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Rivoli Castle

Coordinates:45°04′12″N7°30′37″E/ 45.070028°N 7.51025°E/45.070028; 7.51025
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rivoli Castle
Castello di Rivoli
The castle's unfinished façade
Map
General information
Town or cityRivoli
Criteria(i)(ii)(iv)(v)
Reference823bis
Inscription1997 (21stSession)
Remains of the connection between Juvarra's section and theManica Lunga.

TheRivoli Castleis a formerResidence of the Royal House of SavoyinRivoli(Metropolitan City of Turin,Italy). It is currently home to theCastello di Rivoli – Museo d'Arte Contemporanea,the museum of contemporary art of Turin.

In 1997, it was placed on theUNESCOWorld Heritage Site list along with 13 otherresidences of the House of Savoy.[1]

History

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The castle was probably built in the 9th–10th centuries. Its existence is mentioned for the first time in 1159, in a diploma byEmperorFrederick Barbarossathat ceded the Rivolese territories to thebishops of Turin.

TheHouse of Savoyacquired Rivoli in the 11th century. Soon afterwards, a feud began with the bishops, which in 1184 resulted in damage to the castle. In 1273 KingEdward I of Englandvisited, returning fromcrusade to England,he was met by the Count of Savoy's messengers before travelling on toSusaand theMont Cenison the way to visit CountPhilip IatSaint-Georges-d'Espéranche. In 1330Amadeus VI of Savoyallowed the Consiglio dei Principi, which is the senior administrative council of the countryside, to occupy it. The castle was the first place of public veneration of theShroud of Turin.

The castle then experienced a period of decline. In 1559, theTreaty of Cateau-CambrésisforbadeEmmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoyfrom residing in Turin until he had a male child. He therefore resided in the Castle of Rivoli, having it restored by architectAscanio Vitozzi.In 1562 his heirCharles Emmanuel Iwas born, and he returned to Turin. Works on Vitozzi's designs were brought on until 1644 underCarloandAmedeo di Castellamonte,with the construction of the so-calledManica Lunga,intended to house the Savoy Gallery, the sole 17th-century part of the edifice still visible today. Numerous works of art were stolen by French troops in the following years.

At the beginning of the 18th century, the castle and the Manica Lunga were set on fire and sacked by the French, due to theWar of the Spanish Succession.After the siege of 1706,Victor Amadeus IIregained possession of the territories and ordered the restructuring of the damage suffered, first entrusting the work to Michelangelo Garove, who enlarged the "Manica Lunga", then, after his death, to Antonio Bertola. The latter followed the construction sites for another three years, untilFilippo Juvarraintervened in 1716; the famous architect in fact had a grandiose project in mind, but the works were not completed. Only the extensions of the two eastern symmetrical wings were finished, but an unfinished façade was left. In 1730, Victor Amadeus II lived his madness here: despite having abdicated in favor of his son, he refused to let go of business and tried to oustCharles Emmanuel III of Sardinia,who, in concert with his minister,Carlo Vincenzo Ferrero d'Ormea,decided to lock up his father in the residence in Rivoli. For that occasion, the building was modified again: gratings were added to the windows and the access to the Manica Lunga was closed. Then in 1794, some alterations were carried out by Carlo Randoni, for at least partial use of the residence.

19th century and onward

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Victor Amadeus IIcommissioned a new façade fromFilippo Juvarra,which also went unfinished. After his abdication and failed attempt to regain power from his sonCharles Emmanuel III,Victor Amadeus lived here as a prisoner with hismorganatic spousetheMarchesa di Spigno.After his death, the castle remained mostly abandoned, until in 1863, when thecomuneof Rivoli turned it into barracks. Twenty years later a section was used as library.

The edifice was heavily damaged duringWorld War II,and remained in a substantial state of abandon until 1979, when new works of restoration were begun. In 1984 the castle was reopened as the home of theMuseo d'Arte Contemporanea,the first contemporary art museum in Italy.[2]In 2000, the castle also became home to a Michelin-starred restaurant when chef Davide Scabin moved his restaurant Combal there, renaming itCombal.Zero.[3][4]

Renovation projects

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The first post-World War IIrenovation works were carried out under the Turin architectAndrea Bruno.Unfortunately, the initiative was not completed, available funding being enough only repair of structural damage. In 1967, Bruno proceeded to break down the decaying parts of the atrium, built at the beginning of 900 AD.[5]

