Genoa Is My Greatest Muse”

An ongoing Luzzati exhibition, from 3 June 2023.
Lele Luzzati left the city of Genoa an extraordinary artistic legacy. Returning from Lausanne in 1945, his pencil tirelessly recorded the city through countless sketches of streets, squares, churches and shops—a Genoa scarred by war, yet transformed into a vast open-air stage. In 1949, director René Clément captured this same city in his acclaimed film Le Mura di Malapaga (The Walls of Malapaga), starring Jean Gabin, portraying a landscape of ruins infused with profound humanity.

The exhibition explores Luzzati’s vision of Genoa—its atmosphere, spirit and history. Sketches, drawings, stage designs, screen prints, etchings, urban scenography, together with archival material, literary works and films, reveal the artist’s enduring relationship with his native city.

Presented throughout the rooms of Casa Luzzati from 3 June to 30 October 2023, the exhibition brings together around 200 original works, accompanied by multilingual texts and captions. Executed in a wide range of techniques—including pastel, collage, patchwork and mixed media—the works are organised into thematic sections:

Sketches of Old Genoa (1940s–1950s)
Covers for the Comune di Genova magazine (1950s)
Medieval Genoa
Genoa: A City in Twenty Stories
Christopher Columbus illustrations
Genoa calendars featuring the Master’s original artworks
Historical placemats for Panarello (series of six illustrations)
Social awareness association cards
Posters
Fine art editions, including woodcuts, screen prints and intaglio prints
Films: Genova. Sinfonia della città (Genoa: Symphony of the City) by Luigi Berio (2005); Genova di tutta la vita (Genoa for a Lifetime), directed by Giorgio Bergami, with poetry by Giorgio Caproni and readings by Gino Paoli(1992).
The exhibition is held under the patronage of the Municipality of Genoa, the Liguria Region and the Palazzo Ducale Foundation for Culture.
Free admission.