ART EXHIBITION IN ITALY

The art exhibition of the S.T.O.P. project was hosted by the Municipality of Parghelia in Contrada La Grazia, the main access road to the municipal beach, where hundreds of locals and tourists are present every day.

This is a strategic point that allowed us to reach and involve a large number of visitors who, on the way to the sea, were attracted by the sight of the works on display and decided to stop and observe them: this allowed us to share our experience and the message that our project aimed to convey; we had the opportunity to use art as a means to introduce reflection on the issues we dealt with.

Our exhibition was organized and managed with the support of the Municipality of Parghelia, which sponsored the day of the event, and with the collaboration of local youngsters. In addition, we were able to count on the support of the Pro Loco Parghelia Association and its volunteers.

Starting in the morning, we set up a tree-lined area with a gazebo and several meeting points all along the street on which the works of the exhibition were placed. We had the opportunity to host Giampiero De Santis, a Calabrian artist who deals with works made from scavenged materials (mainly recovered from the sea) according to the upcycling technique. His works are mostly humanoids made up of plastic and aluminum parts, each of which has a personal story and carries an educational message related to the environment.

As part of the event, there was also a photo exhibition curated by Giancarlo Colloca and Francesca Mazzeo created from photos that were taken during our clean-ups.

The collection was named "Chemio" and brought the "chemo-therapist" volunteers' point of view of the diseased cells (plastic waste etc.) of the pristine nature, highlighting the ugliness of pollution, contrasting with the beauty of the landscapes where we implemented our waste collection interventions.

During this artistic day, there were also several entertaining moments for visitors, such as a photo corner with a fun frame that recalled our project, moments of music and fun, and snacks that allowed us to better engage the people who took part in our art exhibition.