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Matera 2019: Sculpture, Music, and Performance in European Capital of Culture

festival-fair · 2026-05-04

Matera, European Capital of Culture 2019, hosts three major events this weekend. Pietro Fortuna's site-specific sculpture 'Novitas' is installed in the Parco della Murgia Materana, referencing Paleolithic and Neolithic cultures, the film 'The Gospel According to St. Matthew' by Pier Paolo Pasolini, and themes of origin and memory. Austrian composer Georg Friedrich Haas presents 'Music for Matera', a diffuse concert of six compositions for six locations, performed by 80 musicians from the Orchestra of Matera and Basilicata, exploring acoustic properties of sound. The artistic duo Lucy + Jorge Orta stage '70 X 7 The Meal', a participatory dinner-performance at MULA+ Museum in Latronico, featuring porcelain plates from Limoges. The events are part of a broader program by Matera Basilicata 2019 Foundation, LAMS, and ArtePollino, aiming to rediscover cultural roots through the arts.

Key facts

  • Pietro Fortuna's 'Novitas' is a site-specific sculpture in Parco della Murgia Materana.
  • The sculpture consists of five iron elements with folded sheets, supporting objects created by the artist.
  • Georg Friedrich Haas's 'Music for Matera' is a diffuse concert with six compositions for six locations.
  • The concert involves 80 musicians from the Orchestra of Matera and Basilicata.
  • Lucy + Jorge Orta's '70 X 7 The Meal' is a dinner-performance at MULA+ Museum in Latronico.
  • The performance uses porcelain plates produced by a factory in Limoges.
  • Events are part of Matera European Capital of Culture 2019 program.
  • The program is co-produced by Fondazione Matera Basilicata 2019 and ArtePollino.

Entities

Artists

  • Pietro Fortuna
  • Georg Friedrich Haas
  • Lucy Orta
  • Jorge Orta
  • Pier Paolo Pasolini
  • Giorgio Verzotti
  • Giovanni Pompeo
  • Vincenzo Santarcangelo
  • Katia Anguelova

Institutions

  • Matera Basilicata 2019 Foundation
  • LAMS – Laboratorio Arte Musica e Spettacolo
  • ArtePollino
  • Galleria Alessandro Albanese
  • Orchestra di Matera e della Basilicata
  • MULA+ Museo di Latronico
  • Artribune

Locations

  • Matera
  • Italy
  • Parco della Murgia Materana
  • Murgia Timone
  • Contrada Murgia Timone
  • Latronico
  • Limoges
  • France
  • Graz
  • Austria
  • Padua

Sources