The city celebrates the 30th anniversary of the first inscription of the "City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas in Veneto" site in the UNESCO World Heritage List with a series of initiatives. These include events in museums, guided tours in the city center, workshops for children, and the extraordinary opening of some Palladian villas, usually closed to the public, to discover their secret beauty. The site was initially composed of the historic center of Vicenza, including the 23 Palladian works, and three suburban villas. Later, in 1996, 21 more Palladian villas in the Veneto region were added.
The proposal for candidacy was also promoted with the contribution of Vladimiro Riva, who passed away a few days ago and to whom Councilor Cristina Balbi dedicated this edition. "The idea behind the program of initiatives for the 30th anniversary is to bring citizens as close as possible to a heritage that extends to several provinces of Veneto," said municipal councilor Stefano Dal Pra Caputo, a member of the board of the Italian Heritage Sites association. "The initiatives promoted," added Balbi, "aim to remember the journey made so far and future prospects." It has begun with "World Heritage Day," the public presentation of the 2024-2030 Management Plan for the UNESCO World Heritage Site "City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas in Veneto,". The main institutional actors involved in the elaboration of the Management Plan will intervene, along with the working group tasked with coordinating and supporting the drafting process of the Plan itself, which, over the course of a year, involved multiple territorial stakeholders, welcoming their requests and valuable contributions.
Also, guided tours of the Palladian sites in the historic center will be available from Friday (today) to Sunday. Cultural itineraries are organized by the theater production center "La Piccionaia," starting from Loggia Valmarana in Giardino Salvi and Teatro Olimpico, led by actors who will narrate the city and Palladio's work throughout the day on April 20. Tomorrow morning, the International Center for Palladian Architecture Studies will offer an educational workshop for children aged five to eleven. Also on Saturday, the Civic Museum of Palazzo Chiericati will remain open until 9 p.m. with a special reduced rate. Additionally, numerous Palladian villas will be open, some exceptionally, during the four days, offering special events to celebrate the thirtieth anniversary. Specifically on April 20, villas and palaces that are usually closed will be open. Loggia Valmarana in Giardino Salvi will exceptionally open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. by the Fai Vicenza youth group and Fai Vicenza delegation volunteers (by reservation); civic volunteers will accompany visitors in the courtyard of Palazzo Thiene, Bonin Longare in Corso Palladio from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.; civic volunteers and owner Vittorio Trettenero will lead the discovery of Villa Trissino (Cricoli) from 10 a.m. to 12.30 p.m. and from 2.30 p.m. to 4 p.m.; finally, Villa Gazzotti Grimani will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. thanks to Lions Club Vicenza. Other venues will be open as usual. For museum tickets and information, you can contact the Tourist Information and Welcome Office - Iat in Piazza Matteotti, open every day from 9 a.m. to 5.30 p.m., which on April 20 will extend the opening time until 8.30 p.m.. The Infopoint and ticket office of the Palladian Basilica are also available, from Tuesday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm (last entry at 5.30 pm).
(GdV, martedì 16 aprile)