Michelangelo Antonioni Archive to Open at Ferrara's PAC

The Michelangelo Antonioni archive will find a permanent home at the Padiglione Arte Contemporanea (PAC) in Palazzo Massari, Ferrara, after years of uncertainty. The space, called Spazio Antonioni, will be a permanent exhibition area celebrating the life and work of the Oscar-winning filmmaker, who was born in Ferrara. Enrica Fico, Antonioni's widow and a director and actress, described it as a "return home" and emphasized it will be a creative hub, not just a museum, where people can teach and make art. The archive includes 11,000 photos, paintings, and films. The decision follows a controversy over alternative locations, notably Palazzina Marfisa d'Este, a 16th-century building with a historic museum layout by Nino Barbantini. Scholars like Ranieri Varese opposed moving the archive there, arguing it would destroy a unique museographic ensemble. Vittorio Sgarbi dismissed the Palazzina option as a "false trail" and criticized Barbantini's installation as a "fossil." Fico and actor Michele Placido have approved the PAC space. The PAC's garden may also host an open-air cinema.