Rome's National Museum of XXI Century Arts ~ MAXXI ~ Opens to The Public May 30th

Written by Silvia Marchetti Friday, 28 May 2010 00:09

ROME, (Xinhua)  -  The National Museum of XXI Century Arts - MAXXI - opened a press preview in Rome on Thursday with a glamorous ceremony attracting global attention and featuring famous architect Zaha Hadid, designer of the building. The entire world was looking forward to the event after more than 10 years of preparation and building works. A crowd of viewers and institutional authorities packed the inside hall of the MAXXI, anxious to get a view of the woman who majestically turned an old military site into a breathtaking glass and steel, modern and abstract white structure where light flows in from all corners filling in the wide spaces.

Iraqi-born Zaha Hadid, dressed in black, arrived in a dark limousine with several bodyguards at her side. Everyone wanted to talk to her and congratulate themselves on the accomplishment, while reporters from all over the world queued up for a 2 minutes interview as if she were an movie idol.

Talking at the opening ceremony, Hadid admitted she never expected such a moment. "When I was a 10-year-old child I came to visit Rome with my parents, I still have a photo of myself in front of the Trevi Fountain. But I never thought of coming back here to live such an experience as this one."

She was no doubt the star of the day, the designer whose London-based firm in 1998 won the international competition launched by the Italian government to create in the capital a new district for contemporary art. It marks a departure for the city, which is more known for Baroque and ancient architecture.

"Today I see one of my dreams come true," she told Xinhua. "Places like MAXXI give all people who cannot travel around the world a chance to see and experience something interesting and uplifting. They're important for the development of education and society."

Hadid looked indeed satisfied with her work. The MAXXI is much more than a simple museum, it stands as the ideal blend between contemporary art and architecture, innovation, technology and design. Italy's capital can now boast of having today its own contemporary arts museum, an artistic center of global attraction expected to draw each year thousands of amateurs and tourists.

Walking inside the MAXXI makes the visitor feel suspended in mid-air as if he were floating on a cloud. The twisting corridors and metal staircases that resemble the inside of a space shuttle, the white spotless walls and elegant arches embody the notion of "flux" sponsored by the designer.

What shocks are the dimensions of the museum. The total surface of the site amounts to 29,000 square meters and other than the exposition areas the MAXXI features an auditorium, library, restaurant, caf and research center on creativity and architecture. Hadid explained that in re-styling the army barracks she was inspired by two aspects of Rome's urbanism: its bright sunlight and the many layers of the historical city. "I wanted to design a new identity for this site that at the same time symbolized Rome," she said.

Pio Baldi, MAXXI foundation president, stressed that the museum represented a model of Italian engineering excellence and innovation in using, for example, anti-seismic materials.

Italian Cultural Heritage Minister Sandro Bondi observed that the museum put Rome in the global contemporary art spotlight and stood as a "legacy we leave for future generations".

"Promoting culture means both preserving our artistic past and supporting contemporary works, and the MAXXI is an icon of global architecture," he said.

The museum will officially open to the public on May 30 with four inaugural exhibitions, one representing the various steps of Hadid's project.

Zaha Hadid is the first woman winner of Nobel Pritzker Prize in global architecture. One of her most famous designs is The Peak, Hong Kong's most popular attraction. Several of Hadid's future projects are located in China: one is Guangzhou's opera house, almost complete, and two major works for Beijing SOHO center.

And for her own hometown? "Who knows, maybe one day I might design something in Baghdad as well. I'd like to and recently I' ve been asked but right now it's too soon."