Museum of Ligustica Accademy of Fine Arts, Genoa

The Museum of the Ligustica Academy of Fine Arts is a small but impressive museum open to the public since 1980 and focusing on the artistic heritage of Liguria and beyond, with works ranging from the 14th to the 20th century. Its collection includes paintings, sculptures, drawings, and decorative art, offering visitors a clear view of the region’s artistic development over the centuries.

Housed in a neoclassical palace designed by Carlo Barabino between 1826 and 1831-on the former grounds of a Dominican convent-the museum resides on the first floor across ten light-filled exhibition halls and a gipsoteca, collection of plaster casts.

Visitors encounter a rich visual tapestry: religious fresco fragments, Renaissance and Baroque painting, fine 19th-century portraits, sculpture, ceramics, prints, and drawings. The collection is especially strong in Ligurian masters like Cambiaso, Strozzi, Ansaldo, Piola, and 19th-century artists such as Tammar Luxoro, Ernesto Rayper, and Plinio Nomellini.

Beyond its art treasures, the museum’s grandeur extends to its architecture: an elegant atrium with statues of regional artists, a monumental staircase, and corridors lined with neoclassical arches echo the building’s 19th-century pedigree.