SHARRYLAND
Villa Cagnola: an Italian garden balcony over the Alps
Where beauty is at home
Where is
What it is and where it is
It is located in Gazzada, on the outskirts of Varese, in a privileged position that gives it enchanting views of the town and the surrounding nature. It is Villa Cagnola, a museum with a religious studies center and hotel attached. As if the beauty that surrounds it were not enough, inside the building on the ground floor is preserved a collection of art objects, mainly paintings and ceramics, but also Flemish tapestries and oriental porcelain collected by owner Carlo Cagnola and heirs since the mid-1800s. A walk through its rooms becomes an exciting journey straddling Europe and the Orient.
Why it's special
Sometimes museums crystallize the beauty of the works they house in order to preserve them, but in doing so they cause a kind of disconnection of art from everyday life. Villa Cagnola, on the other hand, more than a museum, is a private place, home to the Paul VI Religious Studies Center and open to visitors. It is in this context that paintings, porcelain, tapestries, and original antique furniture, as well as a library containing thousands of old books, maintain their status as a family collection, born out of a love of art and shared with the world in the name of this sentiment.
Not to be missed
But the outdoors should certainly not be overlooked: strolling through the park, visitors immerse themselves in nature by taking the opportunity to observe rare and precious essences, from the mammoth cedar of Lebanon to Himalayan cedars. Then there is an unforgettable spectacle that is usually staged on early spring days, especially those that are slightly windy: it is on these occasions that one should not miss the sunset over the Alps, when the breathtaking view stretches languidly to Monte Rosa and Monviso.
A bit of history
The Villa was built in the late 1600s and became the property of the Perabò family. It later passed to the Melzi d'Eril and finally to the Cagnola family, who decided to donate it as a bequest, with all its collections, to the Holy See so that it would take care of the artistic heritage and make it a center for studies and conferences.
Trivia
It is said that during the period of the German occupation, troops stationed in Varese had their eye on the villa's artistic heritage but that the educated Cagnola's mastery of the German language enabled him to impress the German Command so much that he obtained protection.
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