Rome Art Galleries, Museums, Supplies & More

Best art galleries Rome museums supplies classes your area

Today we will all be going on a deep dive into art in Rome and our opening section will fully cover the best art galleries and museums near you.

After that we will get into a variety of other topics like local art supply stores, events, festivals, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures and statues, art classes, studios for rent, and the top frame shops in your area.

If you are after any specific section you can jump straight to it using the table of contents on the left and we are also including a Rome art map with all of the various places we mention throughout the post pinned on it. You can see some of the finest exhibitions and collections Europe in this city and that link will take you to all of our posts on the continent.

Best Art Galleries & Museums In Rome

If you want to visit the best art galleries and museums in Rome you can go to:

Doria Pamphili Gallery houses works by well-known Italian artists like Caravaggio, Tiziano, Raffaello, Carracci, and Bernini. They also have works by Flemish masters of the Baroque era, a true flagship of the Doria Pamphili collection, the French landscape specialist Lorrain, and the most representative Spanish artist of the Baroque era Diego Velázquez. You can visit the Doria Pamphili Gallery from 9am to 7pm Monday through Thursday and from 10am to 8pm Friday through Sunday.

The Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Moderna e Contemporanea is open from 9am to 7pm daily except for Monday when they are closed and they exhibit around 1,100 paintings and sculptures from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries which is thought to be the largest collection in Italy. Among the local artists included are Giacomo Balla, Umberto Boccioni, Alberto Burri, Giacomo Manzù, Vittorio Matteo Corcos, and others while the museum also houses works by foreign creators like Monet, Braque, Van Gogh, and Rodin.

Galleria Borghese holds and displays ancient sculptures, a great mosaic collection, and numerous paintings and sculptures from the 15th to the 19th centuries. Many of the masterpieces date back to Cardinal Scipione Borghese’s collection of over 260 paintings including some by Caravaggio, Raphael, Titian, Correggio, Antonello da Messina, and Giovanni Bellini in addition to sculptures by Gian Lorenzo Bernini and Canova. Galleria Borghese is also closed on Monday but opens at 9am every other day of the week while normally closing at 7pm but staying open until 10pm on Wednesday and 9pm on Thursday.

The Musei Vaticani in Rome house over 70,000 works, 20,000 of which are on display. They exhibit pieces from the vast collection amassed by the Catholic Church and the papacy throughout the centuries including paintings and sculptures by Carlo Carrà, Giorgio de Chirico, Vincent van Gogh, Salvador Dalí, and Pablo Picasso. Head over from 8:30am to 6:30pm Monday through Thursday and until 10:30pm on Friday and Saturday.

The permanent holdings of the Museo Nazionale Delle Arti Del XXI Secolo number around 400 works by some of the most important Italian and foreign artists of the time like Alighiero Boetti, Francesco Clemente, William Kentridge, Mario Merz, and Gerhard Richter. They are open from 11am to 7pm every day but Monday and provide an educational program for all ages that includes some of the best art lessons in your area and an advanced training program.

The permanent collection of the Museo d’Arte Contemporanea includes a selection of some of the most significant expressions of the Italian art scene since the 1960’s including the group Forma 1 with works by Carla Accardi, Antonio Sanfilippo, Achille Perilli, Piero Dorazio, Leoncillo, and Ettore Colla. You can check all of those and more out from Noon to 7pm Tuesday through Friday and from 10am to 7pm on weekends.

Musei Capitolini is open daily from 9:30am to 7:30pm and originally opened to the public in 1734 making it widely regarded as the world’s first museum. Galleria Corsini is the only collection of paintings near you dating from the 1700’s that remains intact to this day with pieces by Caravaggio, Reni, Guercino, Rubens, and van Wittel. Their highlight collection includes the Madonna del Latte which is a masterpiece by the Spanish painter Bartolomé Esteban Murillo and you can view it and more from 10am to 6pm any day of the week except for Monday when they are closed.

The Palazzo delle Esposizioni hosts events such as film festivals, live performances, music, and art talks. They also offer educational programs for people of all ages including art classes and workshops with their doors being open from 10am to 8pm every day but Monday.

Materials & Supplies Near You

There are quite a few stores in this city to buy art supplies and materials like:

Poggi Belle Arti has been selling arts and craft supplies in your area since 1825.

Hobby & Colors Italia offers a diverse range of products totaling 35,000 items including fine arts, décor, hobby, knitwear, and yarns plus you can take art lessons there.

2c Arte is a good place to go for custom framing.

Shows, Festivals & Events

Some of the best shows, festivals, and events held here are:

Carnevale Romano is celebrated before Lent and is inspired by the ancient Roman Saturnalia as the carnival was one of the primary events of papal Rome. Most events take place at Piazza del Popolo in February and include street theatre, live music, and performances.

La Notte Bianca is a special event which the shops and museums are open all night long with various exhibitions and concerts that takes place every year on the first or second Saturday of September.

The annual Romaeuropa Festival is held from September through November and is a multi-disciplinary arts festival featuring famous creators from all over the world.

