Cremona unveils 2024 cultural program focused on heritage preservation

Cremona's cultural councilor Luca Burgazzi presented 2023 museum attendance data showing a 67% increase at Museo del Violino compared to 2022, surpassing pre-pandemic levels. The city's museums collectively gained about 20,000 visitors, with the Polo Diocesano attracting 80,000. For 2024, the city focuses on conservation and valorization of existing heritage, including the return of Giovanni Mansueti's 16th-century panel 'Trinità e santi' after restoration by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure di Firenze, and the exhibition of 'La Madonna degli anelli' at Pinacoteca Ala Ponzone. A show on the Scuola di restauro di Botticino will feature dozens of never-before-exhibited works. The Museo Archeologico will continue diagnostic research with the University of Pavia's Arvedi Lab, and AI algorithms for fresco reconstruction will be developed with the Laboratorio di Visione Artificiale of the University of Pavia and SATIE lab of Université Paris-Saclay. The Museo Diocesano presents 'In The World But Not Of It' featuring Canadian photographer Tim Smith, and a monographic exhibition on Cremonese artist Giorgio Palù is scheduled for May-June 2024. The Museo del Violino will host the 17th Triennale Competition of Lutherie Antonio Stradivari (September 26–October 13) and the first edition of the International Violin Performance Prize 'Città di Cremona' (June 3–9, 2024). Mayor Gianluca Galimberti emphasized the city's focus on community engagement.