By Francesca Trovato. Cover image GAMB identity Migliori+Servetto
What is GAMB?
Launched during the reopening of the restoration site for Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus pedestal, GAMB is a cultural network connecting seven of Florence’s key museums. Its aim is simple and bold: create a single visual identity that helps locals and visitors navigate the city’s dense cultural offer.
The participating institutions include the Gallerie dell’Accademia, the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, the Museo delle Cappelle Medicee, Palazzo Davanzati, Orsanmichele, Casa Martelli, and the former church of San Procolo, which is expected to open once restoration works are completed. Together, they manage more than 50,000 artworks and over 18,000 m² of exhibition space, including what is described as the world’s largest collection of works by Michelangelo, alongside masterpieces by Donatello, Giotto, Benvenuto Cellini, and Lorenzo Ghiberti.
A Shared Identity for Seven Museums
Creating a shared logo meant finding a visual language capable of expressing this shared identity. Portraying a city as complex and culturally rich as Florence is no easy task, especially when the goal is to bring together centuries of knowledge and heritage under a single visual language.
Working alongside the design studio Migliore+Servetto, a concept began to take shape: a meeting point that becomes a line, and a line that becomes a path. From the route connecting these seven museums across Florence’s historic center emerged the pictogram that now symbolizes this union, a visual representation of a shared cultural journey.
A Live Restoration at the Bargello
At the Museo Nazionale del Bargello, a public restoration site has opened, offering transparent access to conservation work. During regular opening hours, visitors can follow the different stages of the restoration firsthand as it unfolds inside the gallery. This allows them to engage not only with the final outcome, but also with the process behind it.
The project is supported by carefully curated educational materials, including informational panels, historical photographs, and archival videos. Accessibility-focused programs and dedicated visitor pathways have also been developed to ensure a more inclusive experience for all audiences.
Inside the Restoration of Cellini’s Perseus Pedestal
The marble pedestal of Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus (1549–1553), commissioned by Cosimo I de’ Medici, is currently undergoing a new conservation campaign aimed at enhancing the clarity and splendour of the Loggia dei Lanzi. This intervention comes nearly 30 years after the last restoration of the base, using updated methodologies and advanced analytical tools.
Unlike previous work, this campaign relies on imaging and diagnostic technologies that allow for deeper research into materials, stratigraphy, and conservation history. GAMB is more than a logo: it integrates educational content (information panels, archival photos and videos) with accessibility-focused routes and programming. The result is an inclusive, process-oriented museum experience that invites audiences to understand how objects are conserved, contextualized, and reinterpreted.
How to Follow the GAMB Route
The pictogram appears across museum signage and maps, guiding visitors through a new network of connected cultural routes across Florence. Guided itineraries, restoration viewing times, and future combined tickets aim to make the city’s museum system easier to explore on foot.
