During a press conference held Wednesday in Milan, trade show organizer Fiera Di Vicenza revealed the upcoming opening of the “Museo del Gioiello” in Vicenza.
The 4,306-square-foot museum — the first in Europe dedicated exclusively to jewelry — will be located in the prestigious Basilica Palladiana, which was designed by architect Andrea Palladio and completed in 1614.
The building, which was included among UNESCO ’s World Heritage Sites in 1994, has been subjected to a long restoration process starting in 2007 that will be completed with the inauguration of the Museo del Gioiello on Dec. 24.
“We wanted to think of the museum as an Italian product, we wanted to create a new, relevant story in Italy,” said Fiera Di Vicenza president Matteo Marzotto, highlighting that, despite the importance of the jewelry and gold business for the Vicenza area, this project aims to bring added value to the whole country. “Being small and really small is not always great,” added Marzotto, criticizing a certain Italian inclination to parochialism.
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The museum, which will be directed by Italian jewelry expert Alba Cappellieri, has been designed by Spanish architect Patricia Urquiola.
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“This project is not ambitious in terms of dimension, but it was created with the same attention as a huge one,” said Urquiola, who also revealed that the final result will be “a clean ambience creating a great and constant dialogue with the original space.”
The museum will span two levels. The first floor will host the museum shop, along with a multifunctional room, while an elevator and a stair will bring visitors to the exhibition space. This will feature six rooms divided in nine different spaces, each of them dedicated to a different category.
“The jewelry sector traditionally features very strict categories, but its heterogeneity is one of the precious elements contributing to the success of Italian jewels,” said Cappelletti. In order to go beyond traditional schemes, she organized the museum with the idea of hosting bi-annual exhibitions focused on nine macro themes. These will include “Magic, Symbol, Function, Beauty, Art, fashion, Deisgn, Icons, Future,” she said.
Each room will be curated by international personalities in the jewelry industry.
The creation of the museum and its innovative nature are in line with Fiera di Vicenza’s strategic growth plan boosted by Marzotto, aiming at positioning Vicenza among the most important trade show organizers in two different areas, jewelry and lifestyle & innovation.
In order to reach its goal, the trade show organize, is not only expanding its offering — the new Vicenza Oro Dubai will be launched in April — but is also developing its signature fairs.
In particular, the company gave a new organization to the Vicenza Oro trade show, which will debut a new format under the name VicenzaOro The Boutique Show, scheduled for Jan. 23 to 28.
In order to help buyers attending the show and to increase the exhibitors’ visibility at the same time, the fair has been reorganized in six different areas with a layout including booths which can be easily customized by the companies.
According to Marzotto, Fiera di Vicenza will close 2014 with revenues of about 35 million euros, or $43.6 million at current exchange rate.