Archivio Atena — Opera Paese
The widespread exhibition marking the conclusion of five years of community archiving in the Vallo di Diano
About Opera Paese
A community archive turned into a widespread exhibition
Opera Paese — A Small Amount of World is the exhibition event that concludes the five-year project Archivio Atena, a community archive initiative promoted by the Municipality of Atena Lucana, in the province of Salerno, and funded by the Ministry of Culture through the PNRR Borghi Fund. From June 20 to July 31, 2026, the village's historic center is transformed into an open-air museum: noble palaces, churches, courtyards, and squares become spaces for exhibition and discussion, returning five years of research into the village's memory to residents and visitors.
Eight exhibitions in the village and one at the Certosa di Padula
The exhibition route can be followed on foot through the alleys of Atena Lucana and continues to the Certosa di San Lorenzo in Padula, just a little further south in the same Vallo di Diano. Each exhibition stems from direct dialogue with the community: family photographs, objects, oral stories, and landscapes become artworks, installations, and research projects.
- Piazzetta della Schifa — «/nequ/l/br/o», featuring works by the authors of the ISIA Urbino 2025 residency
- Palazzo Pessolani — «What does it mean to inhabit?» by Chiara Solimene and «How the sun turns it» by Sonia D'Alto, Francesca De Nardis, and Niccolò Di Ruscio
- Chiesa di San Ciro — «Body Lines» by Alessandro Galli and Francesca Melandri
- Palazzo Bellomo — «Opera Paese Lab» with Vertical Atlas and «Moons in the wells» by StudioFigure
- Chiesa di San Nicola — «And they told you things like that» by Nunzia Pallante
- Archaeological Museum — «Mother Oak» by Cimaglia, Odore, and Pallante
- Canonica — «Do not follow the lights» by Claudio Palma
- Certosa di San Lorenzo, Padula — the exhibition dedicated to the community photographic archive
The «Family Film», cinema, and Ballett' nights
The emotional heart of Opera Paese is «Family Film», a cinematic work edited from approximately 7,000 private photographs collected in the village homes, curated by Martina Alessandrini with editing by Lea Di Cursi. Alongside outdoor screenings, the program features «Ballett' — a festival of sounds and archives», evenings that weave together DJ sets, live electronic music, visuals, and archival materials, as well as workshops, participatory walks, and meetings on the future of inland areas.
Five years of research: the project's numbers
Since 2021, Archivio Atena has acquired over 15,000 digital documents, digitized about 7,000 family photographs, involved 200 students and more than 40 teachers, hosted 15 artistic residencies, and launched a hundred research projects. The artistic direction is by photographer Alessandro Imbriaco; partners include ISIA Urbino, ICCD, MAXXI, Sapienza University of Rome, and the University of Naples Federico II. It is not an archive closed in a warehouse, but a living platform that continues to generate new readings of the territory's identity.
Atena Lucana and the Vallo di Diano
Atena Lucana is a small municipality in Campania overlooking the Vallo di Diano, the wide plain in the province of Salerno that borders Basilicata. The village preserves the memory of the ancient Lucanian and Roman Atina, evidenced by the archaeological museum set up in the historic center and now involved in the exhibition route. Opera Paese adds a contemporary perspective to this heritage: family photography, the agricultural landscape, the trades, and the village festivals become art material, and those arriving from outside can read the Vallo di Diano through the eyes of those who live there.
A project that closes, a community that remains
Opera Paese is presented as the final phase of the five-year period funded by the PNRR: for this reason, the 2026 edition has a special value, and it is not guaranteed that the festival will be repeated identically in subsequent years, although the archive will continue to be consultable and active. Those visiting Atena Lucana in this summer of 2026 will therefore find a rare event, in which an entire village tells its story through its own images.
Opera Paese — edition 2026
Opera Paese 2026, the final phase of Archivio Atena
Inaugurated on Saturday, June 20, 2026, at 5:00 PM in Piazzetta della Schifa, in the presence of the mayor of Atena Lucana Luigi Vertucci, representatives of the Province of Salerno, the Vallo di Diano Mountain Community, the Campania Region, and artistic director Alessandro Imbriaco, «Opera Paese» closes the five-year project funded by the PNRR Borghi Fund.