Exhibitions

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Since its launch, Castello di Rivoli has presented an ongoing programme within itsBaroque architectureand offsite, including solo shows, special commissions as well as group exhibitions featuring important Italian and International contemporary artists of the 20th and 21st centuries, such as:aaajiao,Carla Accardi,Franz Ackermann,Francis Alÿs,Carl Andre,Karel Appel,Stefano Arienti,Ed Atkins,Yuri Ancarani,Giovanni Anselmo,Francis Bacon,Bernd & Hilla Becher,Vanessa Beecroft,Anna Boghiguian,Candice Breitz,Sophie Calle,Pier Paolo Calzolari,Janet Cardiff,Maurizio Cattelan,Gianni Colombo,Claudia Comte,Anton Corbijn,Enzo Cucchi,Merce Cunningham,Roberto Cuoghi,Thomas Demand,Raymond Depardon,Jan Dibbets,Patrizio Di Massimo,Marlene Dumas,Olafur Eliasson,Max Ernst,Bruna Esposito,Luciano Fabro,Lara Favaretto,Teresita Fernández,Lucio Fontana,Yang Fudong,Anna Gaskell,Frank O. Gehry,Mario Giacomelli,Alberto Giacometti,Gilbert & George,Nan Goldin,Dan Graham,Andreas Gursky,Keith Haring,Mona Hatoum,Susan Hiller,Roni Horn,Pierre Huyghe,Anne Imhof,Arata Isozaki,Francesco Jodice,Joan Jonas,On Kawara,William Kentridge,Martin Kippenberger,Per Kirkeby,Franz Kline,Joseph Kosuth,Jannis Kounellis,James Lee Byars,Nalini Malani,Piero Manzoni,John McCracken,Ana Mendieta,Bertrand Lavier, Renato Leotta,Richard Long,Mario Merz,Joan Mirò,Carlo Mollino,Bruce Nauman,Shirin Neshat,Max Neuhaus,Pedro Neves Marques,Helmut Newton,Claes Oldenburg,Uriel Orlow,Giulio Paolini,Philippe Parreno,Giuseppe Penone,Elizabeth Peyton,Paola Pivi,Arnulf Rainer,Michael Rakowitz,Robin Rhode,James Richards,Thomas Ruff,Anri Sala,Doris Salcedo,David Salle,Thomas Schütte,Marinella Senatore,Wael Shawky,Cally Spooner,Hannah Starkey,Haim Steinbach,Hito Steyerl,Keiichi Tahara,Alessandra Tesi,Armando Testa,Wolfgang Tillmans,Grazia Toderi,Coosje van Bruggen,Paloma Varga Weisz,Emilio Vedova,Jan Vercruysse,Francesco Vezzoli,Andy Warhol,Lawrence Weiner,Andro Wekua,Joel-Peter Witkin,andGilberto Zorio,amongst others.[6]

Permanent Collection

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The Permanent Collection documents crucial moments in the development of contemporary art in Italy and abroad, from the mid-1960s to the present. It sits at the heart of the Museum activities and includes large permanent installations produced specially for the rooms of the historic royal residence. It comprises some of the most significantArte Poveraworks by artists such asGiovanni Anselmo,Alighiero Boetti,Mario Merz,Marisa Merz,Michelangelo Pistoletto;seminal pieces by contemporary Italian artists such asMaurizio Cattelan;[7]as well as important works from theTransavanguardia,Land Art,and artworks reflecting the latest contemporary international expressions.

In 2021, theArte PoverasculptorGiuseppe Penonedonated more than 200 works on paper to the Castle of Rivoli – including autographed work notes, handwritten reflections, design sketches, architectural renderings and photographs linked to major pieces – as well as a version ofSvolgere la propria pelle – finestra( "To Unravel One's Skin – Window", 1970-2019) originally presented at theFridericianumin Kassel in 1972.[8]

Cerruti Collection

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In 2017, the Castle of Rivoli announced the acquisition of the Cerruti art collection, estimated to be valued at $570 million. Among the works collected byFederico Cerrutiare paintings byFrancis Bacon,Giorgio de Chirico,René Magritte,Amedeo Modigliani,Pablo Picasso,Pierre-Auguste Renoir,Wassily Kandinsky,andAndy Warhol.[9]

