The famous Muretto di Alassio

Ever evolving art

Our most original monument is the brightly coloured Muretto, an ever-changing outdoor art installation. This beautiful little wall, which became famous with the Miss Muretto beauty pageant, was created for the owner of Caffè Roma, a friend of Mario Berrino.

He had the bright idea in 1953 of decorating the wall of the public gardens near to his bar with autographed ceramic tiles. This led to a tradition, which continues to this day, of gathering on the tiles the signatures of famous people from the world of entertainment, art, culture, and sport whose name is linked with Alassio.

The name of the American writer Ernest Hemingway was one of the first to appear on the wall, alongside the names of contemporary Italian musicians. In the 1950s, Caffè Roma was a meeting place for many famous names. The café became well-known for these night owls who would gather here throughout the summer. With the support of the TV presenter Lucio Flauto, they decided to organise the first ‘Gran Cagnara’, a masked parade which kept the city awake until dawn.

Since 2007, Alassio has also been the City of Lovers.

The ceramic version of Raymond Peynet’s ‘Les Amoureux’, the bronze status of Eros Pellini’s The Lovers, Umberto Mastroianni’s steel storks and Maestro Berrino’s The Little Fish have become symbols of our town, paying tribute to lovers all over the world.