As of Aug. 1, 2025, art historian John Sassu will take over as director of the Municipal Museums of Cento, taking over the leadership of the Emilian city’s cultural institutions. Sassu will also be in charge of Cultural Services and the Heritage Studies Civic Library. The appointment marks an important milestone for the Cento museum system, which in recent years has embarked on a path of enhancement and revitalization of its heritage, and is now preparing to embark on a new phase under the leadership of a figure with proven experience.
Born professionally between Ferrara and Rimini, John Sassu, born in 1970, has developed a solid and articulate profile, combining scientific expertise with a marked sensitivity to cultural planning and the public dimension of the museum. A graduate in Disciplines of Arts, Music and Entertainment from the University of Bologna, he obtained, also at the Alma Mater, a PhD in Art History and a specialization in Modern Art History. After his beginnings as conservator of the Cathedral Museum of Ferrara, where he worked from 2002 to 2008, he was for several years cultural managerial instructor of the Municipality of Ferrara and then became director of the Civic Museums of Ancient Art of the same Este city (from 2020 to 2022), coordinating exhibition activities, restorations and museographic renovations. He was later called to direct the Municipal Museums of Rimini, where he left a significant mark in the reorganization of space and content.
Over the course of his career Sassu has initiated exhibition projects of national and international significance, among which special mention should be made of Cosmè Tura and Francesco del Cossa. L’arte a Ferrara nell’età di Borso d’Este, realized together with Mauro Natale at Palazzo dei Diamanti in 2007, and Carlo Bononi. The Last Dreamer of the Ferrara Workshop, voted by the specialized press as one of the best exhibitions of 2017. These are exhibitions that have managed to combine philological rigor and communicative openness, highlighting central figures of Ferrara painting in an accessible and engaging context.
Between 2020 and 2021, Sassu coordinated the complete refurbishment of Palazzo Schifanoia, a nodal point of Ferrara’s museum identity. The intervention, conducted in close collaboration with city institutions and superintendencies, was set up according to criteria of display clarity, accessibility and narrative legibility, fostering a renewed dialogue between historical materials and the public. The project also represented a moment of redefining the role of the museum, not only as a place of preservation, but as a space for relationships, education and storytelling.
The Rimini experience further enriched its path, offering the opportunity to work on a heritage that is different in nature and chronology, but equally stratified. Sassu oversaw the renovation of the sections devoted to the early Middle Ages and the 15th century of the Museum of the City of Rimini, redefining the scientific and museographic layout in keeping with the new directions of contemporary museology. In parallel, he coordinated three editions of the Festival del Mondo Antico, a cultural event that combines archaeology, history, philosophy and current events in a popular and participatory format.
In Cento, Sassu will work in a dense historical and artistic context marked by a strong local identity and a deep connection with the figure of Guercino, one of the greatest painters of the Italian seventeenth century. His appointment includes the direction of the Municipal Museums, Cultural Services and the Heritage Studies Library, which configures a wide and articulated scope of responsibility. Thus an important phase opens for the cultural life of Cento, which will be able to count on an authoritative guide to consolidate and relaunch the public function of its institutions. The task is not an easy one, but John Sassu’s experience and vision represent a valuable resource to face future challenges with confidence.
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| Giovanni Sassu is the new director of the Cento Museums |
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