Italy Pavilion and the Territories: Central Italy

The relationship between local regions and the Italian Pavilion was one of cross-fertilization, whereby the venue successfully incorporated the vibrancy and creativity of local areas. The aggregation of the country’s various regions within the context of the permanent exhibition involved all three of the pivotal ideas established by the pavilion’s

creator Marco Balich and the pavilion’s General Commissioner Diana Bracco, which were elaborated during the local seminars held between October and December 2013.

To give meaning, drive and direction to the powers of beauty, limits, know-how and the

future, it was necessary for the various regions to break away from their stereotypical portrayal in terms of landscapes, society and local areas.

The regions also presented themselves to the public during the weeks allotted to them by rotation and through a rich programme of events of considerable social and scientific relevance organized within the Expo. In what later came to be regarded as a grand “fringe event”, the Conferenza delle Regioni e delle Province Autonome organized fourteen cross-regional seminars on several key themes that included water, the landscape, longevity, the Mediterranean diet, food research, art cities, quality of life, and health – among others. These meetings resonated with the vast number of people who attended.

Through a truly collective effort, we have succeeded in presenting all the many different sides of our country: the Alps, central Italy, the Apennines, and the peninsula’s many seaboards. Instead of participating in isolation, these regions and towns worked together, giving a voice to all the local platforms that make up the remarkable patchwork of Italy.