Discover Milan’s house museums, small gems hidden in the fabric of Milan’s historic center and part of a unique museum circuit in Italy. In the company of our guides, anecdotes and secrets of the first owners of these historic residences come to life and the many historical and artistic masterpieces preserved inside become even more beautiful to admire, enveloped in theintimate atmosphere that only a private home could possess.
Each mansion reveals in filigree personalities and passions of the people who inhabited them, in a journey through different eras and styles that satisfies all tastes: from the fabulous 19th-century collection of the Poldi Pezzoli museum to the austerity of Manzoni House; from the neo-Renaissance flair of the palazzo Bagatti Valsecchi to the multifaceted 20th-century collection of Casa Boschi Di Stefano, ending in the innovative and relaxing spaces of Villa Necchi Campiglio, Portaluppi’s masterpiece in the greenery of Porta Venezia.
Curious to knock on the doors of Milan’s house museums to finally learn about their history?
Poldi Pezzoli House Museum
The case of the Poldi Pezzoli is perhaps the most famous, as the house museum soon became known not only throughout Milan, but throughout Europe! The first credit certainly goes to the eclecticism and passion of Gian Giacomo Poldi Pezzoli, who in thirty years gathered in his mansion one of the most spectacular collections of works of art in 19th-century Europe. Today, from theArmeria designed by Arnaldo Pomodoro to the Gabinetto Dantesco, the museum’s halls are filled with a plurality of styles and masterpieces, true gems for fans of painting and applied arts. How to recognize the museum? Well, follow the outline of the Dama del Pollaiolo: the institution’s elegant logo stands out on Via Manzoni as a reminder of the presence of this invaluable museum right among the streets of the Fashion Quadrilateral.
Manzoni House Museum
Alessandro Manzoni, among the most distinguished Milanese, is remembered for having immortalized in the pages of his novel The Betrothed the fascinating atmosphere of 17th-century Milan exhausted by the plague… but not only that! The city’s central streets also serve as the backdrop for the main events in the life of the writer, who chose the dwelling on Via Morone as his favorite home: the building’s neo-Renaissance style very much tells of its fidelity to Lombard architectural traditions, in keeping with the post-unification political climate, full of confidence and hope after the long struggles of the Risorgimento. In the historic mansion many rooms await us to reveal the most intimate events of the Manzoni family, daily habits, frequentations: among them, how can we not be enchanted by the writer’s study? A peaceful corner, a room facing the garden, secluded, a place where one could retreat to read, write and meditate.
Bagatti Valsecchi House Museum
It is almost reductive to think of the Bagatti Valsecchi palace as a “simple” museum. In fact, it was conceived as a real stately home in neo-Renaissance taste, inspired by the style of the mid-16th century but whimsically conceived between the 19th and 20th centuries, in a Milan in love with historicism. Scattered throughout the rooms are the curious objects that once belonged to the noble hosts, the brothers Fausto and Giuseppe Bagatti Valsecchi: these are furnishings that they used every day or objects that they also delighted in at salons with their guests. Real glimpses into daily life, which our guides will be able to tell you about to bring to life the eclectic and singular taste of Milanese high society.
Boschi Di Stefano House Museum
Without a doubt, the most suitable house museum for lovers of beauty, art and romantic stories is Casa Boschi Di Stefano, a gem in the heart of Milan! At 15 Jan Street, chock-full of paintings, sculptures and period objects, it was the home of Antonio Boschi and Marieda Di Stefano, a loving husband and wife and collector. United in life and also in their passion for art, they are the silent protagonists of a dwelling that still retains the imprint of their taste, as well as a unique art collection. Fragments of an exciting tale of mid-twentieth-century Milan, the collected works belong to the best Italian artists of the 1930s, 1940s and the Second World War, such as Piero Manzoni, Carlo Carrà or Lucio Fontana, known personally by the two owners, tireless collectors and curious about the most innovative experiences of the artistic language contemporary to them.
Necchi Campiglio House Museum
Villa Necchi Campiglio, with its airy garden, swimming pool and tennis court is undoubtedly the most modern house museum in Milan! We are located in the greenery and silence of the streets around Porta Venezia…
where the hustle and bustle of Milan still appears muffled, shielded by tree canopies. Here, in the 1930s, Villa Necchi Campiglio was conceived as an avant-garde dwelling by architect Piero Portaluppi, commissioned by sisters Nedda and Gigina Necchi and Angelo Campiglio, exponents of Lombardy’s most cultured industrial bourgeoisie! The project intended to equip the dwelling with every comfort, without sacrificing art and elegance. The magnificently preserved villa now houses one of Milan’s richest collections of early 20th-century art, with works by Sironi, Martini and De Chirico-a series of masterpieces to be discovered on our guided tour.
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