Aemilia Ars in the Pianura Bolognese

Follow the trail of Bolognese art linked to the society founded by architect Alfonso Rubbiani. This route takes you north of the city to discover the gems of Aemilia Ars, tangible testimonies to a still-vibrant cultural legacy.

• Budrio – Town Hall

Start at Budrio’s Town Hall, which houses a grand staircase and council chamber decorated by Aemilia Ars artisans with floral, Art Nouveau motifs. Originally a noble residence and later a convent, it became municipal property in 1871. In 1879, it was drastically transformed: the tower was lowered and crowned with battlements, and the building was reinterpreted in a neo-Gothic style while preserving original window frames and historical ornaments.

Rubbiani, then a city councilor, personally designed the wooden furnishings, wrought-iron railings, and stained-glass windows. Painter Achille Casanova used hemp, symbolic of the local economy, as a floral motif behind the municipal and district shields. In 1895, a bust of Quirico Filopanti was placed above the entrance to the council chamber. In 1911, Giovanni Venturoli decorated the staircase walls with airy, Art Nouveau designs featuring Latin maxims about good governance and district coats of arms. 

• Bentivoglio – Castle and Palazzo Rosso

Continue to Bentivoglio, where you’ll find two architectural treasures:

• Bentivoglio Castle, also known as Domus Jocunditatis or Ponte Poledrano Castle, was built in the late 15th century as a leisure residence for the Bentivoglio family, particularly Giovanni II. This square-plan building features large windows and a bright courtyard. Rubbiani restored it in the late 1800s, and inside are stunning Renaissance frescoes alongside later Aemilia Ars-style decorations. The “Bread Stories Hall” illustrates the agricultural life of the Bentivoglio lands through lively paintings, while the private chapel features symbolic and religious motifs reflecting the family’s prestige.

• Palazzo Rosso, known for its striking red brick façade, is one of the rare examples of Aemilia Ars applied to rural architecture. Built in the late 1800s by Marquis Carlo Alberto Pizzardi, it overlooks the Navile Canal near the old Bentivoglio lock. At the entrance, murals depict ducks flying over yellow irises, signalling the refined interior design. A decorated staircase leads to the “Zodiac Hall", one of the finest examples of Aemilia Ars decorative art. The ceiling presents a night sky, while the walls—divided into three levels—feature zodiac signs, marshland birds, fish, and plant life.

Bentivoglio also hosts the “I Merletti di Antonilla Cantelli” Association, which keeps the tradition of Aemilia Ars lace-making alive through generations.

• Baricella – Oratory of San Marco

The route continues to Baricella’s Oratory of San Marco, also known as Cappella Zucchini. Designed as her husband’s funerary chapel, the brick building, decorated with neo-medieval terracotta, was created by painter Giuseppe De Col. It’s considered one of Aemilia Ars' finest examples of floral funerary art.

Inside, the walls are covered in symbolist floral frescoes, including a profusion of white poppies, emblems of eternal rest and death, consistent with the Art Nouveau aesthetic of Aemilia Ars. Zucchini’s ashes rest here, immortalizing a work that blends memory, beauty, and exquisite craftsmanship.

• Sala Bolognese – Church of Santa Maria Annunziata and San Biagio

Heading back toward Bologna, visit Sala Bolognese’s Church of Santa Maria Annunziata and San Biagio, an important Romanesque-Lombard monument dating to 1096. Restored in 1920 by Giuseppe Rivani, a pupil of Rubbiani and part of the Aemilia Ars school, the renovation carefully respected its original forms while adding decorative elements in keeping with the movement’s aesthetic. 

Here you’ll find one of the church’s most fascinating elements: the main altar carved from an ancient pagan altar, featuring the head of a horned deity overlaid with a Christian cross, symbolizing the transition from paganism to Christianity. A sculpted Swabian Imperial eagle decorates the pulpit railing. This historic, spiritual setting bears a permanent trace of the Aemilia Ars movement.

© Piergiorgio Sorgetti