1 Torre Velasca - 2 Museo del Novecento - 3 Piazza Affari - 4 Gallerie d’Italia - 5 Villa Necchi Campiglio - 6 GAM (Galleria di Arte Moderna) - 7 Casa Boschi di Stefano - 8 Stazione centrale - 9 Triennale - 10 San Siro.
The 20th Century is the century of the flourishing of Milan: it grew to being one of the largest cities in Italy, it's economic capital and it's innovation powerhouse. This has reflected in its extremely rich art and architecture scene, as you'll have the chance to discover in this itinerary.
1) Torre Velasca. Despite being cited by The Telegraph as one of the world’s ugliest buildings, the tower is a masterpiece of Italian modern and brutalist architecture. Built in the 1950s, its characteristic mushroom-like shape - a modern interpretation of the typical Italian medieval castle - is still controversial today.
Piazza Velasca 5. Metro Missori (M3).
2) Museo del Novecento. Housed in the fascist-era Arengario, a monumental building facing the Duomo square, the museum hosts a collection of 20th century art, with a particular focus on the Milan scene. Here you can find works of Italian and international artists such as Modigliani, Fontana, De Chirico, Kandinsky and Picasso.
Piazza del Duomo. Metro Duomo (M1 - M3).
3) Piazza Affari. Home to the stock exchange, this square features monumental fascist-era buildings like Palazzo Mezzanotte, and the iconic LOVE “middle finger” sculpture by Maurizio Cattelan.
Piazza Affari. Metro Cordusio (M1).
4) Gallerie d’Italia. The museum opens to the public private collections of artwork across the 19th and 20th centuries, housed in the former headquarters of Commercial Bank of Italy.
Piazza della Scala 6. Metro Duomo (M1) / Montenapoleone (M3).
5) Villa Necchi Campiglio. A Historic House Museum built in 1935, example of Italian Rationalism. It contains paintings, sculptures, furniture and other items, mostly in art déco style.
Via Mozart, 14. Metro Palestro (M1) / San Babila (M1).
6) GAM - Galleria di Arte Moderna. The municipality’s Modern Art gallery displays a collection of artwork ranging across the 19th and 20th centuries, from Hayez to Cezanne, Manet, Boccioni and Picasso.
Via Palestro 16. Metro Palestro (M1).
7) Casa Boschi di Stefano. A Historic House Museum build by Portaluppi, the same architect of Villa Necchi Campiglio, it houses a rich collection of artwork from the Italian 20th century, particularly between 1910 and 1960.
Via Giorgio Jan, 15. Metro Lima (M1).
8) Stazione centrale. Opened in 1931, Milan’s Central Station is a spectacular mixture of styles, particularly Art Déco and Liberty, together with the monumentality of fascist-era architecture and reminiscent of the Roman public building heritage. Next to it is the Pirelli tower, the iconic modernist skyscraper that has been the tallest building in Europe from its construction in 1958 to 1966, and the tallest in Italy until 1995.
Piazza Duca D’Aosta. Metro Centrale (M2 - M3).
9) Triennale. Housed in the 1933 Palazzo dell’Arte, it is the city’s most important institution for contemporary and modern art and architecture. It houses several temporary exhibitions and the Triennale Design Museum, a constantly changing exhibit on Italian design and industrial design.
Viale Alemagna 6. Metro Cadorna (M1 - M2).
10) San Siro. Milan’s Giuseppe Meazza stadium, home of both AC Milan and FC Internazionale, dates back to 1926. It has been in its current form since 1990, when it hosted the World Cup.
Via dei Piccolomini, 5. Metro San Siro Stadio (M5).