Starting May 21, Villa Necchi Campiglio-Property of the FAI in Milan opens a new exhibition dedicated to Piero Portaluppi, the architect who designed the villa between 1930 and 1932 for the Necchi Campiglio family.
Thanks to the donation of furnishings, drawings, documents, and books to the FAI, the Piero Portaluppi Archive finds a new home in one of the Milanese architect's most famous buildings. This renewed connection enriches the visit to Villa Necchi with a unique cultural offering.
🏛️ The Archive at Villa Necchi
On the top floor of the villa, three rooms have been set up with a permanent exhibition of furnishings, objects, and drawings from the Piero Portaluppi Archive.
The renovation and exhibition project, entrusted to Piero Castellini Baldissera, the architect's nephew, along with Gianmario Rovida, recreates the atmosphere of Portaluppi's studio on Via Morozzo della Rocca, breathing new life into the attic spaces, originally intended for service staff.
The Archive preserves thousands of original documents: over 1,000 drawings, period photographs, sketchbooks and notes, caricatures, postcards, films, books and magazines on the history of architecture, as well as 19 pieces of furniture and objects designed and used by the architect.
This heritage will not only be exhibited, but also made available for consultation and study, in collaboration with the Superintendence of Archives and Bibliography of Lombardy and the Polytechnic University of Milan.
✏️ The Temporary Exhibition
Accompanying the opening of the Archive is the exhibition ''Piero Portaluppi: the Art of Drawing,'' curated by Roberto Dulio, which runs until October 18, 2026.
On display are 44 of the Milanese architect's most significant drawings, from the sketches and caricatures of his youth to designs for private homes and institutional buildings, from completed architecture to visionary projects, and even details of furnishings and decorations found in Villa Necchi itself.
The exhibition explores drawing not only as a technical tool, but as a form of thought and expression, revealing Portaluppi's extraordinary graphic skill and subtle irony.
During his studies at the Politecnico di Milano, Portaluppi also devoted himself to caricature, collaborating with several magazines of the time. The rapidity of his style and his penchant for ironic distortion would also accompany his architectural work.
The exhibition unfolds in two distinct yet complementary spaces, where technical precision, irony, linguistic play, and imagination intertwine, revealing an original and surprising side of the architect who helped define the image of 20th-century Milan.
🎥 A new tour
To complete the experience, a video dedicated to Portaluppi's life and career, educational factsheets, and audio clips providing in-depth information on the works on display have been created.
The new opening thus represents a further step in the rediscovery of Piero Portaluppi, whose work is now inextricably linked to Villa Necchi Campiglio, opened to the public by the FAI in 2008 and become one of the icons of 20th-century Milanese architecture.
Thanks to the donation of furnishings, drawings, documents, and books to the FAI, the Piero Portaluppi Archive finds a new home in one of the Milanese architect's most famous buildings. This renewed connection enriches the visit to Villa Necchi with a unique cultural offering.
🏛️ The Archive at Villa Necchi
On the top floor of the villa, three rooms have been set up with a permanent exhibition of furnishings, objects, and drawings from the Piero Portaluppi Archive.
The renovation and exhibition project, entrusted to Piero Castellini Baldissera, the architect's nephew, along with Gianmario Rovida, recreates the atmosphere of Portaluppi's studio on Via Morozzo della Rocca, breathing new life into the attic spaces, originally intended for service staff.
The Archive preserves thousands of original documents: over 1,000 drawings, period photographs, sketchbooks and notes, caricatures, postcards, films, books and magazines on the history of architecture, as well as 19 pieces of furniture and objects designed and used by the architect.
This heritage will not only be exhibited, but also made available for consultation and study, in collaboration with the Superintendence of Archives and Bibliography of Lombardy and the Polytechnic University of Milan.
✏️ The Temporary Exhibition
Accompanying the opening of the Archive is the exhibition ''Piero Portaluppi: the Art of Drawing,'' curated by Roberto Dulio, which runs until October 18, 2026.
On display are 44 of the Milanese architect's most significant drawings, from the sketches and caricatures of his youth to designs for private homes and institutional buildings, from completed architecture to visionary projects, and even details of furnishings and decorations found in Villa Necchi itself.
The exhibition explores drawing not only as a technical tool, but as a form of thought and expression, revealing Portaluppi's extraordinary graphic skill and subtle irony.
During his studies at the Politecnico di Milano, Portaluppi also devoted himself to caricature, collaborating with several magazines of the time. The rapidity of his style and his penchant for ironic distortion would also accompany his architectural work.
The exhibition unfolds in two distinct yet complementary spaces, where technical precision, irony, linguistic play, and imagination intertwine, revealing an original and surprising side of the architect who helped define the image of 20th-century Milan.
🎥 A new tour
To complete the experience, a video dedicated to Portaluppi's life and career, educational factsheets, and audio clips providing in-depth information on the works on display have been created.
The new opening thus represents a further step in the rediscovery of Piero Portaluppi, whose work is now inextricably linked to Villa Necchi Campiglio, opened to the public by the FAI in 2008 and become one of the icons of 20th-century Milanese architecture.