Art Dealers & Appraisers

When you are ready to add a new piece to your collection or find out the true value of works you can go to art dealers and appraisers near you like:

Paolo Antonacci Antichita ‘Srl is an art dealer near you that specializes in old master paintings from the late eighteenth century to the first half of the twentieth century with a focus on Vedutismo.

Mostra Arte Contemporanea offers original oil paintings by local artists and provides commissioned pieces.

Walking Tours

Taking a local art walking tour on a sunny day can be a lot of fun:

Rome’s Ultimate Free Walking Tour provides free tours twice daily at 11am and 4pm that last around 2.5-3 hours and covers approximately 3 km.

Caravaggio Art Walking Tour will take you to experience the outstanding works of Raphael and Caravaggio in churches, including the stunning Santa Maria del Popolo and San Luigi dei Francesi as well as the iconic Pantheon.

Sculptures & Statues

Framing art supply stores Rome lessons near you studios

You can also find some really unique statues and sculptures around town like:

  • Lupa Capitolina at Piazza del Campidoglio 1
  • Elephant & Obelisk at Piazza della Minerva 69
  • Mosè di Michelangelo at Piazza di San Pietro in Vincoli 4/A
  • Fiumi Fountain at Piazza Navona
  • Monumento a Giordano Bruno at Piazza Campo de’ Fiori
  • Equestrian Statue of Marcus Aurelius at Piazza del Campidoglio 1

In February 1667 the Elephant and Obelisk ensemble was erected in the Piazza della Minerva in front of the church of Santa Maria Sopra Minerva about halfway between the Colosseum and the Vatican where it still remains today.

Mosè di Michelangelo was created between 1513 and 1515 and was intended to be part of Pope Julius II’s tomb but today it can be found in the church of San Pietro in Vincoli.

The Fiumi Fountain is located in Piazza Navona and Gian Lorenzo Bernini designed it in 1651.

Monumento a Giordano Bruno is located in Campo de’ Fiori and was financed by the Masonic circles of Italy and erected in 1889 by Ettore Ferrari on the same spot where Giordano Bruno was burned at the stake in 1600 for heresy.

Marcus Aurelius’ Equestrian Statue was erected around 175 AD and the original is on exhibit in the Capitoline Museums with the current one standing in the open air of Piazza del Campidoglio being a replica made in 1981.

Rome Art Classes

There are some top notch instructors teaching lessons at the best Rome art schools:

Bordi Belle Arti offers lessons in oil painting, watercolor painting, acrylic painting, drawing and archaic techniques like fresco and encaustic. Lessons are offered from September to July although registration is always open because the courses are monthly and everyone can choose based on their schedule, the level of learning they want to acquire, and the length of time they want to attend.

La Porta Blu Art School offers art courses in your area for people of all ages and skill levels beginning with children as young as six years old. They also teach engraving, art history, nude drawing, and sculpting.

Scuola di Fumetto e Illustrazione offers professional courses in Rome, Naples, and Bari in cartooning, manga, illustration, drawing, and painting to students of all ages from beginners to advanced.

Scienza Dell’arte offers drawing and painting courses in many techniques and genres for students of all ages from beginners to experienced. They provide classes in nude drawing, art history, and theoretics as well as test preparation for academy and high school.

Museo Nazionale Delle Arti Del XXI Secolo and The Palazzo delle Esposizioni from our first list offer local art classes, while Hobby & Colors from the supplies list does too.

Studios For Rent In Your Area

Those of you who are ready to start a big project can try to rent art studio space at:

Framing

A frame can really transform the viewing experience and some of the best shops for picture and art framing are:

Zeno Arte offers over 150 different styles of frames and perfect passepartout to the millimeter as well as hundreds of different colors and thicknesses.

Zappia Cornici provides a wide range of processes for ancient and modern frames of all shapes, materials, and colors including carvings, graffiti, gilding, silvering, and polishing, all with a quick and high-quality service. They also provide frame, painting, print, and photograph restoration services.

Cornici Mita is a good option for prompt and expert service for the replacement of glass, frames, mirrors, and crystals at home.

Cornici & Specchi di Fausto Prosperi a Montesacro specializes in the manufacturing of frames, mirrors, glass, rods, and wooden profiles of different shapes and sizes. They also provide expert restoration of antique frames and small furniture.

2c Arte from the supply list is another good option for custom framing near you. The curious types may want to read our posts on:

Have Fun Enjoying The Rome Art Scene

Well guys, we tried to cover the full art scene near you to the best of our abilities. We listed the best local galleries, museums, events, shows, supply stores, dealers, appraisers, walking tours, sculptures, classes, studios, and frame shops in your area.

If you made it this far you probably love art as much as we do. You can let us know about any of your own tips and tricks in the comments at the end of the post, or please also let us know if we got anything wrong or if anything we posted has become dated.

Have fun going to the galleries, museums, buying supplies or doing anything that has to do with art in Rome!

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This post and all of the posts on our site are edited by Dan Soloman who has been a huge fan of art since he was a little kid. His mother was a good local artist, and she taught him the trade from a very early age. He studied art and its history in both high school and college, has worked at multiple galleries, and recently has begun creating and editing online content for this site and some other online media platforms.

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