Bergamo Brescia Capital of Culture

The celebration of Bergamo and Brescia as 2023 Culture Capitals was triggered by the terrible pandemic event, and it was precisely the desire to overcome a very dark page that led to the definition of an unprecedented project. For the first time, the title of Capital has been assigned to two neighbouring cities: hence the opportunity to frame the values of the individual territorial identities through a common programme of events.

Maria Callas

She has been called the Divina, the Absolute Diva. Maria Callas is etched in the collective memory as the most famous singer of all time. Born in New York in 1923 to a family of Greek origin, she began her dazzling career in Italy between 1945 and 1948. In 1949, she was united in marriage with Giovanni Battista Meneghini, her impresario, and from 1950-1959 she lived in Sirmione in a villa that still bears her name. This is the reason that links the Garda resort to the great soprano, whose centenary was celebrated with an initiative entitled ‘La Divina Emozione. Sirmione Callas 21- 23″, an integral part of the “Homage to Maria Callas” festival now in its 23rd edition.

Sculpture

Sculpture is an art that falls between the figurative form and the architectural form, between the image and the construction. As in the work of Antonio Canova, ideal beauty is born from the skill of the workmanship. Marble is the material of choice as much for the execution of statues and bas-reliefs as for the design of actual spaces. This is the case in the Temple of Possagno, designed as an integration of sculpture and architecture. The same principle animates the Chiaramonti Museum in the Vatican, set up by Canova himself according to this dialogue; or the monument to Maria Christina of Austria, where the pyramid structure is an integral part of the plastic composition.