Lorenzo Balbi on the Turning Point in His Career

Lorenzo Balbi, director of MAMbo – Museo d'Arte Moderna di Bologna, identifies 2016 as the pivotal moment in his career. At 34, with newborn twins and a job as curator at Fondazione Sandretto Re Rebaudengo that felt confining, he updated his CV and applied to several museum director openings. Most did not respond, but a friend in Bologna alerted him to the MAMbo position. Despite doubts, he applied and was appointed. Moving to Bologna with his family, he transformed MAMbo from a traditional museum into a living workspace for artists, exemplified by the Nuovo Forno del Pane project. Balbi reflects that his career has been shaped by sliding doors moments: studying art history in Venice, leaving a job as a sous-chef to become a cultural mediator at the Sandretto foundation, and later redefining MAMbo's mission. He considers the 2016 decision, born from restlessness, his true turning point.