One of the most important buildings in Palermo is reborn with the remarkable art collection of Massimo Valsecchi and Francesca Frua de Angeli, at the center of one of the most extraordinary international social and cultural innovation projects of recent years.

Palazzo Butera, perhaps better than others, testifies to the grandeur that Sicily has enjoyed throughout history. It is told by the 120 meters of sea-view façade of the majestic residence, its 7000 square meters of once frescoed halls, as well as the precious decorations such as the imposing red Ogliastro marble staircase.

The palace dates back to 1692, a time in which the powerful Branciforti family chose this area to build a new residence which was commissioned to the great Palermo Baroque architect Giacomo Amato. A mansion that has seen the cultural and economic elite of the continent pass through its rooms, in particular during the 19th century when Palazzo Butera became the property of the Lanza family, princes of Trabia, Butera and Scordia, famous for their luxurious receptions.

Our intent was to create an experimental arts center in Palermo, a place where we could carry out cultural and social innovation and restore to the city that international dimension that has always belonged to it and of which it preserves seeds and roots that are just waiting to blossom.

(Massimo Valsecchi)

Such beauty, a symbol of the history of Palermo, met the vision of Massimo and Francesca Valsecchi who decided to purchase the Palace in 2015 with the intention of opening it to the public and giving a home to their vast, yet extraordinary, art collection built in over 50 years of life.

What Massimo Valsecchi, who has a background in finance as a broker, certainly does not lack is the intuition to always bet on the right purchase, be it a business or an artist, so much so that he managed to finance part of the restoration precisely through the buying and selling of his artwork.

A life dedicated to art as an expression of creation of the common good, the phrase that perhaps best defines the collection put together by Massimo Valsecchi is, in fact, according to a prestigious international magazine: “the least known private holding of great art”.

In fact, Massimo Valsecchi eschews collecting already famous and obvious works, directing his research, since the 1970s when he managed his own art gallery in Milan, on the work of international artists who, in particular, employ art to seek new forms of social improvement, from Anne and Patrick Poirier to David Tremlett, from Gilbert and George to Tom Phillips.

Reopened today to the public, after 2 and a half years of restoration which brought to light the splendid original details of the building, Palazzo Butera has been transformed into a laboratory open to the city which uses history, culture, science and art as development catalysts.

The different exhibition floors open onto two courtyards, one of which is characterized by a wonderful Jacaranda plant with a suggestive shape that follows the lines of the building, from which you can access the imposing terrace. In 1737, in fact, the prince obtained permission from the Palermo Senate to build a large overlooking the sea characterized by a green and white majolica floor of over 1000 square meters of surface area and more than 100 meters of length.

In addition to the central nucleus of contemporary art, the collection also includes ancient paintings, porcelains, English furniture designed by great architects, watercolors by traveling artists and other works from the many years of London residence and travels of Massimo and Francesca. All unique pieces characterized by stylistic avant-garde or experimentation with particular materials, such as the chairs that come from the House of Lords of the Westminster Parliament by Augustus Pugin or the splendid Wedgwood vase, the first made of black basalt in 1768.

The works to describe are endless, there is so much to tell in every corner of the Palace. To understand the refinement of Massimo and Francesca’s vision, it is enough to describe the wonder that strikes the visitor when he reaches one of the halls on the second floor. Divided into various rooms before the restoration, when the false ceiling was removed, a large fresco torn in the center revealed the ingenious wooden load-bearing structure of the ceiling.

Instead of covering it, it was decided to make it a work of art within a work of art, a sort of layered scenography on the history of the Palace which was put into dialogue with the paintings of the 10 cities owned by the princes of Butera that once were placed above the doors and windows of the building’s entrance hall.

On the top floor, another surprise: it is the small Belvedere del Torrino, which can be accessed from the roofs, from which you can enjoy an unprecedented and wonderful 360° view of Palermo.

And, if after the visit you feel the urge to “study” the guide to the works and investigate the history of each of the splendid objects seen in the exhibition, you can relax at the “Le Cattive” café, inspired by the legend that the widows of the sailors of the nearby Kalsa, the ancient Arab quarter of the city, gathered to walk on the seafront terrace of the palace, hence the double meaning of “bad”, who initially were only prisoners (captivae) of mourning.

Palazzo Butera is a constantly evolving exhibition and research centre, with rooms that open, close and transform, thanks to listening to the soul of the building itself, the dialogue with artists, institutions and bodies from all over the world, certain that, if Massimo Valsecchi has never made a mistake in his intuition or purchase, Palermo will soon return to the center of the world.

The Secret

During the work to fix the floor of the Palace, the workers discovered a rainwater drainage channel built in the last century with majolica from the 18th and 19th centuries. Continuing the excavation, they realized that the canal was “inhabited” by a root of the Jacaranda found in the courtyard. An involuntary work of nature of such beauty, which it was decided to be highlighted by a transparent glass plate just as if it was one of the contemporary works of art which surrounded it.

Useful Info

Palazzo Butera
Via Butera 8
90133 Palermo
Tel. +39 091 7521754

Admittance: 10 euro, reduced 7,5 euro