Metropoliz is a squatted former industrial complex at Tor Sapienza neighbourhood, in the eastern outskirts of Rome. This huge abandoned site was occupied in 2009 and it now shelters families from many different countries (for a total amount of 200 people).

Outside the complex there are several large-scale murals by well-known street artists such as Sten&Lex, Borondo and Kobra, while inside there is an actual urban art museum: “MAAM – Museo dell’Altro e dell’Altrove” (meaning Museum of Other and Elsewhere).

MAAM aims at transforming the whole abandoned complex into a work of art itself, making it a pivotal point of the collective art movement. It actually is kind of an anti-museum, as people are living inside it, it is free and street artists have donated their works to support the project.

Wandering around this former factory looking for some street art I’m always pleasantly surprised to stumble upon some neglected machinery, which increases the post-industrial charm of the location.