Mambo’s seat is located in the former “Forno del pane” (Bread Oven) premises.

The first section was built in 1915 by Mayor of Bologna Francesco Zanardi, as a municipal bakery aimed at solving the citizens of Bologna’s supply problems during World War I.

The building was subsequently enlarged between 1928-29 to host the Ente Autonomo dei Consumi, closed in 1935. During the Seventies the former bread oven underwent other changes, to finally become a municipality storage space. The recovery and transformation project that will eventually lead it to become MAMbo’s new home starts in the second half of the Nineties, and goes through several steps - demolition, recovery and structural consolidation, rebuilding of interiors – with a special care to the respect and enhancement of existing architectural features.

The operation, originally included in Aldo Rossi’s masterplan, was commissioned by the city of Bologna to Finanziaria Bologna Metropolitana, with the help of Studio Arassociati Milan. The basement today hosts the Educational department and the conference room, while on the ground floor are the entrance, the services to the public, the temporary exhibitions halls (with the large "Sala delle Ciminiere" still displaying the former bakery’s chimneys), a bookshop and a restaurant.

The mezzanine houses the contemporary art library, while the first floor is reserved to the permanent collection exhibition halls, alongside the "Manica Lunga" corridor in which one can still see the original façade’s arches and columns with corn-ear capitals. The second floor houses the offices and warehouses. Outdoor spaces are designed to connect the MAMbo complex to the Manifattura delle Arti through the Cavaticcio garden.