Piazza Azzarita
Today best known for the presence of the Paladozza, the city's sports hall, Piazza Azzarita is a rather recent place in the history of Bologna. Before the Second World War, this was the site of the Ospedale Maggiore, one of the city's most important hospitals, later destroyed by bombing and rebuilt in Via Saffi.
During the Second World War, the area of Piazza Azzarita, uninhabited at the time, also housed the war gardens intended to feed the people of Bologna during the difficult wartime period. Not far from here, then, the Bolognese could draw water from the Reno Canal, the city's main waterway, which was covered a few decades ago
What to see in Piazza Azzarita
As already mentioned, Piazza Azzarita is overlooked by the Palazzetto dello Sport, a
venue for sporting events and concerts that can accommodate up to 6,000 spectators. The palazzetto was built in 1956 at the behest of the then mayor of Bologna Giuseppe Dozza, after whom the building was named forty years later. Previously, sporting activities and in particular basketball matches were held inside the Sala Borsa library, a venue that proved to be no longer suitable for them.
The square also features a work by the internationally renowned
street artist Levalet. It is called The Hunt and can be admired on the yellow building opposite the main entrance to the arena. Levalet's peculiarity is that he uses the poster technique, which consists of drawing the work on paper and then pasting it on the wall; in this case we see a series of ninjas dressed in black, clumsily preparing to hunt a rhinoceros.
