The unexpected discovery of 80 sqm of walls covered in paintings by Futuristic maestro Giacomo Balla has created a stir among contemporary art critics. The murals decorated the long forgotten 1920s night club "Bal Tic Tac" in the former Villa Huffer, built in 1880 for the wealthy German entrepreneur Wilhelm Huffer and now the property of the Bank of Italy.
The nightclub, with its noisy contemporary jazz orchestras and daring cabarets, was popular with the Rome smart set of the time, but was forced to close for safety reasons. Balla had been commissioned to decorate the club and frescoed it with large, brightly coloured abstract designs, which had been believed lost. Instead, they were concealed under a layer of plywood that was removed during work the bank was carrying out on the premises with view to creating a Museum of Coinage, due to open in 2021.
The Balla frescos will be restored and left in situ. The Bank has announced that the public will have access to the rooms in 2019.
Info:www.artribune.com- www.bancaditalia.it/media/infokit/il-bal-tic-tac-di-giacomo-balla.
