Wednesday, July 7, 2010

MADRE

Museo d'arte Contemporanea Donna Regina Napoli

Nook of Naples: I was surprised to find that with the bevy of old ruins glutting the region, Neapolitans still have a love for the cutting-edge contemporary. Opened in 2005, MADRE has an incredible permanent collection of modern art by some of the 'greats': Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Claes Olderburg, Mimmo Paladino, Roy Lichtenstein, and Robert Mapplethorpe. My favorite is Michelangelo Pistoletto's "Black Venus":

When I visited, the temporary exhibition space displayed Riccardo Mendoza's eerie series called "The Possessed":


MADRE has a children's area with hands-on activites. You can also wander to the far back of the museum and enter the 8th century church Santa Maria di Donnaregina Vecchia. Evening events are hosted here, making the museum a great place for all ages. For anyone visiting Naples who likes modern art, I'd definitely make this a 'must see' destination point.
Getting There: Via Settembrini 79 (near Piazza Cavour)
Free on Mondays and closed on Tuesdays. Saturdays and Sundays open until midnight.

1 comment:

Karen said...

I like that 'Black Venus.' The Madre was a client of the IT company my husband used to work for and he spent lots of time there...he'd always come home demanding an explanation of the absurd (to him) modern art he saw there. I didn't know about the access to the church, now I really want to go there!