Museo d'arte contemporanea di Lissone

About the museum

The Museo d’Arte Contemporanea di Lissone (MAC) arose from the redevelopment project for the area of the Lissone-Muggiò railway station, on the Milan–Como–Chiasso line. The building, designed by Marco Terenghi of the municipal Technical Office between 1996 and 1998 and completed by 2000, preserves and enhances the front section from the early 20th century, emptied to form a single entrance hall. Beside it is a new block of three levels above ground and one below, separated by a full-height glass wall. Large glass surfaces open the exhibition route towards the outdoor spaces, and a terrace on the upper floor concludes the visit.

The core of the permanent collection consists of works acquired during the years of the Premio Lissone (1946–1967), an initiative that involved emerging artists and the most qualified European critics, and rewarded artists who later became established at the main international exhibitions. The collection includes paintings by, among others, Mauro Reggiani, Antoni Tàpies, Emilio Vedova, Renato Birolli, Piero Dorazio, Karel Appel, Emilio Scanavino and Mario Schifano.

Today the museum runs a programme of temporary exhibitions and the Premio Lissone Design. It is among the museums associated with AMACI, the Associazione dei Musei d’Arte Contemporanea Italiani, which it joined in 2025. In 2024 it began the digital cataloguing of the collection on the regional platform Lombardia Beni Culturali.

Highlights

• Historical collection of the Premio Lissone (1946–1967) with works by Vedova, Tàpies, Dorazio and Schifano
• Contemporary building combining an early 20th-century front section with a new construction
• Museum opposite the Lissone-Muggiò railway station
• Premio Lissone Design
• Museum associated with AMACI

Founded

2002

Operated by

Comune di Lissone

Director

Stefano Raimondi

Visitors per year

approx. 11,919

Admission & discounts

The website does not publish the admission price, only the rates for guided tours. The municipality reserves the right to offer free guided tours for promotional or educational activities.

Accessibility

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Kids & families

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Getting there & parking

Amenities & dining

• Museum shop

Museum bookshop with the catalogues of the Premio Lissone.

Events & venue rental

• Spaces for rent
• Weddings / ceremonies

The museum rooms can host civil weddings outside museum activities (€300 if at least one of the spouses lives in Lissone, €600 otherwise; rates from 25 January 2024).

Plan your visit