Florence unveils GAMB, new network for Accademia and Bargello museums

A new museum institution bringing together some of Florence’s best-known cultural sites has unveiled its first shared visual identity, marking another step in the reorganisation of the city’s state museum system.

The new institution, officially named GAMB — Galleria dell’Accademia di Firenze e Musei del Bargello — includes seven museums and historic sites across Florence: the Galleria dell’Accademia, the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, Museo delle Cappelle Medicee, Palazzo Davanzati, Orsanmichele, Casa Martelli and the former church of San Procolo, which is expected to open once restoration works are completed.

The new logo was presented on Monday as part of a broader strategy aimed at creating a more integrated museum network, with unified communication, visitor services and thematic itineraries linking sites across Florence’s historic centre.

According to museum director Andreina Contessa, who took office in 2025 after winning the Italian Culture Ministry’s international selection process, the new identity is intended to make a complex and geographically dispersed museum system more recognisable and coherent for visitors.

The visual identity, designed by Italian studio Migliore+Servetto, is based on a stylised map of the seven locations. The graphic symbol connects a central core with different branches representing the museums across the city, reflecting both their physical distribution and their shared cultural programme.

The GAMB network manages more than 50,000 artworks and over 18,000 square metres of exhibition space, including what the institution describes as the world’s largest collection of works by Michelangelo. Its collections include masterpieces by Donatello, Giotto, Benvenuto Cellini and Lorenzo Ghiberti.

Officials said the reorganisation will also involve restoration projects, redesigned exhibition layouts, thematic routes, and eventually unified ticketing systems and opening hours. Work is also underway on a single website bringing together information for all seven museums and proposed visitor itineraries across Florence.

The changes are part of a wider effort by Italy’s Culture Ministry to encourage closer coordination between major state museums while maintaining the individual identity and historical character of each site.

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