Ever since the 1700’s, Naples has been known as an important art center. In a city with a historical attraction at almost every corner, the UNESCO World Heritage Center has been cleaning up the city in order to move its reputation from “unscrupulous” to “art haven”.
Museo di Capodimonte has certainly been overlooked among the plethora of Italy’s many infamous museums. Hopefully, that’s about to change. With newly hired Sylvain Bellenger at the helm as Director (who comes from our hometown’s Art Institute of Chicago) things are looking up. With construction scaffolds framing the doorways, the museum is in a state of transition. The decadent staircases will make you feel as though you’ve traveled back in time. Save some time to walk to the second floor where you can walk through the grand salons, once a part of royal apartments. Crystal chandeliers and mirrors decorate the walls… making what’s hanging on the walls all the more striking!
We weren’t kidding when we said, “huge”!
Image courtesy of: Pinterest, Polo Musea le Napoli Beniculturali
One of the museum’s main attractions is Caravaggio’s “Flagellation”.
Image courtesy of: Napoli Unplugged
Gorgeous!
Image courtesy of: Panoramio
Andrea Mantegna, Ritratto di Francesco Gonzagade, 1461.
One of the first things that the new director did was provide a free bus shuttle bus from the city. Capodimonte is far enough from the city’s center that some tourists didn’t frequent the museum due to the cost of the cab fare. Hooray Bellenger, for thinking outside the box!
Image courtesy of: WOW
