Spacious exhibition hall with abstract paintings by Alberto Burri on the walls and an industrial trussed ceiling.
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Former Tobacco Drying Sheds

The Former Tobacco Drying Sheds complex in Città di Castello, opened in 1990, complements the collection housed in Palazzo Albizzini by displaying the series created by Alberto Burri between 1979 and 1993.

From tobacco leaves to large-scale pictorial cycles

Located on the outskirts of Città di Castello, these imposing industrial buildings are far more than a museum: they form a true secular cathedral of contemporary art, a place where the scale of the artworks and the surrounding spaces redefine the very concept of exhibition space.

Built between the late 1950s and the mid-1960s to dry tropical tobacco grown in the Città di Castello area, the buildings belonging to the Fattoria Autonoma Tabacchi ceased operating in the 1970s. In 1978, the artist from Città di Castello was granted use of the complex as a studio for creating large-format works.

In 1979, one of the sheds was opened to art critics and the public to present the first major pictorial cycle, entitled Il Viaggio (The Journey). The acquisition of the entire complex by the Fondazione Palazzo Albizzini in 1989 marked the beginning of a comprehensive project to restore the complex and convert it into a museum.

 

A total architecture work

The visual experience begins even before you cross the threshold. In accordance with Burri’s precise instructions, the entire exterior of the buildings is painted a deep, matt black. This dark, monolithic block stands out against the Umbrian sky and the green of the surrounding lawn, where three monumental sculptures in painted iron are displayed:

  • Grande Ferro K (1982)
  • Grande Ferro Sestante (1983)
  • Grande Ferro U (1990)
Spacious museum hall with abstract paintings by Alberto Burri and a visitor standing at the centre.

Museum gallery in the Former Tobacco Drying Sheds

Abstract sculpture by Alberto Burri in black and red metal, installed on a lawn.

Abstract sculpture by Alberto Burri

Detail of a black abstract sculpture with a central red teardrop shape illuminated by sunlight.

Detail of a black abstract sculpture

The great pictorial cycles: art becomes space

The exhibition area of the former drying sheds covers an impressive 7,500 square metres and is divided into eleven vast rooms with ceilings reaching a height of fifteen metres. This immense space houses 128 monumental works created between 1974 and 1993.

Unlike the collection at Palazzo Albizzini, which focuses on Burri’s ongoing experimentation with materials such as sacks, plastics and wood, here the artist worked on large pictorial cycles conceived as indivisible polyphonic compositions. Among the most celebrated are:

  • Il Viaggio (The Journey, 1979): the first major cycle created with acrylic paint and Vinavil on Cellotex, marking the beginning of Burri’s exploration of monumental space.
  • Sestante (Sextant, 1982): a rhythmic sequence of shapes and fields of colour that immediately draws the viewer’s eye.
  • Annottarsi (Nightfall, 1985–1987) and Grandi Neri (Large Blacks, 1988–1990): a complete immersion in darkness and in the many shades of black, in which the support itself—often Cellotex, an industrial insulating material—takes on a purely three-dimensional quality.

 

The graphic works and “Burri Documenta”

In March 2017, to mark the anniversary of Alberto Burri’s birth, the Fondazione Palazzo Albizzini inaugurated a new museum section. The “Third Museum” occupies more than four thousand square metres within an area created through the recent redevelopment of part of the complex’s lower levels. These vast spaces house Burri’s Great Cycles, displayed according to the original arrangement devised by the artist himself.

The resulting exhibition area extends across 11,500 square metres. With its three distinct collections, including the outdoor sculptures, the “Burri complex” in Città di Castello is the world’s largest museum dedicated to a single artist and one of Europe’s most important centres for contemporary art.

The most recent section contains an extraordinary display devoted to the artist’s complete body of graphic work. More than two hundred works—including screenprints, etchings and lithographs—demonstrate how Burri worked with meticulous precision and a tireless commitment to geometric experimentation even when working on a smaller scale.

The “Burri Documenta” space also includes screening rooms and archival materials that offer insights into the artist’s life, travels, theatre work and philosophy.

 

Take your time

A visit to the drying sheds calls for a slow pace. The vastness of the rooms and the lack of visual barriers between the visitor and the vast dark surfaces create an almost meditative experience. While Palazzo Albizzini may surprise you with Burri’s inventiveness, the Former Tobacco Drying Sheds will take your breath away with the sheer power of the spaces.

For further information, visit the official website of the Former Tobacco Drying Sheds.

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Main attractions in the vicinity