Eike Schmidt invites Ed Sheeran, the Cure and others to the Uffizi. Who rocks more than Caravaggio? Come to the museum!


With a video message launched on the website and social profiles, Eike Schmidt invites the rock people to visit the Uffizi.

The director of the Uffizi Galleries, Eike D. Schmidt, invites the people of rock and the great artists who will perform at the Firenze Rocks festival (June 13-16) to visit the great Florentine museum. Firenze Rocks is one of Italy’s leading rock festivals and over its four days will have several international rock stars (plus Ed Sheeran) take turns on stage: among them, the Cure, Dream Theather, Struts, Smashing Pumpkin, Sum 41, Tool, Eddie Vedder and many, many more.

“Dear Tool, dear Ed Sheeran, dear Eddie Vedder, dear The Cure”: so begins the director’s message. “I am Eike Schmidt, the director of the Uffizi Galleries. I want to greet all you guys, heroes of the Firenze Rocks that is about to start. Rock is a great art, and art has always been a great friend of rock: that’s why I want to invite you, together with your fans, to one of the most rockin’ places in Florence, the Uffizi Gallery. I mean, do you know anyone who really rocks more than our Caravaggio? I wish you all the best of luck for your fantastic concerts and I look forward to seeing you all, here in the Gallery, to introduce you to our masterpieces! Uffizi Rocks!”

The message, sent in English, is available in video on the Uffizi website (Eike Schmidt is moreover sporting a curious Bob Dylan tie). For anyone who would like to join the director’s invitation toward the great rock musicians, the video can be shared from the Uffizi website.

This initiative testifies to the strong link between the Florentine museum and rock: a few days ago Imagine Dragons visited the Uffizi and a few weeks ago Elton John, who wrote on Instagram that it is “one of the most beautiful museums in the world.”

Last year it was the turn of Robert Trujillo, bassist of Metallica. Also, a few years ago, Patti Smith donated her photographic self-portraits to the Galleries.

With the launch of the video message, the Uffizi proposes their thematic hashtag,#uffiziRocks, inviting all rock and art fans to use it for their posts and images.

Pictured: Eike Schmidt, posing as Andy Warhol, in a “rock” version.

Eike Schmidt invites Ed Sheeran, the Cure and others to the Uffizi. Who rocks more than Caravaggio? Come to the museum!
Eike Schmidt invites Ed Sheeran, the Cure and others to the Uffizi. Who rocks more than Caravaggio? Come to the museum!


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