The restoration of the Fortress of Arezzo: a scientific project to create an international centre for contemporary art

Following the restoration work initially carried out by means of specialized works on the curtain walls and multiple, complex and delicate conservative operations conducted on the ramparts as well as the open spaces inside the Fortress, the building has now become a permanent place for an unexpected nemesis – a physical and mental space handed down to history, to help understand the city and finally do the Fortress justice, albeit partially. The second phase of the restorations started in 2012 and was recently concluded with the restoration of the Belvedere bastion, making it possible to reopen the inner open areas of the Fortress, the walkways and all the spaces inside the ramparts. The work was aimed at returning an extraordinary monument to the community, but also at creating a new cultural centre that could house art exhibitions, shows, educational activities, learning spaces and knowledge sharing. This forgotten place had to become the cultural, temporal and physical nexus to reconnect the city with its citizens, to link its controversial past with a shared future and Arezzo with the land surrounding it and the world.