Museo Carlo Bilotti 2006-2026 . Festeggiamo insieme 20 anni di attività

A day of celebrations awaits visitors at the Carlo Bilotti Museum – Orangery of Villa Borghese, marking its 20th anniversary with a special programme of guided tours, 3D screenings, live music performances, and free extended opening hours until 9.00 pm.

The programme begins at 11.00 am with a guided tour of the exhibition Lanterne magiche. Fotografie dalla collezione di Valerio De Paolis (Magic Lanterns. Photographs from the Valerio De Paolis Collection), followed at 4.30 pm by a special tour exploring the history of the Casino dell’Aranciera (Orangery Pavilion). The building takes its name from the reconstruction carried out after the bombardments of 1849, when it was converted into a winter shelter for citrus trees.

Throughout the day, visitors can enjoy a 3D video experience, produced by Roma Sotterranea, which offers a fascinating journey through the historic underground spaces beneath the museum.

The evening programme, held in the Sala de Chirico, features two live musical events. At 6.30 pm, Fabrizio Corso and Furio Valitutti present Singing Landscapes, a performance for bass and guitar. This is followed by a selection of iconic film soundtracks, specially arranged for piano and flute by Sergio Colicchio and Alessio Mancini.

During opening hours, visitors will also have the opportunity to enjoy free admission to the current exhibition, Lanterne magiche. Fotografie dalla collezione di Valerio De Paolis. For the first time, the exhibition brings together more than one hundred photographs by leading figures of the international photography scene, including Nobuyoshi Araki, Letizia Battaglia, Gianni Berengo Gardin, Henri Cartier-Bresson, Elisabetta Catalano, Tracey Emin, Luigi Ghirri, Ren Hang, Candida Höfer, Dennis Hopper, and Mimmo Jodice.

Officially inaugurated on 10 May 2006, the museum now presents a renewed and enhanced appearance thanks to restoration works carried out under the Progetto PNRR Caput Mundi. The intervention included the restoration of the Nymphaeum, the reinstatement of its water system, an upgraded lighting scheme, and the complete redesign of the museum’s visual identity and communication materials, including dedicated signage throughout Villa Borghese.

The museum’s permanent collection, housed on the first floor, features an important group of works by Giorgio de Chirico, alongside artworks by Gino Severini, Andy Warhol, Larry Rivers, Giacomo Manzù, Mimmo Rotella, Nicola Pucci, Pietro Consagra, and Marion Greenstone.

On the ground floor, the Nymphaeum Hall hosts a carefully curated programme of temporary exhibitions each year, reinforcing the museum’s role as a leading centre for contemporary art in Rome.

The initiative is promoted by Roma Capitale, Assessorato alla Cultura e al Coordinamento delle iniziative riconducibili alla Giornata della Memoria (Department of Culture and Coordination of Initiatives Related to Holocaust Remembrance Day), and Sovrintendenza Capitolina ai Beni Culturali (Capitoline Superintendence for Cultural Heritage), with museum services provided by Zètema Progetto Cultura.