Furthermore, Villa Cerruti plays an important role within the complex of the Castle of Rivoli thanks also to its "green" element. As far as the castle itself is concerned, only a small part of the ancient existing garden is still present, namely thenymphaeum.This is an artificial cave constructed at the end of the 16th century on the hillside, lined with bricks, supplied by an underground water cistern and covered with spontaneous vegetation.[10]Through an accurate restoration, this site is nowadays open to visitors who are entertained by water games and music. In addition to this small green area, Villa Cerruti intervenes with its peculiar and rather significant garden. In fact, it presents a place for monastic meditation, an agricultural area with a henhouse and a vegetable garden, a play area with a bowling alley, a panoramic view on the Alps and the wood. The most intimate place of the entire property can be found in the wood and it consists of a dog cemetery, in which Cerruti used to bury his pets.[11]The nymphaeum together with the garden of Villa Cerruti provide the Castle of Rivoli with a green lung. This means that the nymphaeum and the garden act as a green space or area that contributes to the overall environment of the Castle of Rivoli.

Library

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The Castle of Rivoli's library has been open to the public since 1999 and specialises in 20th and 21st-century art and theory, with a focus on artists featured in the museum's collections. It includes about 44,000 books and periodicals divided into the following categories:contemporary art,photography,architecture,designandadvertisingfrom 1960 to the present day. It also houses an accessible video library with over 900 videos. Since 2009, the Castle of Rivoli Library has been part of the Cobis Coordinamento delle Biblioteche Speciali e Specialistiche di Torino, a local network of specialist libraries.[12]

Directors and Board

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Chairmen

  • Giovanni Ferrero (1984–1987)
  • Antonio Maria Marocco (1987–1988)
  • Marco Rivetti (1988–1994)
  • Clara Palmas (1994–1999)
  • Cesare Annibaldi (1999–2009)
  • Giovanni Minoli (2009–2015)
  • Daniela Formento (2015–2017)
  • Alberto Tazzetti (2017–2019)
  • Fiorenzo Alfieri(2019–2020)
  • Francesca Lavazza (2021–present)

Directors

Current board of directors[as of?]

  • Gianluca Ferrero (Vice-President and Member)
  • Maria Sabrina Fichera (Member)
  • Marco Chiriotti (Board Secretary)
  • Alessandro Cian (Board Secretary)
  • Elvira Pozzo (Board of Auditors)
  • Laura Schiavone (Board of Auditors)
  • Luigi Scalise (Board of Auditors substitute)

Current Advisory Committee[as of?]

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The palace is the setting for the playKing Victor and King CharlesbyRobert Browning.

References

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  1. ^Centre, UNESCO World Heritage."Residences of the Royal House of Savoy".
  2. ^"Our Mission".Castello di Rivoli(in Italian).Retrieved2019-01-21.
  3. ^Bruni, Frank (30 September 2011)."Cucina dell'Arte: High-End Dining in Italy".The New York Times.Retrieved1 September2015.
  4. ^"Combal Zero".andyhayler.Retrieved2019-01-21.
  5. ^"Renovation".castellodirivoli.org.Retrieved14 November2016.
  6. ^"Archivi Mostre".Castello di Rivoli(in Italian).Retrieved2021-02-05.
  7. ^"A Torino l'evoluzione dell'arte da Pistoletto a Viola".turismo.it(in Italian).Retrieved2020-08-31.
  8. ^"Arte Povera sculptor Giuseppe Penone donates more than 200 works on paper to Castello di Rivoli".theartnewspaper.26 January 2021.Retrieved2021-02-05.
  9. ^"Castello di Rivoli Acquires the Legendary $570m Cerruti Art Collection".artnet News.2017-07-06.Retrieved2020-08-31.
  10. ^Affenita, Giacomo (1990).Residenze e Collezioni Reali.Torino: Editurist. pp. 125–133.
  11. ^Christov-Bakargiev, Accornero, Cafagna, Rigolo (2019).La Collezione Cerruti.Torino: Allemandi. pp. 77–81.{{cite book}}:CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  12. ^"Biblioteche – CoBiS"(in Italian). 24 February 2017.Retrieved2021-02-05.
  13. ^"Ida Gianelli Biografia".zam.it.Retrieved2021-02-05.
  14. ^"Carolyn Christov-Bakargiev appointed director of Castello di Rivoli and GAM".artreview.Retrieved2020-08-31.
  15. ^Gareth Harris (27 September 2023),Francesco Manacorda appointed director of Castello di Rivoli in TurinThe Art Newspaper.
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45°04′12″N7°30′37″E/ 45.070028°N 7.51025°E/45.070028; 7.51025

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