Giovanna Melandri to step down after decade at the helm of MAXXI.

Italy's culture minister Gennaro Sangiuliano has chosen journalist Alessandro Giuli as the new president of MAXXI, the national museum of 21st century arts, in Rome.

Giuli, 47, will succeed the outgoing president of the MAXXI foundation Giovanna Melandri, a former Italian minister of culture who has been at the helm of the cutting-edge Rome art museum since 2012.

The culture ministry announced the appointment on the eve of a news conference by Melandri, 60, who will talk about her "beautiful journey" in charge of running MAXXI at midday on Thursday.

"The minister thanks Giovanna Melandri, whose mandate expired on 1 November, for the work she has done" - reads a brief statement from the ministry - "The appointment of the new president Giuli will take effect from 12 December 2022″.

Rome's culture councillor Miguel Gotor paid tribute to Melandri for "projecting MAXXI onto the international art scene" and for giving life to "an innovative cultural centre open to the city".

In dieci anni è stata capace di proiettare il @Museo_MAXXI sulla scena dell’arte internazionale dando vita a Roma a un polo culturale innovativo e aperto alla città. Grazie a @GioMelandri per il lavoro svolto nell’interesse della capitale e in bocca al lupo per nuove avventure! pic.twitter.com/M7gK7ZAqDd

— Miguel Gotor (@GotorMiguel) November 23, 2022

With a degree in philosophy, Giuli is from Rome and has a background in journalism with right-leaning newspapers Il Foglio and Libero. He is a regular guest on television shows devoted to politics and current affairs.

Giuli has no experience in cultural heritage management, according to Italian news reports, however he has published several books including Il passo delle oche: the unresolved identity of the post-fascists and Sovereignism for beginners: Individuals and power between identity and integration.

Giuli's appointment comes at the start of the €37.5 million "Grande MAXXI" expansion project to double the size of the futuristic museum complex, designed by the late Zaha Hadid, between this year and 2026.