Campo Urbano a Como: 50 Years Later

On September 21, 1969, Campo Urbano took over the historic center of Como with 42 artists and installations coordinated by Luciano Caramel. The one-day interventionist exhibition featured works by Bruno Munari, Gianni Pettena, Ugo La Pietra, Grazia Varisco, and others, all self-produced. Fifty years later, in 2019, a conference titled Campo Umano was held at Villa Olmo in Como, organized by Luca Cerizza and Zasha Colah with support from Fondazione Ratti. The conference revisited Campo Urbano through talks by Robert Lumley, Alessandra Acocella, Alessandra Pioselli, Zasha Colah, Hou Hanru, and Roberto Pinto. Five original artists—Giuliano Collina, Mario Di Salvo, Ugo La Pietra, Gianni Pettena, and Grazia Varisco—shared testimonies. A roundtable included Massimo Bartolini, Cecilia Guida, Francesco Jodice, and Margherita Moscardini. The event highlighted Campo Urbano as a model of public art that resisted obsolescence and speculation, though its reenactment raised questions about collective participation.