Caloma Festival

A widespread festival in the heart of Salento

The Caloma Festival is a multidisciplinary event held in late July in the village of Casamassella, a hamlet of the Municipality of Uggiano la Chiesa, in the Province of Lecce, in the lower Salento region of Puglia. For a few days, the courtyards, alleys, small squares, and the grounds of the Fondazione Le Costantine become the stage for an event that blends contemporary art, live music, cinema, theater, and food culture, engaging both the local community and guests from the local, national, and international scenes.

The meaning of the name

The festival's name refers to the caloma, an ancient fishing technique practiced along the Adriatic coast: a small raft pushed by the wind, attached to a line that connects the land to the sea. It is an image that perfectly captures the identity of the festival, conceived as a thread that unites the Salento hinterland with the coast, and the village's farming and weaving traditions with contemporary creativity.

A regeneration project

The Caloma Festival was born within the Casamassella – Borgo delle Tessitrici project, funded by the Ministry of Culture under the PNRR call dedicated to the attractiveness of historical villages (2023-2026). The festival is promoted by the Municipality of Uggiano la Chiesa with the organizational support of the Eccom and Oikos associations, and is part of a broader path to enhance the cultural, artisanal, and landscape heritage of Casamassella, which is historically linked to the art of weaving and the Fondazione Le Costantine.

What to expect at the festival

The program changes from year to year but maintains a recognizable structure, composed of multiple languages that dialogue with each other:

• Contemporary art and residencies: artists invited to work in the area, with installations, exhibitions, and works designed for the village spaces;
• Live music: evening concerts ranging from Salento folk music to jazz, world music, and singer-songwriter sounds;
• Cinema and meetings: screenings, documentaries, and conversations with directors and authors;
• Theater and storytelling: performances and readings in outdoor spaces;
• Cuisine and local products: farmers' markets, crafts, and tastings that tell the story of Salento through its food.

Why it is worth visiting

Unlike the large summer events on the coast, the Caloma Festival offers an intimate and high-quality experience, where the public walks through an authentic village, meets artists in the very places where they create, and discovers a less touristy and deeper side of Salento. It is an appointment that combines artistic research, popular roots, and hospitality in one of the most evocative areas of Puglia, just a few kilometers from Otranto and the Adriatic coast.