The ‘Geografie Interiori’ project, promoted by the Obliquo Association as part of the ‘Pordenone 2027. A City that Surprises’ programme – which earned Pordenone the title of Italian Capital of Culture 2027 – gets underway on 29 June 2026. The project offers a collective artist residency in the Val Tramontina, a foothill and mountainous area in the province of Pordenone, with the aim of stimulating cultural and creative processes in areas characterised by demographic fragility and depopulation, through participatory and co-creative practices with local communities.
The Councillor for Culture, Alberto Parigi: “The run-up to Pordenone’s designation as Italian Capital of Culture 2027 is being enriched by new initiatives that are taking shape from the projects contained in the bid dossier and extending beyond the city’s boundaries to involve the entire province. This is happening both through the more than fifty projects included in the bid dossier and thanks to the more than forty projects selected via the call for proposals dedicated to the ‘Towards Pordenone 2027’ activities. ‘Inner Geographies’ gives concrete expression to one of the key principles of Pordenone Capital: making culture a means of connecting Pordenone with its surrounding area. In this instance, the project involves the Val Tramontina, showcasing its heritage, landscapes and communities through a high-quality artistic programme. Artistic residencies, whilst often intangible experiences that are not immediately visible, are of extraordinary value: they transform these places into laboratories for research, creativity and cultural production, capable of attracting artists, forging new relationships and leaving a lasting legacy.”
Curated by Michela Lupieri, a researcher and lecturer, the project brings together four artists from different geographical backgrounds and with diverse artistic practices, all aged between 30 and 40: Vittoria Assembri (sound art and visual arts), Zeno Franchini and Michelle Jonker (design), Massimo Ricciardo and Virginia Zanetti (visual arts), together with Valentina Marchetti and Beatrice Migliorati, students on the Master’s programme in photography at ISIA in Urbino. A deliberately diverse line-up, designed to broaden perspectives.
The residencies, scheduled from 29 June to 21 July 2026, are structured around four thematic strands which serve as four different lenses through which to interpret the local area and which stem from a careful observation of it: food and culinary traditions, which provide an opportunity for gathering and shared reflection; the meal as a space for conviviality in which the landscape once again tells its story. Crafts and forgotten practices, which are explored for their potential as living intangible heritage, capable of suggesting sustainable futures rooted in ancient traditions. Water – in its rivers, streams and reservoirs – which is explored not only as a natural resource but as the valley’s emotional and cultural infrastructure. And then there is sound: listening as a form of knowledge, a tool for drawing closer to the soul of a culture that cannot be seen but can be heard.
The programme – From Tramonti to the travelling exhibition in Pordenone
The first few weeks take place at Casa Abis (Tramonti di Sopra), a farmhouse surrounded by five hectares of coppiced woodland with a perennial spring – the ideal setting to begin exploring botany, the geography of water, craft practices and singing. The residency then moves to Campone and Bosco Bandito (Tramonti di Sotto), where the workspaces take shape, alongside a talk on spoken language as a sonic instrument and a meeting with CRAF – the Centre for Research and Archiving of Photography in Spilimbergo. The final phase is dedicated to the independent development of projects and public activities with the local community.
On Wednesday 22 July, the artists who took part in the residency will return to Pordenone to present to the public an initial overview of the research and creative process they have developed over the preceding weeks. The work will form part of the exhibition “Frammenti”, a site-specific project that will unfold across the city’s historic centre. This will not be a traditional exhibition confined to a single gallery space, but an experience that weaves itself into the urban fabric. Sound will be one of the central elements of the project, broadcast via a public address system. Piazza Calderari will also be incorporated into the installation, and there will be banners and other visual elements that will help to highlight the project in the public space.
Events in 2027
To round off the project, in May 2027, an artist’s book curated and published by Studiofaganel will be released, bringing together and reinterpreting the research carried out during and following the residencies. At the same time, the final exhibition will open, featuring the completed works produced by the artists throughout the project.
Obliquo Association
Founded in 2020, Obliquo is an association set up to create a shared cultural platform in a peripheral, cross-border region such as Friuli Venezia Giulia. Over the years, it has brought to life ‘unlikely’ venues such as a former printing works, a Venetian villa, a furniture showroom, a museum and a cinema, attracting independent publishers, artists, photographers, designers and illustrators to Pordenone.