975.

The collection holds more than 600 works created between the 19th and 20th centuries: paintings, sculptures, ceramics, lithographs and photographs by Basilio, by his sons Tommaso, Michele and Gioacchino, and by his grandsons Andrea and Pietro. The style ranges from late 19th-century verismo to symbolist openings, as in Basilio's “Il bagno della pastora”.

The route is arranged in eleven rooms: from the lithographs with scenes of life in Abruzzo and the printing equipment (the star press, the stone matrices, the postcards of the “Illustrazione Abruzzese”) to the ceramics of the Rapino workshop, from Michele's landscapes to the sketches of the sculptors Andrea and Pietro, and on to the drawing cabinet and the majolica panels made for the Tettuccio establishment in Montecatini Terme. The last room, the largest, brings together the family's masterpieces.

Highlights

• “Il bagno della pastora” by Basilio Cascella
• Star press and original lithographic matrices
• Ceramics from the Cascella workshop in Rapino
• Sculptures by Andrea and Pietro Cascella, including “Il cavaliere nero” and “La sentenza”
• Cartoons for the majolica panels of the Tettuccio in Montecatini

Permanent exhibition

• Le collezioni della famiglia Cascella – Eleven rooms with lithographs, ceramics, paintings, sculptures and drawings by five generations of Cascella artists.

Founded

1975

Operated by

Comune di Pescara (gestione Fondazione Genti d'Abruzzo)

Visitors per year

approx. 1,500

Admission & discounts

Free admission also for members of ASTRA-Amici del Museo delle Genti d'Abruzzo, Archeoclub and ICOM. Reduced admission for members of FAI, employees of the Pescara police headquarters and of the prison administration, university students and members of Viviparchi; 50% for Touring Club members; discount with the Card of the Montesilvano Tourist Consortium. Tickets can be bought on arrival.

Accessibility

• Wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description

Entrance by ramp and a tactile floor guidance route; the route is on a single level with no architectural barriers. Free wheelchair on request (contact the museum at least 4 days in advance). Tactile maps in the rooms, an audio description route for blind and visually impaired visitors via the app, a welcome video in Italian Sign Language (LIS), subtitles and sound amplification devices for visitors who are deaf or hard of hearing.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Kids’ birthday parties

Guided tours, games trails and art workshops for families; “Museum Sundays” and birthday parties in the museum. Information: didattica@gentidabruzzo.it, tel. 393 937 4212.

Getting there & parking

The entrance is on Viale Marconi and is marked by a totem.

Amenities & dining

• Wi-Fi

Free Wi-Fi open to all visitors.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent

Some rooms of the museum can be rented for birthday parties and other activities.

Plan your visit