The Eternal City is better known for its ancient ruins and ornate frescoes than for contemporary art, but it’s spending about $188 million in an attempt to catch up. Next week, the art world will descend on Rome for the opening of its National Museum of 21st Century Arts, better known as the Maxxi, an institution designed by Zaha Hadid to be Italy’s first state museum for contemporary art and architecture. The coiled, concrete building is only half the size of New York’s Museum of Modern Art, but it represents arguably the most important project completed by Ms. Hadid since she won the Pritzker Prize six years ago. And since the recession has compelled other museums to pare down, next Friday’s opening party for the Maxxi is turning into the major event of the art season. – From WSJ