International Festival of Fine Art Printmaking

The International Festival of Fine Art Printmaking in Cisterna di Latina

The International Festival of Fine Art Printmaking is an exhibition dedicated to engraving, graphic design, and fine art printing, involving several towns in the Lepini Mountains, in the heart of the province of Latina, Lazio. Conceived by the Cartedautore Association and curated by artist Patrizio Marafini, the festival offers a traveling exhibition route that touches Cori, Cisterna di Latina, Lake Giulianello, the Garden of Ninfa, and, since the second edition, Artena.

Palazzo Caetani, the heart of the Cisterna stop

In Cisterna di Latina, the exhibition finds its home on the piano nobile of Palazzo Caetani, a historic residence in the city center. The palace halls host around a hundred works from foundations, historical archives, galleries, and art print shops, creating a dialogue between established masters and young engravers. The Cisterna leg is organized by the Municipality of Cisterna di Latina in collaboration with the Roffredo Caetani Foundation and other promoting bodies.

Engraving, landscape, and sustainability

The festival's central theme is the landscape, summarized in the title "Nature is what we see." Fine art printing—from etching to woodcut, from drypoint to lithography—becomes the tool to narrate nature, the territory, and the relationship between humanity and the environment. The second edition features works from numerous countries around the world, including Turkey, Argentina, Ukraine, China, Japan, Colombia, India, Iraq, and Nigeria, alongside the Fine Arts Academies of Florence, Bari, Turin, Naples, and Frosinone.

A traveling exhibition in the Lepini Mountains

Born from an inter-municipal collaboration between Cori, Cisterna di Latina, and Giulianello, the festival has grown into a widespread event that enhances the artistic and landscape heritage of the Pontine and Lepini territory. Each stop offers a different selection of works, set within museum spaces, historic halls, and en plein air installations among the local hills and gardens.

Cisterna di Latina and its territory

Cisterna di Latina, in the province of Latina, is a city rich in history tied to the Caetani family and the nearby oasis of the Garden of Ninfa. The stop of the International Festival of Fine Art Printmaking offers the opportunity to discover the historic center and Palazzo Caetani through the refined language of engraving, in a cultural journey that unites contemporary art with local memory.