Calabria's Officine del Carmine Artist Residency Launches with Four Artists

The Officine del Carmine artist residency in Corigliano Calabro, Cosenza province, has launched its inaugural edition, directed by young curators Chiara Argentino and Piero Gagliardi. The residency occupies a former industrial and sacred complex at the foot of the town's hill, currently under restoration. Four artists participated: Giovanni Viceconte, Luca Centola, Valentina Furian, and Luigi Presicce. Viceconte created a fountain using 25 ice blocks that melted into cement powder and oxides, forming a hollow artificial stone fossil. Centola employed metafotografia, layering architectural images through public billposting. Furian installed 'Brilla,' a work involving stars and vehicles. Presicce originally planned to draw the Madonna del Carmine statue during a procession from a donkey cart, but the local priest opposed it; instead, he staged a tableau vivant about Antonio Argentino, the benefactor who funded the complex's restoration. The residency aims to promote contemporary art and valorize the territory's architectural heritage, differing from the nearby BoCs Art residency in Cosenza, which recently appointed Giacinto di Pietrantonio as director after controversy.