For six weeks, the village becomes a widespread exhibition: family photographs, installations, videos, and research projects occupy historic palaces, churches, the rectory, and the archaeological museum. In the evening, the program moves outdoors, between screenings and musical evenings. All exhibitions remain open until July 31 with free admission.
Programme Opera Paese 2026
Inauguration
- Saturday, June 20, 5:00 PM — Piazzetta della Schifa: institutional greetings and opening of the exhibition route; in the evening (from about 8:30 PM) «Ballett' — festival of sounds and archives» with DJ sets and visuals by Discoteca Flegrea and Asymmetrical
June
- Friday, June 26 — meeting on inland areas with the Appennino Foundation
- Saturday, June 27 — Certosa di San Lorenzo, Padula: inauguration of the archive exhibition; on the same day, «Jane's Walk» participatory walk
July
- July 2-4 — 17studio workshop with designers and students
- Saturday, July 11 — Piazzetta della Schifa: «Ballett' — festival of sounds and archives» with a live performance by Agenda dei buoni propositi
- Sunday, July 12, 6:00 PM — Pro Loco Athena Nova headquarters: opening of the textile exhibition «I make this line that takes you all» by Sonia D'Alto, Nunzia Pallante, and Marta Scagliusi, born from an intergenerational participatory workshop with fabrics dyed with plants collected during the meetings
- Sunday, July 12, 9:30 PM — Piazza Caduti per la Pace: preview of «Family Film», the film edited with the approximately 7,000 digitized family photographs
- Saturday, July 25, 9:00 PM — Piazzetta della Schifa: second screening of «Family Film» (curated by Martina Alessandrini, edited by Lea Di Cursi) and final party «Ballett'» with a live performance by Lowtopic accompanied by Emilio Pozzolini
The exhibitions, open until July 31
- Piazzetta della Schifa — «/nequ/l/br/o», authors of the ISIA Urbino 2025 residency
- Palazzo Pessolani — «What does it mean to inhabit?» (Chiara Solimene) and «How the sun turns it» (Sonia D'Alto, Francesca De Nardis, Niccolò Di Ruscio)
- Chiesa di San Ciro — «Body Lines» (Alessandro Galli, Francesca Melandri)
- Palazzo Bellomo — «Opera Paese Lab» with Vertical Atlas and «Moons in the wells» (StudioFigure)
- Chiesa di San Nicola — «And they told you things like that» (Nunzia Pallante)
- Archaeological Museum — «Mother Oak» (Cimaglia, Odore, Pallante)
- Canonica — «Do not follow the lights» (Claudio Palma)
- Certosa di San Lorenzo, Padula — section dedicated to the photographic archive
Visiting hours: 10:30-12:30 and 17:00-20:00.
Highlights Opera Paese 2026
- Eight exhibitions in the historic center of Atena Lucana plus one at the Certosa di San Lorenzo in Padula
- «Family Film», the film built with approximately 7,000 private photographs of the village (preview on July 12, repeat on July 25)
- The «Ballett' — festival of sounds and archives» evenings: DJ sets by Discoteca Flegrea and Asymmetrical, live performances by Agenda dei buoni propositi and Lowtopic with Emilio Pozzolini
- The participatory textile exhibition «I make this line that takes you all» at Pro Loco Athena Nova
- Workshops, meetings on inland areas, and «Jane's Walk»
- Free admission to all exhibitions and events
Prices Opera Paese 2026
Practical information — Opera Paese
How to get there
Atena Lucana can be reached by car from the Atena Lucana motorway exit on the A2 Autostrada del Mediterraneo (Salerno-Reggio Calabria); from here, you go up to the historic center, where almost all the exhibition venues are located. The exhibition at the Certosa di San Lorenzo is located in Padula, a few kilometers further south in the Vallo di Diano.
Opening hours and admission
The exhibitions can be visited from June 20 to July 31, 2026, from 10:30 to 12:30 and from 17:00 to 20:00. Admission is free, both to the exhibitions and to the evening events.
Tips
The route is on foot through the alleys and stairways of the village: comfortable shoes are recommended. The «Ballett'» evenings and screenings take place outdoors in Piazzetta della Schifa and Piazza Caduti per la Pace.
Information
Archivio Atena, Viale Kennedy 2, 84030 Atena Lucana (SA) — [email protected] — archivioatena.com
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Where does it take place — Opera Paese
Centro storico di Atena Lucana
Viale Kennedy 2, 84030 Atena Lucana