Description

In what used to be the Church of Santa Lucia you can now find the Aula Magna of the Bolognese Alma Mater Studiorum. The church passed into the hands of the Jesuits in 1562 and was rebuilt following the design of the architect Girolamo Rainaldi. Enlargement work which was planned by Francesco Maria Angelini took place later but was interrupted in 1732, only to be partially finished in the 19th century. With the façade incomplete, it was fitted out as a gym and workshop for the Aldini Institute after its deconsacration. It was later transformed into the Aula Magna and was inaugurated by Pope John Paul II in 1988 on the occasion of the 9th centenary of the university. The interior is divided into three naves and now hosts concerts, conferences, and cultural shows. The ex-convent annex still has its portico dating back to 1676 which was built by Agostino Barelli, and the library which was constructed in 1742 by the architect, G. Ambrosi.