From Sept. 12 to Oct. 12, Monferrato will host the second edition of Germinale - Monferrato Art Fest, a widespread contemporary art festival that combines exhibitions, residencies, permanent installations and special projects. Curated by Francesca Canfora and organized by Quasi Fondazione Carlo Gloria APS in collaboration with Casa degli Alfieri and Ecomuseo del Basso Monferrato, the event takes the title Alimurgia. Nourishing the gaze and cultivating thought. The expression, coined in the 18th century by physician and naturalist Giovanni Targioni Tozzetti, refers to the use of wild plants as a resource in times of hardship and becomes here a metaphor for an art understood as slow and shared nourishment, capable of taking root in the territory.
The organizational center of the review will be La Mercantile in Castagnole Monferrato, while the initiatives will be developed in 27 venues distributed in 22 municipalities, with the participation of about 50 artists. The program includes 25 guests, 7 in residence, 15 Selva Prize finalists and an artist selected for the special project I’m in love with my car.
Invited artists include the names: Albertelli Abbaldo, Luca Arboccò, auroraMeccanica, Salvatore Astore, Maura Banfo, Nicola Bolla, Domenico Borrelli, Enrica Borghi, Federico Borroni, Maurizio Camerani, Vanni Cuoghi, Riccardo Dapino, Emilio Ferro, Giulia Forgione, PierLuigi Fresia, Lorenzo Gnata, Enrico Iuliano, Giacomo Modolo, Frédérique Nalbandian, Pedro Pires, Marco Tagliafico, Alessandro Sciaraffa, Luigi Stoisa, Guendalina Urbani, Antonio Violetta. As was the case in the first edition, the review will leave a permanent trace: a sculpture created by the Albertelli-Abbaldo duo will be placed at Razzano Castle in Alfiano Natta. The artistic residencies represent a focal point of the project. Dedicated spaces become ateliers and meeting places with the community, allowing residents and visitors to engage directly with the research of the selected young artists-Salomé Nascimento, Francesco Feltri, Lisa Fontanari, Maria Sky, Gioele Sasha, Staltari Bruno Fantelli and Simone Giuliana.
Further recognition comes fromjoining the widespread museum network of Fondazione Asti Musei, which brings together public and private entities with the aim of enhancing Asti’s cultural heritage. Germinale’s entry into this circuit strengthens its institutional and territorial dimension. There will be three special guests: Alessandro Sciaraffa,Michelangelo Pistoletto and Alfredo Pirri. Sciaraffa will offer at Villadeati a Harmonic Room, an interactive musical installation that transforms the audience into an active part of the performance. Pistoletto will present the author’s proof of the Third Paradise intended for Vezzolano, as part of the project to enhance the basin. Pirri will be the protagonist on the final day of Oct. 12 with the work Passi, placed in the former Regina Elena Nursery School in Castagnole Monferrato.
The live program, curated by Casa degli Alfieri, pairs exhibitions and installations with theater, performances and workshops. Initiatives include Teatro Natura’s poetry walks, The Art Corriera connecting the host villages and residency return events. As early as Sept. 13, Montemagno will host An Immortal Beauty. Walk to the Heavens of Poetry, conducted by Francesco Occhetto with the reciting voice of Patrizia Camatel. Space will also be given to special projects. I’m in love with my car pays tribute to journalist and writer Massimo Cotto by transforming his car into a work of art, thanks to the work of Edoardo Maestrelli (solomostrystudio), selected by a jury that included Marco Lodola, DJ Ringo and Piero Pelù. The work will become part of Asti’s Cathedrals of Art, a collection of music-related memorabilia.
The Selva Art Prize, supported by Compagnia dei Caraibi and Dispensa, is reserved for artists under 40 and offers an acquisition prize of 2,500 euros. The 15 finalists, Alessandra Canteri, Debora Latorre, Eleonora Cutini, Enrico Pierotti, Francesca Rossello, Francesco Capasso, Michela Longone, Ricardo Aleodor, Venturi Greta Valente, Valeria Olivo, Matilde di Pietropaolo, Giorgio Micco, Danilo Sciorilli, Davide Mineo, and Maciej Gabka, will exhibit in the former Regina Elena Nursery School in Castagnole Monferrato. The prize aims to support young talent and foster new creative synergies, including with a spin-off during Torino Art Week. The program also includes Visagi - Portraits of a Living Country, a photographic project by Claudio Cravero that involves local communities with en plein air sets, interviews and urban installations. After Rinco, Carboneri, Colcavagno, Montiglio and Villadeati, in 2025 the route will touch Piovà Massaia and Murisengo. The calendar includes widespread openings, including those at Casa degli Alfieri, the former Regina Elena Nursery School, Frinco Castle, Mazzetti Distillery in Altavilla, and Palazzo Monferrato in Alessandria. Other venues include Palazzo Crova in Nizza Monferrato and Le Cattedrali Relais in Asti, confirming the growing network of institutional collaborations. Working alongside the festival is Fondazione Asti Musei.
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| Germinal 2025 brings contemporary art to Monferrato |
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