MUSE Firenze

The San Firenze complex on the piazza of the same name is one of the few architectural examples of the late Baroque in the heart of Florence. The history of the site begins in 1640, when the Philippine Fathers received the land from Pope Urban VIII to build a large religious complex there. Pietro da Cortona was originally commissioned for the project, but his plans proved too ambitious financially. In the end, Pier Francesco Silvani took over the direction of the work, while Ferdinando Ruggieri designed the facade in pietraforte stone. Over the centuries, the ensemble served not only as a church but also as a monastery and oratory. After the judicial authorities moved to the new courthouse in Novoli in 2012, the complex was once again available to the city. Since July 2017, it has housed the Franco Zeffirelli International Center for the Performing Arts, which collects the cultural legacy of the famous director and opens the rooms for exhibitions and events.

Inside the church, you can experience a unique concentration of seventeenth- and eighteenth-century Florentine art. The furnishings follow a unified design that brings together marble statues, reliefs, frescoes, and paintings by artists such as Giuseppe Pinzani, Antonio Puglieschi, and Anton Domenico Gabbiani. A highlight is the large fresco by Niccolò Lapi in the half dome of the apse, depicting the Holy Trinity, as well as the ceiling painting by Giovanni Camillo Sagrestani. The adjoining oratory, which once served as a courtroom, impresses with its elegant architecture of Ionic columns and loggias. It was once an auditorium for sacred music and still recalls the musical tradition of the Oratorians, who lived according to the rule of Saint Philip Neri. The unified facade of the entire complex, designed by Zanobi Del Rosso, frames this historic site impressively.