Baselice Painting Biennale

Half a century of painting in the Alto Sannio

The Baselice Painting Biennale is one of the longest-running art events in the province of Benevento. Founded in the 1970s by a group of local enthusiasts, it has accompanied the cultural life of this Val Fortore village in the Alto Sannio for fifty years. Its biennial format has allowed it to build, edition after edition, an archive of works and a network of connections with painters from all over Italy, turning a town of fewer than two thousand inhabitants into a small landmark for painting in Campania.

The competition and exhibition: how it works

The Biennale's format is divided into two distinct parts that coexist in the same program.

• The open-air painting competition: for two days, artists set up their easels and paints along the streets and alleys of the historic center to create works inspired by the village on the spot. This is the most engaging part, as the public can watch the artists at work.
• The studio works exhibition: in the following days, the exhibition halls host the paintings brought by the authors, along with the works created during the open-air competition, for a showcase open to visitors until the final awards ceremony.

The rules are intentionally simple and admit both professionals and amateurs, with cash prizes for the top three in each of the two sections. The theme is free, so each edition offers very different perspectives on the same village and landscape.

Palazzo Lembo, the exhibition venue

The heart of the Biennale is Palazzo Lembo, a historic residence in Baselice recognized as an "Italian Wonder" by the Ministry of Culture. Its three rooms overlooking the garden hosted over fifty paintings in 2025: an exhibition that combines the value of the artworks with that of the venue, making it worth a visit to the village on its own.

The 25th edition in 2025

The twenty-fifth edition took place from August 30 to September 9, 2025, and was presented on August 20 in Benevento, at the Rocca dei Rettori. The open-air competition occupied the weekend of August 30 and 31, while the exhibition remained open at Palazzo Lembo from September 1 to 9. The awards ceremony on September 9 at 6:00 PM concluded the event with a concert by the historic "Città di Lanciano" musical band and a public discussion on the future of small towns in inland areas.

Organizers

The Biennale is promoted by the Artemusa APS association, chaired by Lino Rufo, together with the Municipality of Baselice led by Mayor Massimo Maddalena, with the collaboration of the Centro Culturale Baselicese (AGB) and the support of private sponsors. The artistic direction of the last edition was entrusted to Saverio Simi De Burgis, from the Venice Academy of Fine Arts, joined on the jury by University of Sannio professor Rossella Del Prete and publisher Enzo Palma. Among the historical promoters is Enzo Cocca, who has been following the event since the 1970s.

Baselice and the Val Fortore

Baselice is located at an altitude of over 600 meters, in the northernmost part of the Benevento province, in the Val Fortore where Campania fades into Puglia and Molise. It is a land of wheat, olive oil, and pastures, with a heritage that includes the church of San Leonardo Abate and the abbey of Santa Maria a Piazza. For a town dealing with depopulation, the Biennale is much more than an exhibition: it is one of the events that brings visitors, emigrants, and curious travelers back to the center every two years, keeping a cultural community alive.

The next edition

As it is a biennial event, the natural follow-up to the 25th edition falls in 2027. As of today, no official dates have been published for 2026, and the Municipality's event calendar shows no scheduled appointments. It is advisable to follow the announcements of the Artemusa association and the Municipality of Baselice during the summer, the period when the official presentation of the new edition usually takes place.