Verona, Eataly Art House Foundation is born in the former cold storage station

A place of 11,200 square meters of conviviality of which more than 5,000 are dedicated to culture through a proposal designed to be accessible to the entire public. Opening its doors on October 5 in Verona, in the Specialized Refrigeration Station, La Rotonda, at 12 Via Santa Teresa, Eataly Verona and the new Eataly Art House Foundation - E.ART.H. - is born.

The new Eataly in Verona brings together under one roof (an industrial building designed by engineer Pio Beccherle, inaugurated in 1930, and restored by architect Mario Botta on a commission from the Cariverona Foundation) the market, where you can buy high-quality Italian and local products, the restaurant, with a proposal dedicated to local excellence, and its School, to learn, through courses and initiatives, every culinary secret. To this is added a novelty: the new Eataly Verona is dedicated to art and the headquarters of E.ART.H., a nonprofit foundation wanted by Oscar Farinetti, founder of Eataly, Chiara Ventura, cultural manager, and Francesco Farinetti, CEO of Green Pea, with the aim of making art accessible to the general public, proposing exhibition projects dedicated to masters of photography and visual arts, market exhibitions of modern and contemporary art, and cultural in-depth events open to the public. E.ART.H. aims to stimulate knowledge and culture among the general public by applying the values of Eataly and Green Pea (accessibility, inclusiveness, responsibility, sharing and sustainability) to the enjoyment of visual arts. All this is done through a novel formula that facilitates encounters with the work, artists and practitioners.

On the second floor is a 200-seat modular conference center and the headquarters of the E.ART.H. Foundation. An exhibition space designed to host new exhibitions created with the most interesting voices of the contemporary art scene, prestigious Italian and international cultural institutions, and defined by E.ART.H.’s curatorial committee composed of Eva Brioschi, art historian and critic; Walter Guadagnini, photography historian and director of CAMERA - Italian Center for Photography in Turin; and Gaspare Luigi Marcone, art historian and curator.

Inaugurating the programming of E.ART.H. are two major exhibitions that can be visited until Jan. 29, 2023: the solo show of Ghanaian artist Ibrahim Mahama (1987, Tamale, Ghana) entitled Voli-ni, curated by Eva Brioschi, and the solo show of Dutch photographer and filmmaker Anton Corbijn (1955, Strijen, Netherlands), who returns to Italy after nearly two decades with Staged, curated by Walter Guadagnini. Each exhibition is flanked by a rich Public Program: a calendar of in-depth initiatives such as conversations, workshops, and meetings with artists and curators to explore both the themes touched on by the works and artists on display and the multiple connections with the principles underlying E.ART.H.

The first scheduled event is scheduled for Wednesday, October 5 at 12:30 p.m.: the talk dedicated to the exhibition Staged, with the special participation of Anton Corbijn in dialogue with Walter Guadagnini.

To support young contemporary creativity, Eataly Art House is also launching the E.ART.H. Prize, an annual award dedicated to artists under 35, coordinated by Matteo Mottin and Ramona Ponzini, founders of Treti Galaxie. Until Oct. 30, 2022, it is possible to apply by following the directions of the open call posted on http://www.eatalyarthouse.it/premio/. Participation is open to artists not represented by a gallery and with at least one exhibition to their credit, who can propose their own work in response to the chosen theme. E.ART.H. intends to give life to a new reality: a design unicum that is able to present itself as an unprecedented interlocutor of excellence for the art world, but also as a platform of encounter and discovery for a heterogeneous public, going beyond the traditional patterns of enjoyment of the work. A space also designed to give rise to collaborations and initiatives in synergy with the city’s cultural associations to enhance their role.

Eataly Verona was born with a high profile of energy efficiency, and will be equipped with an integrated energy management platform that allows real-time monitoring and regulation of consumption. Outside, there are plans for 650 parking spaces and the future creation of a green park. The new flagship store has already recruited 100 people with catering and market tasks.

On the ground floor will develop the market, about 2,500 square meters, with a proposal of more than 10,500 products, of which 1,000 are new and included on Eataly’s shelves for the first time and closely linked to the territory, to enhance the food heritage of the Veneto province. At the heart of the building, under the majestic dome, is the Agricolo - Cucina delle Stagioni restaurant, dedicated to local and seasonal cuisine, which will seat up to 320 people. From the central circular area one can reach the spacious restaurant rooms and the six open production workshops (pastry, bakery, butcher’s shop, fishmonger’s, delicatessen, and gastronomy) where one can observe how the highest quality products are created. Two Eataly School classrooms were built by Green Pea, which oversaw the selection of sustainable furniture and equipment. The classrooms host a rich schedule of courses, tastings and workshops, while an adjacent space is dedicated to housewares, cosmetics, the signature librerie.coop bookstore and Barberino’s corner. Also on the ground floor is the Icehouse Museum in which to observe the original machinery that produced the “cold” for food preservation.

Fondazione E.ART.H. would like to thank the main sponsors illy, Grana Padano and Deloitte, the five Wine House sponsors Allegrini, Fontanafredda, Frescobaldi, Planeta, Villa Sandi, the technical sponsors BIG / CIACCIOARTE, Vodafone, Theke Museum for their fundamental support. For support of the E.ART.H. Prize we thank Endes Srl. We also thank the academic partner University of Verona and the institutional partners CAMERA - Italian Center for Photography and Magnum Photos, AGIVERONA Collection and De Iorio Collection, as well as all the art galleries participating in the Art Market route for their collaboration.

Pictured is the former Specialized Refrigeration Station in Verona, home of the new Eataly Art House Foundation. Photo by Alessandra Chemollo.

Verona, Eataly Art House Foundation is born in the former cold storage station

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