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In 2020, Map Architetti and Natalini Architetti won the invited competition by the Bargello Museums to design the new Orsanmichele sculpture museum and renew the church’s lighting and spatial layout. The original sculptures, replaced by copies in the external tabernacles, required a new display that rethought the statue-viewer relationship from the perspective of the original artists, who conceived the works for elevated niches, about two meters above ground. The sculptures needed to be seen from a more accurate vantage point and recontextualized in a setting that evoked the original tabernacles, restoring a proper scale relationship with the former granary space. The sculptures, set on 1.4 m high pedestals, are framed by 4.5 m backdrops that reinterpret the tabernacle in a stylized form.
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Orsanmichele is a very unique building that has always combined monumental and human dimensions, as well as religious and civic ones, with a truly singular history and role, situated in the heart of Florence, disguising its true size, with neither a square nor a view to accentuate it. The renovation of the Orsanmichele complex exemplifies how a design intervention can generate long-lasting cultural and social value through a respectful, inclusive, and sustainable approach. Conceived in close collaboration with the Bargello Museums, the project reopens to the public one of the most important landmarks and symbolic spaces in Florentine history, enhancing its identity and public function and returning it to active civic life.
The project was conceived with a focus on sustainability and eco-compatibility, prioritizing recyclable materials and techniques that promote reuse. The new vestibules of the church are made of bronzed metal, glass, and pietra forte, ensuring durability and recoverability. Dry construction methods allow for quick disassembly and decommissioning, minimizing environmental impact. In the museum, the pedestals and backdrops for the sculptures were built with a steel structure, thus recyclable, where dry-mounted panels coated in resin were applied.
These interventions reflect a concrete commitment to responsible design that respects the architectural heritage, demonstrating how sustainability and innovation can harmoniously dialogue.
The project has transformed the first floor of Orsanmichele’s former 14th-century granary into a museum where the sculptures of Florence’s guilds return as protagonists in direct dialogue with the 14th-century architecture. The carefully calibrated and reversible installation integrates seamlessly into the existing architectural structure, enhancing its geometry and axiality while organizing a path that evokes the original placement of the sculptures within their tabernacles. The statues are elevated on pedestals, 1.4 meters above the ground, and framed by 4.5-meter-high backdrops, which reinterpret the stylized concept of the tabernacles, restoring the correct perspective viewpoint. The bronzed metal and resins recalling pietra forte and marble for the bases and backdrops dialogue with the physicality of the space, while integrated lighting along the chain lines highlights the artworks and the vaulted ceilings. On the ground floor, new transparent vestibules visually reopen the church to the city, while discreet lighting enhances the spatial quality and architectural details, such as frescoes, the altar of Sant’Anna, and Orcagna’s Tabernacle. The project’s key strength lies in the design of a bold and innovative exhibition layout, capable of elevating the sculptures through a virtuous dialogue with the architecture of one of the city’s most extraordinary spaces, restoring Orsanmichele’s civic and cultural function in the heart of the historic center.
The recent history of museum restorations in Florence, from the Uffizi Galleries to the Accademia Gallery, the Bargello Museum, the Museo degl’Innocenti, up to the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo by Adolfo Natalini, is enriched by this new fortunate episode. Here, Orsanmichele, with its contradictory original public functions, offers a path that transcends traditional museum conventions, skillfully playing with simple architectural solutions and the continuous interplay between interior and exterior.
MAP Architetti, founded in 2004 by Tommaso Barni, Anna Pescarolo, Giovanni Santini, works across all scales of architecture, from urban design to interiors, with a focus on cultural buildings, public spaces, schools, housing, and hotels. Key works include:
•New student housing _S4 in a former Enel building_FI
•New York University, masterplan for Villa La Pietra_FI
•Ferragamo S.p.A., new Parfums Headquarters_FI
•Restoration and extension of a watchtower_TE
•Fiesole School of Music Foundation, redevelopment plan and restoration with extension of a farmhouse_FI
•Renovation of Hotel “Il Piccolo Giardino”_Taormina
Fabrizio Natalini, since 1991 with Natalini Architetti, together with Adolfo Natalini, has focused on urban and landscape regeneration through projects such as:
•University Campus in Novoli_FI
•University Campus Porta Tufi_SI
•Museo dell’Opera del Duomo_FI
•The Social Hub, Viale Belfiore_FI
•Restoration and museographic setup of the Palazzina Regia, Montecatini Terme
