ACEA Contemporanea Prize Winners Announced, Artworks Enter Corporate Collection

ACEA and Valore Italia announced the winners of the first edition of the Premio ACEA Contemporanea, a competition for students and recent graduates of the Accademia di Belle Arti di Roma, Accademia Italiana, and SAE Institute. The theme was water as a political, social, environmental, and symbolic resource. First prize went to Rucsanda Cristache for "Flowing," an installation inspired by Platonic solids. Second prize was awarded to Silvia Spoti for "La misura dell'acqua," which uses engraved plexiglas to trace river courses. Third prize was shared ex aequo by Valerio Pacini for "240 Liters (way of finding)," a site-specific installation with a 240-liter tank and shade balls, and Giorgia Armario for "Che ne sarà di noi, che ne sarà della neve?," juxtaposing contemporary and archival photographs of snowy landscapes. A special mention went to Lars Lattacher for "Acea Heritage Box," an educational project for schools about Rome's "nasoni" fountains. All finalist works will enter the permanent collection of ACEA Heritage, a new exhibition space at Piazzale Ostiense, and will be publicly accessible on May 23–24, 2026.