Italy Plans Partial Demolition of Meier Museum
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The architect Richard Meier says his work has fallen victim to Italian politics and a government that is hostile toward contemporary art.
Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi’s government last month announced plans for tearing down part of the Ara Pacis Museum designed by Mr. Meier as a home for an altar constructed in 9 B.C.E. to commemorate the peace following Rome’s Gallic and Spanish campaigns.
The plan to construct the first modern building in Rome’s center since the Fascist era drew criticism at the time Meier was awarded the project in 1995 by progressive Mayor Francesco Rutelli. To the scorn of political adversaries, the 45,747-square-foot building was inaugurated 11 years later by Mr. Rutelli’s ally, Mayor Walter Veltroni.
When Gianni Alemanno, a former neo-Fascist, became the city’s mayor in 2007, one of his first pledges was to remove the Ara Pacis Museum from a square it shares with two 16th-century churches and the 2,000-year-old tomb of Roman Emperor Augustus.
“When the new mayor was campaigning he used the Ara Pacis and other things, anything that had to do with culture, as a political issue because he’s not very supportive of the arts,” Mr. Meier, designer of the Getty Center in Los Angeles, said.
Culture Minister Sandro Bondi also acknowledged a dislike of contemporary art.
“It’s really difficult for me to find beauty in contemporary art,” Mr. Bondi said in an interview in the current issue of Italian women’s magazine Grazia. “If I visit a show, like many people I pretend to understand. But sincerely, I don’t understand.”
In addition to campaign pledges of more security, Mr. Alemanno promised to save money by scrapping the all-night “Notte Bianca” party and making the Rome Film Festival less focused on Hollywood productions.
Knocking down the entire museum would be too expensive, and would contradict efforts by Mr. Berlusconi to cut wasteful spending, so the Italian government plans to remove a travertine stone wall to facilitate the viewing of two historic churches, Culture Undersecretary Francesco Giro said July 31. A section of another travertine wall connected to the museum also will be knocked down, he said.
“When I first heard this I thought it couldn’t be real,” Mr. Meier said. He will wait to see what transpires before consulting with his lawyer about any possible legal recourse. “I’ve never had a reaction like this to any of my work.”
