Villa Argentina in Viareggio
The Art Nouveau jewel is open to the public for exhibitions and events
The Villa Argentina in Viareggio could be considered the most impressive culmination of modernist style in all of Versilia.
Galileo Chini’s beautiful pottery, framed with modernist decorations, adorn the front of the villa, which also displays some of the best pieces of pottery made in the Chini kilns in Borgo San Lorenzo. Chessboard patterns frame cherubs holding palms alternating with stylised drawings of Asian trees of happiness. These decorations, as well as the colourings, are an ode to the traditional designs of Florentine Renaissance majolica, an important reference point for Chini’s work.
In the ground floor living room, a large painted canvas covers an entire wall, depicting a “Persian wedding” in an Asian countryside. The paintings, created in 1930 for the counts of Sant’Elia, the then-owners, are the work of Giuseppe Biasi.
After a big restoration project, it is currently open to the public for exhibitions and cultural events.
