Ilario Rossi Prize

An art prize in the Bolognese Apennines

The Ilario Rossi Prize is the main event dedicated to visual arts in Monzuno, a municipality in the Apennines of the Metropolitan City of Bologna, in Emilia-Romagna. It is a competition open to works of painting, sculpture, and graphic art on a free theme, culminating in a collective exhibition hosted at the Sala Ivo Teglia, in the center of the town.

Who was Ilario Rossi

The prize is named after Ilario Rossi, a Bolognese painter and engraver, one of the most significant figures of 20th-century Italian figurative art. Rossi had a second home in Monzuno for many years, which welcomed him as an honorary citizen and dedicated a public garden to him. Monzuno, moreover, has a long artistic vocation: besides Rossi, painters such as Ferruccio Giacomelli, Nino Bertocchi, and Lea Colliva stayed there, attracted by the tranquility and landscape of the Apennines.

History and organization

At the heart of the event is the Ilario Rossi Artistic Circle, founded in 2000 to promote visual arts through exhibitions and community events. The competition itself was established in 2010 and has grown over time to attract dozens of artists from across the region and beyond. The exhibition takes place under the patronage of the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Monzuno and with the support of local sponsors.

How the competition works

• Works of painting, sculpture, and graphic art are admitted, with a free theme.
• Each artist can submit up to two works.
• Works must be delivered to the Sala Ivo Teglia, in via Giuseppe Bertini 3/b.
• A jury selects the exhibited works and awards prizes during the closing ceremony.

The selected works remain on public display for about two weeks, with the awards ceremony at the close of the exhibition. The main award is the Ilario Rossi Prize, accompanied by purchase prizes dedicated to individual expressive categories.

An event for the territory

More than just a competition, the Ilario Rossi Prize is a meeting point for artists, collectors, and residents of the Bolognese Apennines. The exhibition transforms the Sala Ivo Teglia into a small, widespread gallery and keeps alive the tradition of a village that has always welcomed creativity, confirming Monzuno as a true "land of artists".