Albissola

The parish church of Albissola Marina dates from the late 1500s, with a façade redone in 1903. Inside are a processional float by Anton Maria Maragliano, 17th-century sculptures and a polychrome ceramic nativity scene dated 1576, about two metres tall. The patron saint’s feast, the Nativity of Mary, is on 8 September.

MuDA, the Museo Diffuso Albisola, was founded in 2011 and has no single building: it joins Casa Museo Jorn, the Alba Docilia kiln, the Lungomare degli Artisti and a few historic workshops. The starting point is the Centro Esposizioni on via dell’Oratorio, with exhibitions and a reading room. Entry is normally free, with opening Tuesday to Sunday and a break at midday; hours change with the season, so confirm them on the MuDA website.

The Fornace Alba Docilia on via Stefano Grosso worked from the early 1600s until 1982. Today it is an exhibition space with a permanent show of macachi, the small figures of the Albisola nativity scene. In the square in front is the Raku Wall: 32 square metres and about 1,200 tiles made by 77 artists. The wall can always be seen from the street; the kiln itself has limited opening, mostly weekends and events, so check first.

The artist Asger Jorn (1914–1973) lived and worked here. His house on the hill, in the Bruciati district, is a complete work of art: murals, ceramic collages and a garden. You reach it on foot from the centre by a steep stairway, or by car. Hours depend on the month and the day: check before climbing, because it opens mainly on weekends and a few mornings.

The Fondazione Museo Giuseppe Mazzotti 1903 on corso Matteotti is a garden museum with more than fifty 20th-century works. They include Lucio Fontana’s “Coccodrillo” of 1936, visible from the street. The Mazzotti ceramics building on the Aurelia road, from 1938, is a Futurist design by Nicolaj Diulgheroff. Visiting hours for the museum are not confirmed: ask ahead.

On the border with Savona, the rock with its votive shrine is a snorkelling and photography spot, reached by swimming, pedal boat or SUP. About 200 metres offshore lies the Presepe degli Abissi: three life-size ceramic statues (Joseph, Mary and the infant Jesus) placed on the seabed in 2019. You can visit for free and on your own when the sea allows, swimming, by canoe or SUP, or on a short boat trip.

The museum on corso Filippo Ferrari occupies the house-workshop of the painter and potter Manlio Trucco (1884–1974) and opened in 1989. The route runs backwards from the 20th to the 16th century: Art Deco and Futurist ceramics, small sculptures by Arturo Martini and Francesco Messina, 17th and 18th-century pharmacy jars, 33 photographs by Gianni Berengo Gardin and, in the garden, Agenore Fabbri’s relief “Battaglia”. Hours are short and change: call +39 019 484615 before going. Do not confuse it with the Ceramics Museum in Savona.

The Passeggiata Eugenio Montale follows the old railway line in the Albisola Capo district. It opened in 2001 with polychrome ceramic panels after designs by 20th-century artists linked to Albisola, and a bench about 120 metres long, the “Onda”, by Aurelio Carminati, Carlos Carlé and Emanuele Luzzati. It is Albisola Superiore’s answer to the Lungomare degli Artisti, and a good viewpoint as well.

Ellera, a hamlet of Albisola Superiore about five kilometres from the centre, is an open-air gallery of art ceramics: panels painted by local and international artists on the walls of medieval lanes. The old centre of Albisola Superiore has narrow streets and tower houses, and it is the quietest part of the area.