Loversof art won’t want to miss a visit to Villa Reale (Royal Villa), which has twoof the city’s best galleries in one place. The 18th-century neoclassical villaonce housed a wealthy Italian count, but today its rooms are filled with famousworks by Picasso and edgy contemporary installations. Browse exhibitions at theModern Art Gallery and the Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea (Contemporary ArtsPavilion), then wander through the English garden that surrounds the villa.
Austrian-Italianarchitect Leopoldo Pollack designed the grand building, which is characterisedby arched windows, columns and marble statues in true neoclassical fashion.Enter from Via Palestro to reach the Modern Art Gallery. Here you’ll seerecognisable works by Picasso, Giovanni Fattori and Vincent van Gogh amongother European paintings from the 18th and 20th centuries.
Followthe signs to the Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea adjacent to the main building.The Contemporary Arts Pavilion is an exciting gallery that displays some of thebest international art in the world today. Exhibitions are temporary and changefrequently, so check the official website to find out what’s on. You’re boundto see video work, installations, painting, photography and sculpture that pushboundaries.
Thereare 600 rooms in the villa and many of them have been preserved in their lavishstyle, with chandeliers, tapestries and frescoes decorating the ceilings andwalls. Wander through rooms adorned with sculptures and imagine what life waslike for a count in the 1700s.
Ifthe weather is fine, head out into the gardens. A pond, flowerbeds, big treesand sprawling lawns make for picturesque photo opportunities with the villa asa backdrop. Many locals use the park as a place of relaxation. Drink coffee ortea in a café beside the pond.
VillaReale can be found in central Milan and is open every day. The Modern ArtGallery and Contemporary Arts Pavilion charge for entry otherwise, wander thevilla and grounds freely. Come by metro or by car and park on the streetssurrounding the gardens.
