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Villa Mimbelli is in Livorno. Built by the wealthy merchant Francesco Mimbelli and his wife Enrichetta Rodocanacchi, in a neo-Renaissance style, it is based on a project by the architect Vincenzo Micheli, and since 1994 it has been the seat of the Giovanni Fattori Civic Museum. The latter exhibits the paintings of the famous Giovanni Fattori and other “Macchiaioli” (a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the XIX century) and “post-Macchiaioli” painters. The former granaries host temporary exhibitions.

The Villa features an elegant facade with three overlapping orders, with masks and floral decorations. The main entrance, which was also used for the carriages, is covered by a cast-iron roof; the one on the back has three large arched openings.
On the ground floor, there are the dining room and the living room, with stuccoed ceilings and lunettes frescoed by Annibale Gatti. A monumental staircase, decorated with glazed ceramic cherubs, leads to the rooms on the upper floor, where the large party hall and the private apartments of the Mimbellis are located.

The villa is surrounded by a lush park of romantic inspiration, full of exotic plants and with an open-air XX recently century theatre. Damaged by the war, after years of neglect, the villa has been restored and opened to the public.

Since 2010, the park has been the site of the “Harborea, Festival of Plants and Oltremare Gardens”” exhibition, in the month of October.

This post is also available in: Italiano (Italian)