Genoa's Villa Croce Museum Reduced to Party Venue for Soccer Ultras

Villa Croce, Genoa's contemporary art museum, has been transformed into a recreational center hosting pilates, yoga, and a party for Sampdoria soccer ultras on June 8-9, 2018. The museum has been closed since January 18, 2018, when Open Srl, the company managing museum services, decided to shut it due to low visitor numbers and high costs. This came shortly after the appointment of curator Carlo Antonelli on January 1, 2018, whose exhibition program was frozen. The curatorial team, including Antonelli and Anna Daneri, was dismissed. The cultural association AmiXi, which supported the museum since 2012, withdrew. The city administration under mayor Bucci has been criticized for allowing the venue to be used for non-cultural events. Mario Mondini, legal representative of Open Srl, posted offensive comments on Facebook, later removed, boasting about visitor numbers for the Coppa Italia display and insulting previous curators. He apologized after backlash. Assessor Elisa Serafini defended the event, claiming it attracted 2,000 people and introduced the museum to new audiences. Anna Daneri expressed dismay, noting that their inaugural exhibition on longevity attracted over 500 visitors. The museum's future remains uncertain.