I’ve never really cared about cars and I’m not much of a Ferrari fan. At least, I wasn’t, until that is, I visited the Casa Enzo Ferrari, a museum dedicated to the life and success of the man behind the most iconic car in the world.
MEF
The “MEF” as it is lovingly called, stands for Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari and unlike the Ferrari Museum in Maranello, the MEF is dedicated to the life of Enzo Ferrari, the man whose passion, risks and dedication created some of the most powerful cars ever produced and to this day the foremost symbol of luxury, speed, technology and beauty.
His House
This building is where Enzo Ferrari was born, where he lived through WWI bombings, where he lost his father, Alfredo, to pneumonia and where he convinced his mother to invest EVERYTHING THEY HAD in his dream to design and make cars by selling their HOUSE.
And she did.
She believed in her son enough to risk the roof over their heads, which should be a reminder that when a parent believes in their child, they can accomplish anything.
The exhibit inside the old mechanics shop and house is one of the most modern, technological and beautiful exhibits I’ve ever seen. The long space is divided in two by a huge white structure that resembles a whale’s skeleton, featuring projections about everything from the technology used in the cars, to famous people who own Ferraris, the many awards and records that Ferrari cars have won and of course the cars connection to watches, sunglasses and all things luxury.
They Thought About the Kids and Short Attention Spans!
One of the main problems with museums in general is that they almost never cater to children unless the museum / exhibit is specifically for children. The Casa Enzo Ferrari got a few things RIGHT. As soon as you enter the exhibit they have a short film that you must watch before entering ……but the great thing is….IT’S A CARTOON!
The film follows the life of little boy Enzo through his childhood, the war, his first job working for Fiat, making his first car, racing…..all the way to his success. For the first time my husband and I actually got to hear the whole complete story before entering into the museum because our son was captivated by the cartoon!
Of course for many little boys Ferrari remains the stuff of dreams and legends and they come to this Museum not to be bored to tears but to be excited, inspired and moved, and that is just what happened.
Il Cofano
In Italian “il cofano” refers to the hood of a car. At the MEF the exhibit hall space for the Ferrari cars on display was designed to resemble a Ferrari’s hood, its shape embraces the old house and the trademark yellow is the same used in the Ferrari logo.
This Museum is STUNNING, both from afar and upclose, but the most stunning view of it is actually in the air!! I wasn’t able to capture the beauty of the roof on this cloudy day but feel free to watch this video taken by drones flying overhead to truly appreciate the scale and design of the exhibit hall.
When you enter into the massive atrium there is a Café and restaurant area that is open for lunch and snacks, a discreet gift shop and a few things on display like the Ferrari Boat!
Let’s Talk Emotion
As I mentioned before I’ve never gone crazy for cars, but let me tell you, walking into the immense exhibition hall filled with stunning Ferraris on floating platforms and hearing Pavarotti’s voice singing Nessun Dorma ”all’alba vincerò! Vincerò! Vincerò!” At sunset I will win! I WILL WIN! I WIIIIIIILLLLLLL WWWIIIIIINNNNNNNNN ! ! ! ! !
Tears.
That’s what I have to say. I CRIED in a FERRARI MUSEUM.
How could I not? The exhibit in his birth house was so expressive of the difficulty and challenges that Enzo Ferrari faced that I just couldn’t help feeling that he was a man who beat all odds against him. I felt such incredible pride for living in Modena, his home town, that I was filled with emotion. Oh, and this is BEFORE the multimedia, 360° projection….but I’ll get to that!
It Snowed
So I love going to museums, but I am notorious for remembering little of what I read, skimming descriptions, getting dates confused and condensing a lot of information into a few key points….”got it….King, Prince, Castel, important during Renaissance, fire, re-built, good architect” – that pretty much describes what I get out of 90% of the castels we visit for example.
I was already pleased with the cartoon video at the MEF‘s entrance but then, in the exhibition hall filled with the most breath taking cars the lights went out!
For a few seconds we were in the dark and then a voice came in, and a projection on the wall. The ENTIRE interior space was transformed into a screen similar to an IMAX film and a 360° movie was projected on it from all sides.
At one point it snowed and it felt like you were really outside under the snow surrounded by Ferraris (quick someone cover the leather on the convertables!!!).
My son LOVED it, I loved it, my man loved it….EVERYONE loved it. We watched the whole movie as we wandered through the space. The film was a collage of bits and pieces of news footage from the early 1900s and traced the Ferrari story and success. Again the film ended with Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma and AGAIN I CRIED!!
ICONS
The exhibit exit lead the visitors into a conference room that was showing a great temporary exhibit called ICONS of POP ART, with a Ferrari painted by Steve Kaufman in 2006! Works by Andy Warhol, Steve Kaufman, Roy Lichtenstein and others were on display and I have to say the exhibit FIT PERFECTLY with the Casa Enzo Ferrari Museum.
Icons of pop culture beside the foremost ICON of speed, luxury and technology. The most recognizable brand logo in the world is the Ferrari prancing pony!
All in all a GREAT day was had at the MEF, Museo Casa Enzo Ferrari. If you are visiting Bologna or Modena, or this part of Italy in general and have anyone in your family that lovs cars and Ferraris I HIGHLY RECOMMEND IT!
At first locals in Modena were put off by the admission price (which is NOTHING compared to what you pay to enter North American Museums) because Italians are used to things being free/cheap!
Worth every penny, this was a well-done experience that didn’t skip corners, the museum and exhibit lived up to the Ferrari name creating a world class experience for the visitors hoping to getting closer to the magestic cars and their maker.
I would definately go back! For info please visit the Museums website here.
Anyone else ever been to a car museum and cried?
