“Beauty will save the world”
Fëdor Dostoevskij, The Idiot (1869)
Aluminium has long been regarded as the material of the future. The artistic avant-gardes of the twentieth century embraced it as a symbol of modernity, speed, and transformation. Today it is ubiquitous—present in everyday life, in advanced industrial sectors, and even in space technologies. Light yet strong, adaptable and capable of taking on countless forms and reuses, aluminium embodies a time in constant evolution, suspended between tradition and innovation, research, experimentation, and interdisciplinary dialogue.
In a complex and unstable present, aluminium becomes a symbol of transformation itself. The future—intertwined and built day by day—may appear fragile or unpredictable; yet it is precisely this openness that makes it a space of possibility. It is not only what we fear, but what we can imagine, improve, and build together: a shared path in which uncertainty becomes research, encounter, and the creation of new worlds.
For the thirteenth edition, artists are invited to engage with the theme “Future Intertwinings”, interpreting aluminium as both material and language capable of narrating connections, transformations, and unexpected possibilities. Works may explore the present and the future as spaces of growth and encounter, as open trajectories where art becomes a tool for dialogue,
LA GIURIA
GIORGIO AGNISOLA
Art critic, writer, Professor Emeritus of Sacred Art and Cultural Heritage – Pontifical Theological Faculty of Southern Italy
Giorgio Agnisola (1947) is an art critic and writer, Professor Emeritus of Sacred Art and Cultural Heritage at the Pontifical Theological Faculty of Southern Italy. A founding member of the School of Advanced Studies in Art and Theology in Naples, he directed the program from 2006 to 2019. He is Valde peritus of the Faculty for aesthetic‑theological studies, director of the journal AT – Arts and theologies, and creator of the educational project VisioDei. Between 1983 and 1995 he worked in French‑speaking European countries as a consultant for modern and contemporary art within international agreements. He later served as one of the directors of the Municipal Art Gallery of Gaeta (2005–2008) and curated major international exhibitions. Author of numerous books—including Lo sguardo e l’oltre (2018), La materia trasparente (2021), and Viaggio nell’arte delle stelle (2024)—he is a member of the International Association of Art Critics and has contributed to the cultural pages of Avvenire since 1990. His work has earned him prestigious international honors, including Chevalier de l’Ordre de Léopold II (Belgium, 1987) and Officier de l’Ordre de Mérite (Luxembourg, 1991). Most recently, he received the Premio Montale Fuori di Casa for Art.
MARIANTONIETTA PICONE PETRUSA
Writer, scholar, Professor Emerita of Contemporary Art History – University of Naples Federico II
Mariantonietta Picone Petrusa is an art historian, writer, and Professor Emerita of Contemporary Art History at the University of Naples Federico II, where she taught until 2015. Her research focuses on 19th‑ and 20th‑century Neapolitan art, the history of photography, advertising posters, and artistic and industrial exhibitions in Italy and abroad. She has curated numerous exhibitions and collaborated with leading specialized journals. She founded and directed ON. OttoNovecento, serves on the editorial board of Napoli Nobilissima, and has contributed to major encyclopedic projects—including UTET, Garzanti, Macmillan, and Treccani—coordinating entries on European art of the early 20th century for the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Art.
ILIA TUFANO
Artist, scholar, lecturer, and gallery director
Ilia (Ersilia) Tufano, born in Saviano (Naples), lives and works in Naples, where since 1996 she has directed Movimento Aperto, a cultural center that has hosted more than 150 exhibitions, seminars, book presentations, and poetry readings. A graduate in Art History with a thesis on Piero della Francesca’s De prospectiva pingendi, she continued her studies in contemporary art in Rome with Nello Ponente and Giulio Carlo Argan. Active since 1988, she has taught at the State Art High School of Naples. Her artistic research—originating from an abstract language—now explores the relationship between word and image, verbal and visual expression, with particular attention to artist’s books and visual poetry. She has exhibited widely in Italy and abroad, and her works are included in public and private collections. In 2024 she received the Una vita per l’Arte award from the Municipal Art Gallery “Antonio Sapone” of Gaeta.
FEDERICO ROMANELLI MONTARSOLO
Founder and President of the Montarsolo Association (Italy) and Amitalia (Switzerland)
For the past ten years, Federico Romanelli Montarsolo has independently organized cultural events in Italy and abroad through the Montarsolo Association, dedicated primarily to preserving the artistic legacy of Carlo Montarsolo (1922–2005). In Switzerland, through the Amitalia Association, he regularly organizes cultural gatherings and film programs to promote Italian culture. A former researcher in international relations at the University of Geneva, he led seminars and coordinated the project L’Idea d’Europa in collaboration with the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. He later served as consultant to the intergovernmental committee with China, where he lived. He has taught courses and seminars at the University of Geneva (2015–2016), the Italian School of Public Administration, and Sapienza University of Rome (2006–2009). He is the author of articles, books, and cultural catalogues.
MARIA GABRIELLA MAZZOLA
Manager – COMEL Industries
Together with her siblings Adriano and Luisa, Maria Gabriella Mazzola leads COMEL Industries, combining technical and managerial expertise with strong organizational skills. She has introduced new guidelines focused on communication, innovation, and marketing. She has long supported cultural and social initiatives—art exhibitions, publications, visual arts programs, short‑film festivals, and animal protection initiaves and shelters—both personally and through the company. In 2012 she received an entrepreneurial merit award from the Cultural Association Nuova Immagine Latina. She is president of the Vanna Migliorin Cultural Association, which promotes contemporary artistic and intellectual works in all their forms. Among its activities are the promotion of the Spazio COMEL and the organization of monographic exhibitions dedicated to internationally renowned artists.
