Celebrations begin for the 100th anniversary of the death of the architect behind the Sagrada Família. In July, the global festival returns with exclusive tours and special openings in more than 230 cities
Italy is preparing to celebrate Antoni Gaudí — and much more besides — in grand style. One hundred years after the death of the visionary Catalan architect, 10 June marks World Art Nouveau Day (Wand). To mark the occasion, the association Italia Liberty is officially launching the celebrations with a major conference devoted entirely to the master who conceived the Basilica of the Sagrada Família in Barcelona, whose construction site remains active to this day. The event serves as a key prelude to the presentation of the extensive programme of Art Nouveau Week, the international festival that, from 8 to 14 July 2026, will celebrate the early twentieth-century cultural movement in all its many forms.
The Secret Geometry of Antoni Gaudí
This year, the connection between Italy and the legacy of Modernisme will be expressed through a series of high-profile journeys dedicated to art and architecture.
The flagship initiative promoted by Italia Liberty will be the exclusive tour entitled The Secret Geometry of Antoni Gaudí, scheduled for the weekend of 11 and 12 July.
Designed for a select audience of art lovers, the experience aims to reveal, from a new perspective, the structural secrets, organic inspirations and masterpieces of the Spanish architect in the centenary year of his death.
Curated by expert Andrea Speziali together with a distinguished scientific committee, the eighth edition of Art Nouveau Week will offer a wide-reaching programme across Italy, with a strong urban and cultural impact. A total of 230 cities will be involved, supported by a team of tourist guides leading daily tours. The programme will include access to palaces, villas and Liberty-style complexes that are usually closed to the public. It is a unique opportunity to rediscover a national architectural heritage protected by planning and conservation constraints. The theme of the 2026 edition is the sea, interpreted both as a natural element and as a decorative motif.
The Atlas of Italian Liberty
The map of the more than 230 cities involved across the various editions of Art Nouveau Week shows that the floral and modernist style was far from an isolated phenomenon. Rather, it was an aesthetic revolution that connected Italy from north to south, developing through three major geographical and cultural strands. The greatest concentration can be found in the northern regions, where Liberty coincided with the economic and industrial boom of the early twentieth century. Lombardy and Piedmont, with more than 60 cities, are the festival’s main epicentres. Alongside major centres such as Milan, with the legacy of Giuseppe Sommaruga, and Turin, Liberty architecture developed around the lakes — from Cernobbio and Bellagio sul Lago di Como to Stresa and Arona sul Lago Maggiore — as well as in symbolic workers’ villages such as Crespi d’Adda.
Between Venice, with its iconic Lido, Trieste and Gorizia, the style entered into dialogue with the Vienna Secession. In Trentino-Alto Adige, in places such as Merano and Levico, Liberty became the architectural language of choice for spa tourism and aristocratic retreats under Habsburg influence. The axis then shifts towards the coast: on one side, the Ligurian Riviera, from Sanremo to Genoa and Savona; on the other, the Romagna coastline, including Rimini, Riccione, Cervia and Cesenatico, where Liberty villas effectively helped to invent the modern idea of the seaside holiday.
In central Italy, Art Nouveau engages with ancient history, inserting itself elegantly into medieval and Renaissance town centres as well as into historic spa towns. In Tuscany, Viareggio stands out as a capital of coastal Liberty, alongside art cities such as Florence and historic thermal destinations such as Montecatini. In Lazio, beyond the monumental character of Rome, the festival reaches traditional holiday destinations of the Roman bourgeoisie, including Anzio, Ostia, Santa Marinella and the spa town of Fiuggi.
In the Marche, the spread of Liberty architecture is particularly striking along the Adriatic coast, from Pesaro and Senigallia to San Benedetto del Tronto and Grottammare. In Umbria, meanwhile, the festival moves inland, touching Perugia, Terni, Spoleto and Foligno, and highlighting the versatility of Liberty as applied to the decorative arts, including Deruta ceramics.
Moving further south, Art Nouveau Week reveals a more “sunlit” form of Liberty, often linked to great shipping families or to the landed aristocracy. Sicily boasts a major heritage, with as many as 20 cities involved. Palermo, together with the seaside village of Mondello, and Catania are the leading centres of a distinctive style that flourished thanks to architects of the calibre of Ernesto Basile. The festival also reaches gems such as Taormina, Syracuse with Ortigia, and Messina, rebuilt after the earthquake according to new early twentieth-century architectural principles.
In Puglia, Liberty comes to life in Bari and across Salento, including Lecce, Nardò and the seaside areas around Gallipoli, where elegant eclectic villas define the architectural landscape. In Campania, alongside Naples and Salerno, the Phlegraean architecture of Bacoli also stands out.
The festival also gives visibility to lesser-known areas that are nonetheless rich in Liberty details: from the palaces of Pescara and Teramo in Abruzzo to the mining and urban architecture of Sardinia, including Cagliari, Iglesias and Sassari, and the Calabrian centres of Reggio Calabria and Palmi, which were rebuilt in the early twentieth century according to the new floral canon.
