Milan is a city full of history and soaked in art till its core. Every building, every citizen, every beauty detail prelude to an event more or less recent of the history of our country. I happen to think that when I walk along via Palestro, lining the Indro Montanelli gardens: this is the street that houses one of the most important museums of the city, the Pavilion of Contemporary Art (Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea), or simply the PAC.
It seems absurd but before I cross the threshold of this museum I always wonder what I’m doing and the answer often comes afterwards, on the basis of a more general question: what is contemporary art?
It could give rise to longer (and boring) dissertations in this regard but I’d rather refer to a more popular definition: contemporary art reflects our present, in which we find our time. Here, the PAC precisely offers this opportunity, to observe and reflect on our present, a complex and incomprehensible present that through art appear simple and readable.
The exhibitions unfold in a fluid way in the corridors of the Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea and bring out the best of this space conceived in 1949, then destroyed by a bomb attack in ’93 and finally rebuilt in accordance with the original plan. The space and time to the Padiglione d’Arte Contemporanea expand and also recline, as the visitors, in this little architectural gem overlooking the park through the huge glass window that characterizes it.
If you are interested in art, design or photography you can’t avoid visiting this address: the website has different sections that lists events, exhibitions and initiatives placed throughout the year in this historic Milanese artistic institution.
And if you weren’t exhausted yet consider that just a few steps away you can find the GAM, the Gallery of Modern Art … But that’s another story!