PM23 | FVG Fondazione Valentino Garavani e Giancarlo Giammetti | Nemesi Architects

ARCHITECTURE AS A MANIFESTO OF URBAN AND CULTURAL TRANSFORMATION

In 2025, PM23 opens its doors: a new cultural space in the heart of Rome, dedicated to the promotion of art and fashion.

Rome’s historic center now shines brighter with the inauguration of the FVG | Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti Foundation's new cultural venue, a new landmark for the arts and culture, located at Piazza Mignanelli 23, right next to the historic headquarters of Maison Valentino.

This precious new cultural hub, named PM23, is the result of an ambitious architectural restoration and redevelopment project by Nemesi Architects. It is a cutting-edge design endeavor that blends tradition, innovation, and sustainability.
Commissioned by the FVG, the project transforms the 19th-century building into an international hub for art, fashion and creativity, while fostering a vibrant dialogue between Rome’s architectural heritage and a contemporary, global artistic vision.

THE ARCHITECTURAL CHALLENGE: BETWEEN MEMORY AND INNOVATION

The project strikes a balance between classical and contemporary languages, using architecture as a tool to interpret the dialogue between Rome’s unique historical layers and the world.
The distinctive values of Maison Valentino, through its legendary history, have helped redefine global standards of beauty, creating a legacy recognized across the international jet set.

Designed by Nemesi Architects in close collaboration with the Foundation, the architectural project stems from a research-based approach that reimagines the intersection of architecture, art and fashion.

Since 2016, the FVG has advanced the same vision of beauty and dialogue between innovation and tradition through its philanthropic initiatives, promoting the visionary work of Valentino Garavani and Giancarlo Giammetti.

The restoration preserved the original 19th-century structure, enhancing its spatial qualities through innovative design solutions.
A meticulous removal of accretions that had obscured the original architecture now restores the historical and morphological identity of the building, placing it in conversation with a system of contemporary elements designed to accommodate its new cultural role.
The architectural concept celebrates Rome’s layered urban fabric, emphasizing the contrast between classical language and contemporary forms.

Historical masonry, arches and vaults now coexist with fluid, dynamic elements—false ceilings, wall panels, and flooring—shaping a compelling spatial narrative.
Technological simplicity enhances the light-filled and ethereal ambiance. The new skylight system defines the exhibition areas and reflects the purity and strength of the space.

Freely suspended from the historic envelope, contemporary elements—through strategically controlled disconnections—enrich the composition and express the delicate relationship between tradition and innovation, Roman heritage and international flair, so emblematic of the Foundation.
By hosting international contemporary art and culture, PM23 affirms the identity of a legacy like no other.
The distinctive V-shaped steel lighting structures further strengthen the FVG’s unique identity.

Digital technologies shape an immersive environment for exhibitions, events and educational initiatives, all within a dynamic and emotionally engaging atmosphere.
The exhibition layout prioritizes flexibility and adaptability, allowing the space to accommodate a wide range of programming.

A key architectural feature is the restored monumental staircase, adorned with fine marbles and accompanied by a new crystal elevator, leading visitors through a journey that merges beauty and innovation.

Nemesi Architects’ hallmark is the majestic new gull-wing skylight, which enhances the verticality of PM23’s central space, creating dramatic chromatic contrasts through emotional use of light.

Supporting the core exhibition space are a bookshop, ticketing area with direct access from Piazza Mignanelli, a cloakroom, and an administrative office space distinguished by the trifora windows above the main entrance portal.

With this work, Nemesi reaffirms architecture as a catalyst for cultural and urban regeneration, redefining identity through interdisciplinary dialogue with context and the arts.

PROGRAMMATIC AND FUNCTIONAL ORGANIZATION

The PM23 project establishes a harmonious dialogue between history and innovation, clearly distinguishing the original historical layers from the contemporary additions.

The intervention strategy enhances spatial clarity while honoring the memory of the site in dialogue with the present.
The spaces are dedicated to temporary exhibitions, research, archiving and educational activities with a strong emphasis on environmental sustainability and public engagement.

Functional layout includes:
• An entrance and ticketing area on the ground floor, directly accessible from Piazza Mignanelli 23
through a monumental hallway;
• A large exhibition and educational space, including the bookshop and cloakroom;
• An administrative area on the second floor.

The main entrance at No. 23 Piazza Mignanelli—hence the name PM23—leads through a grand historic hallway to the monumental staircase and crystal elevator.
Integrated into this hallway is the ticketing and information point, directly accessible from the square.

The exhibition journey begins on the first level, through the monumental stairway leading to the first gallery: a spacious, flowing environment defined by an asymmetrical lowered arched ceiling and the iconic V-shaped stainless-steel lighting system that evokes Valentino’s signature emblem.

Two transverse diaphragms with classical columns and arches punctuate the space, joined by a sculptural, contemporary longitudinal wall.
Light streaming from large longitudinal skylights immerses the space in changing, emotional atmospheres.