Visit Spezia

Let's have fun learning in museums and libraries

All the workshops in the library and museums are aimed at children aged 5 to 11 and last from an hour and a half to two hours, unless otherwise specified. The cost of the workshops is 5 euros per participant unless otherwise specified, and booking is always mandatory.  

PROGRAM

JANUARY  

  • Friday, January 26th at 4:00 pm Regional Ligure Mediateca "S. Fregoso" "WINTER CINELAB". The workshop consists of two parts: a creative activity dedicated to winter and the screening of one of the great children's films dedicated to this season. Free admission.
  • Saturday, January 27th at 4:00 pm "Amedeo Lia" Museum "COLORED TRANSPARENCIES". Let's discover together the history of January and the months of the year through the twelve glass rounds depicting them. We will create a transparent and colorful artwork dedicated to our birth month.

FEBRUARY  

  • Saturday, February 3rd at 11:00 am "P.M. Beghi" Library "PAGE TURN! AT CARNIVAL... EVERY BOOK COUNTS!". Starting from reading humorous and carefree books about carnival in the library, we will reproduce typical objects of the Italian carnival. Free admission.
  • Saturday, February 3rd at 4:00 pm Seal Museum "FANTASTIC MASKS AND HOW TO CREATE THEM!". We are about to celebrate Carnival, but this year the usual costumes are banned! Our inspiration will be the dragons and other fantastic animals that roam among the seals of the museum: thanks to them, we will create a sparkling mask to show off during celebrations and parades.
  • Saturday, February 10th at 4:00 pm Ethnographic Museum "G. Podenzana" "THE BEAR OF PEGAZZANO". In 1928, a carnival song revived the discovery of the remains of a cave bear that had occurred a few years earlier on the outskirts of the city. Recalling the festive parade of that year and learning the song, children will create their bear mask!
  • Wednesday, February 14th VALENTINE'S DAY IN THE MUSEUMS WORKSHOPS FOR ADULTS
    • Castle Museum at 4:00 pm "A SOAPSTONE HEART". Soapstone is a soft stone easy to work through polishing; in fact, it was used since the Neolithic period to create jewels and perforated beads found in the burials of that time, also in our territory. With the workshop, we will try stone drilling using the Neolithic drill and create a beautiful heart-shaped pendant to celebrate Valentine's Day.
    • Seal Museum at 5:00 pm "THE SEAL, KEEPER OF LOVING THOUGHTS". The seal as a fashionable and trendy artifact used in private correspondence has been a well-established habit at least since the eighteenth century and throughout the following centuries. Letters and notes between lovers were the preferred recipients to host these precious wax closures, messengers of amorous sayings that, transferred to paper, alluded to the confidential nature of the content. Double matrix seals could also preserve the monograms of a couple, as evidenced by the precious English seal depicting two intertwined hands, which we admire in the jewel-seal room. Inspired by the nineteenth-century custom, let's try writing a secret thought using ink and a nib and then experiment with sealing with wax.
  • Thursday, February 15th at 4:30 pm Special Library of Art and Archaeology "CREATIVE ART WORKSHOP: IF I WERE FRIDA?". The workshop begins with the viewing of Frida Kahlo's works through the available monographs. Together, we will understand the techniques used and the content of the works. Later, we will create an elaborate, reproducing a famous work by the artist and reworking it with our imagination. Free admission.
  • Saturday, February 17th at 4:00 pm "Amedeo Lia" Museum "THE DRAGON MASK". Explore the museum together to find the dragons hiding in the artworks and create the fantastic Spitfire Dragon mask with flames and scales, crest and tail, claws, and wings.
  • Friday, February 23rd at 4:00 pm Regional Ligure Mediateca "S. Fregoso" "CARNIVAL CINELAB". The workshop consists of two parts: a creative activity dedicated to carnival, with the creation of masks inspired by animated film characters, and the subsequent screening of a film. Free admission.
  • Saturday, February 24th at 3:30 pm Castle Museum "COOKING WITH THE ROMANS: MEDUSA BISCUITS". Transform into a pastry chef and learn the cereal grinding practices to make flour, which you will then knead, shape into a biscuit on which you will imprint the image of Medusa, and finally bake in the oven.  

MARCH  

  • Saturday, March 2nd at 4:00 pm Arts Pavilion "HURRAY FOR ADVERTISING!" What is xylography? It is a very ancient engraving technique, but much loved and widely used by 20th-century artists for creating images for advertising. Choose a commercial product you love and create a beautiful poster to convince everyone to buy it!
  • Friday, March 8th WOMEN'S DAY WORKSHOPS FOR ADULTS:
    • Ethnographic Museum "G. Podenzana" at 4:00 pm "GIFTS OF LOVE". Love and youth are the basis of a courtship tradition in the Sarzana area that ended with the gift of a bouquet of fabric flowers that the lover gave to the future bride. Discover this ancient custom, search for museum artifacts related to marriage promises, and finally, create your personal "flower."
    • "Amedeo Lia" Museum at 5:00 pm "FEMALE SHADES". Madonnas and goddesses, noblewomen and commoners: a journey from Ancient Rome to the eighteenth century, to discover how many different shades of shape and meaning can be attributed to the representation of the female figure in art. At the end of the thematic visit, you can create a symbolic red brooch inspired by painted jewels and fabrics.
  • Saturday, March 9th at 11:00 am "P.M. Beghi" Library "SPRING PAGE TURN!" Creative workshop for the little ones. We will start with reading the most famous poetry books dedicated to the spring season and continue by creating colorful objects using recycled materials. Free admission.
  • Thursday, March 14th at 4:30 pm Special Library of Art and Archaeology "CREATIVE ART WORKSHOP: IF I WERE MAGRITTE?" The workshop begins with the viewing of René Magritte's works through the available monographs in the library. Together, we will understand the techniques used and the content of the works. Later, we will create an elaborate, reproducing a famous work by the artist and reworking it with our imagination. Free admission.
  • Saturday, March 23rd at 4:00 pm Seal Museum "FABERGÉ AND THE EGGS OF THE TSAR". Peter Carl Fabergé was a jeweler famous worldwide for creating invaluable jewelry for the Russian tsars; among these, we remember the precious eggs that we will replicate today by creating a precious centerpiece that will embellish our Easter lunch.
  • Friday, March 29th at 4:00 pm Regional Ligure Mediateca "S. Fregoso" "EASTER CINELAB". The workshop consists of two parts: the creation of a small themed object and the subsequent projection of a film dedicated to spring. Free admission.
  • Saturday, March 30th at 11:00 am "P.M. Beghi" Library "EASTER PAGE TURN!" We will start with reading the most famous poetry books dedicated to Easter and continue by creating colorful objects using recycled materials. Free admission.  

