Where Art Meets Everyday Life
Exploring the Museo d’Arte Urbana (MAU) in Borgo Campidoglio, Turin, Italy
I’ve always been fascinated by visiting the places associated with the Museo d’Arte Urbana (MAU) in Turin, Italy. This time, I returned to the charming Borgo Vecchio Campidoglio and, as always, the experience was both immersive and thought-provoking. The MAU, often described as Italy’s first open-air contemporary art museum, is a reminder of how art can transform urban spaces and strengthen a sense of community.
A living museum without walls
Borgo Campidoglio, born in 1853 as a working-class district, is now a unique neighborhood that still preserves its original structure of low houses and narrow, winding streets. This architectural texture becomes the perfect stage for the MAU, inaugurated in 1995 as part of a revitalization project that used art as a tool to reshape the area. Walking here feels like entering a conversation between the past and the present.
Art and community, hand in hand
The MAU’s strength is how deeply it integrates into everyday life. This museum does not sit apart from the neighborhood; it evolves with it. Murals spread across building facades and public corners, and the project grows through collaborations between residents, artists, and local businesses. Ordinary walls become shared surfaces, and the district turns into a walkable archive of contemporary voices.
For instance, Vito Navolio’s homage to Piet Mondrian appears on benches in Piazza Moncenisio, translating a modernist grammar into a playful urban gesture. Nearby, murals like Opiemme’s tribute to Stephen Hawking, completed in 2018, connect science and imagination through street-level visibility.
Accessibility and inclusivity
The MAU also highlights inclusivity as part of its civic mission. Since 2016, in collaboration with the Volonwrite association, specific itineraries support accessibility for people with mobility challenges. Guided tours can be designed for reduced mobility, visual impairments, or hearing disabilities, reinforcing the idea that public art should remain public, in every sense.
The Campidoglio Gallery, when the conversation moves indoors
On Via Rocciamelone, the Galleria del MAU provides an indoor space for temporary exhibitions and community events. It extends the museum’s logic into a different format, connecting the neighborhood’s history with contemporary art programming and local participation.
Art, wine, and tradition
Immersing in local tradition is part of the experience. Around the MAU, enoteche and piole complete the walk with Piedmontese food culture and local wines. In Borgo Campidoglio, art and life overlap naturally; the museum route often ends in conversation, not in silence.
Location
The MAU headquarters is in Via Musinè, 19. Murals and works are distributed across Via Fabrizi, Corso Svizzera, Via Cibrario, and Corso Tassoni, with display cases along Via Fabrizi. This open-air collection includes murals and display cases spread throughout Borgo Campidoglio.
Why visit the MAU?
The MAU is more than an art destination; it is a place where boundaries between museum, community, and artist dissolve. In Borgo Campidoglio’s winding streets, every passerby becomes part of the artwork. If you’re visiting Turin, the MAU is a vivid reminder that contemporary art does not only live inside institutions; it can be woven into the fabric of everyday life.
