Transforming museum storage into public exhibition spaces

An editorial by Stefano Monti on Artribune argues that Italian museums need real managerial autonomy, not just bureaucratic reforms. Monti criticizes the lack of professional management teams and adequate compensation, calling it a scandal. He cites super-director Felicori, who wants an engineer as his successor, emphasizing that running a museum involves more than just the collection. Monti highlights the issue of museum storage facilities, which hold vast numbers of artworks, including masterpieces by Picasso and Schiele, that are never shown to the public. A Quartz study revealed the extent of hidden collections. Monti contrasts this with the deaccessioning debate, where European cultural figures oppose selling works, comparing storage to a library where not all books are read simultaneously. However, Monti proposes a radical solution: transform under-visited museums (over 200 Italian museums had fewer than 5,000 visitors in 2017) into storage facilities, and convert storage spaces into public museums. This would fulfill the statutory mission of cultural dissemination and allow for better management of collections, possibly through transfers to other public institutions with similar guardianship responsibilities.