Diotti Museum

Open to the public since 2007, the Museum is located in the historic centre of Casalmaggiore, a town on the banks of the Po, close to Sabbioneta and at the centre of a triangle of art cities represented by Parma, Cremona and Mantua. The building that houses it is an old palace renovated by the neoclassical painter Giuseppe Diotti (Casalmaggiore, 1779-1846) to make it his home-studio. Respecting Diotti's former wishes and restoring the appearance of a private home, the Museum intends to present itself not only as a picture gallery, but also as a home-atelier. The nineteenth-century section deals with every aspect of Diotti's activity by theme, with particular regard to the context in which he lived, worked and taught. Besides him, artists such as Marcantonio Ghislina, Francesco Antonio Chiozzi, Paolo Araldi, Luigi Quarenghi, Pietro Civeri, Carlo Cerati, Paolo Troubetzkoy, Tommaso Aroldi and Amedeo Bocchi are represented. The exhibition continues chronologically with works from the 20th century to the present day, with the aim of documenting the development of a local 'school' and its intertwining with major national and international artistic events. Among others, Aldo Mario Aroldi, Mario Beltrami, Goliardo Padova, Gianfranco Manara and Tino Aroldi are represented. Of particular interest is the section dedicated to landscapes and the Po River, the one dedicated to Existential Realism and the reconstruction of some artists' ateliers. The Museum has a rich educational programme for schools of all levels and offers temporary exhibitions that are periodically set up in a dedicated space. During the summer, an open-air film festival is held in the garden.