APRIL  

  • Saturday, April 6th at 4:00 pm Ethnographic Museum "G. Podenzana" "PRECIOUS FRUIT. SENSORY WORKSHOP". A fun workshop dedicated to fruit in which all five senses will be involved. Participants will play with the senses, learning to perceive different tastes, flavors, textures, and colors to understand the importance of fruit in our diet.
  • Thursday, April 11th at 4:30 pm Special Library of Art and Archaeology "CREATIVE ART WORKSHOP: PREHISTORY MEETS ART". The workshop begins with the viewing of images from the books on the shelves about the topic covered. Later, we will create an elaborate, using modeling clay, reproducing with this material a cave figure. Through the practical workshop, children can approach an ancient heritage, full of curiosity and interest, experimenting with artistic techniques similar to those used in the past. Free admission.
  • Saturday, April 13th at 3:30 pm Castle Museum "THE ANCIENT POP-UP BOOK". How did the Ancients tell and remember the deeds of gods, heroes, and men? After discovering it, the stories will find a place in a three-dimensional booklet that we will build together.
  • Saturday, April 20th at 4:00 pm Arts Pavilion "TRANSPARENCIES, LIGHT, AND COLOR: LET'S PLAY WITH LIBERTY STAINED GLASS" Many elegant palaces that we can admire strolling through the streets of the city center are Liberty architectures, where precious wrought iron and colored glass decorations play a leading role. Today, we will have fun creating a sketch for a small Liberty stained glass!
  • Friday, April 26th at 4:00 pm Regional Ligure Mediateca S. Fregoso "SPRING CINELAB". The workshop consists of two parts: the creation of a small movie-themed artifact and the subsequent projection of a film dedicated to spring. Free admission.  

MAY  

  • Saturday, May 4th at 4:00 pm Ethnographic Museum "G. Podenzana" "SCENTS OF THE FIELD". Today it is not unusual to prepare lavender sachets to scent and beautify drawers and wardrobes. In the past, other flowers and different herbs were also used for this purpose, and participants will get to know them by experiencing the creation of personalized scented sachets.
  • SATURDAY, MAY 11, AND SUNDAY, MAY 12 "KIDS PASS DAYS" – FREE ADMISSION
    • Saturday, May 11th at 3:30 pm Castello San Giorgio "GREAT CHALLENGE BETWEEN PRIESTS AND EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS". Children and parents will face the most famous board game of ancient Egypt after learning the rules. At the end, they will create their board and pieces to continue challenging each other at home...
    • Saturday, May 11th at 5:00 pm Ethnographic Museum "G. Podenzana" "FROM MEDIEVAL SUGAR TO MODERN CAKE DESIGN". Special for children and parents. Originally, sugar was an expensive food extracted from beets or sugar cane, cultivated since the Middle Ages. In the 1800s, sugar paste arrived, now one of the most used decorative elements. We will all have fun manipulating it together to create sweet creations.
    • Sunday, May 12th at 3:30 pm "Amedeo Lia" Museum "THE FAMILY OF COLORS". The set of colors can be thought of as a large family in which everyone is connected and interconnected but also independent and with their characteristics. Through the museum's paintings, we will immerse ourselves in the varied and surprising world of color, experimenting with pigments, coloring materials, and techniques to create a small notebook of colorful notes.
    • Sunday, May 12th at 4:45 pm Seal Museum "THE LEGEND OF TANGRAM AND THE SEVEN STONES OF WISDOM". The legend tells that a young Chinese monk set out to explore the world with the desire to paint its beauties on a porcelain tablet. But this broke into seven pieces, and trying to reassemble the square, the young man realized that by combining the tiles, he could still create many interesting images. With clay, we will obtain seven geometric shapes, color them, and challenge ourselves to compose increasingly daring figures.
  • Thursday, May 16, at 4:30 PM, Special Library of Art and Archaeology "SCIENCE MEETS ART: PIXEL ART." The connection between Pointillism and modern pixels is an example that illustrates how science, technology, and art share a journey that began in the past. Through the practical pixel art workshop, children will engage in drawings highlighting the grid structure, making it an artistic device, intuitively introducing them to coding. Free entry.
  • Saturday, May 18, at 11:00 AM, Civic Library "P. M. Beghi" "TURN THE PAGE! LET'S GO TO EGYPT!" Creative workshop for the little ones on the fascinating world of Ancient Egypt. Discover Ancient Egypt through the images of books at Beghi! Free entry.
  • Friday, May 24, at 4:00 PM, Ligurian Regional Mediatheque "S. Fregoso" "CINELABORATORY... A SURPRISE!" The workshop consists of two parts: creating a small cinematic-themed artifact and then screening a themed film. Free entry.