Silvae Fragmenta / Wild Camp Fest
Land art residency and festival of music, art, and culture on Monte Panormo, in the Alburni mountains
About Silvae Fragmenta
Land art in the Alburni woods
Silvae Fragmenta is a land art residency that every summer turns the woods of Ottati, a small town in the province of Salerno, Campania, into an open-air laboratory. Founded in 2023 by artist and cultural designer Melania Costantino, the residency invites a group of Italian and international artists each year to live and work for ten days in the heart of the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park, creating site-specific works using found materials: wood, limestone, raw earth, and reclaimed elements.
A museum scattered between forest and village
The most compelling aspect of the project is that the installations are not removed at the end of the summer: they remain where they were created, gradually becoming part of the permanent Silvae Fragmenta trail. Year after year, the collection grows, forming a true "diffused museum" that connects the paths of Monte Panormo to the town center of Ottati. The artworks can be reached freely on foot by following hiking trails, and they change with the seasons as they are crafted from living materials destined to age alongside the forest.
The 2026 edition: "Rituality and Trace in Nature"
The fourth volume of the residency takes place from July 28 to August 7, 2026, bringing artists back to Monte Panormo, one of the most evocative ridges of the Alburni massif. The chosen theme, Rituality and Trace in Nature, invites reflection on the ritualistic gestures humans have always performed in the mountains and the marks they leave on the landscape. Seven artists have been invited to engage with this theme: Giacomo De Giorgi, Niccolò Nencioni, Lorenzo D'Alicandro, Melania Costantino, Melike Çalisir, Paolo Castelli, and Spyros Anastasio, hailing from diverse backgrounds and countries, ranging from Italy to Turkey and Cyprus.
In synergy with the Wild Camp Fest
The residency maintains a close dialogue with the Wild Camp Fest, a festival dedicated to music, art, and culture that enlivens the Rifugio Panormo in the Campo Farina area during the same period. The mountain thus becomes a place for meeting and cultural production: the artists' working days are complemented by gatherings, book presentations, and musical moments, all in an informal atmosphere deeply committed to sustainability.
Art, mountains, and rural areas
Silvae Fragmenta is more than just an art event. Promoted by the Municipality of Ottati together with the Le Fucine Vulcaniche association, in collaboration with the Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park Authority and UNCEM, the residency is designed as a tool for enhancing rural areas: providing an extra reason to head into the mountains, promoting trails, and involving the residents of a village of fewer than six hundred souls. It is no coincidence that the public program includes a meeting dedicated to the relationship between the arts, landscape conservation, and local development.
Ottati and the Alburni massif
Ottati stands at an altitude of about 530 meters, at the foot of the Alburni, a mountain range characterized by white limestone perforated by caves and karst phenomena. Above the town lies the plateau leading to Monte Alburno, the highest peak of the group at 1742 meters. It is a territory of beech forests, pastures, and panoramas stretching from the Vallo di Diano to the Cilento sea: the ideal setting for a project that asks art to be discreet and to listen to the place before intervening.
How to experience the residency
- Follow the artists' working days in the woods as the pieces take shape;
- Participate in the public meeting and guided tour of the works in progress;
- Attend the inauguration of the final exhibition that concludes the residency;
- Independently explore the trail of works created in previous editions;
- Combine your visit with a hike on the Alburni plateau.
Silvae Fragmenta — edition 2026
Silvae Fragmenta Vol. 4 brings the land art residency back to Monte Panormo, one of the most evocative ridges of the Alburni and the entire Cilento, Vallo di Diano and Alburni National Park. From July 28 to August 7, 2026, seven artists will live and work in the woods above Ottati, in the province of Salerno, guided by the theme Rituality and Trace in Nature: ritual gesture, the mark left on the landscape, and the memory of places.
The group brings together very different research approaches: the graphics and raw earth sculpture of Giacomo De Giorgi, the marble of Niccolò Nencioni, the creative recovery of natural and waste materials by Lorenzo D'Alicandro, the work on landscape and sustainability by Melania Costantino (the residency's founder), the investigation into surfaces and traces by Turkish artist Melike Çalisir, the ferrous metals of Paolo Castelli, and the thresholds and spatial perceptions of Cypriot artist Spyros Anastasio.
Alongside the artists' work, curated by Andrea De Lucia, the public program focuses on the Rifugio Panormo in synergy with the Wild Camp Fest: on August 3, the "Mountain, Art and Territory" meeting, and on August 7, a book presentation and the inauguration of the final exhibition. The new installations will remain in the area and become part of the residency's permanent trail, promoted by the Municipality of Ottati with Le Fucine Vulcaniche, the Park Authority, and UNCEM.
Programme Silvae Fragmenta 2026
July 28 to August 7, 2026 - residency on Monte Panormo
Ten days of work in the woods: the artists create site-specific works with materials collected on site. Participants: Giacomo De Giorgi, Niccolò Nencioni, Lorenzo D'Alicandro, Melania Costantino, Melike Çalisir, Paolo Castelli, and Spyros Anastasio. Residency curator: Andrea De Lucia.
Monday, August 3, 4:00 PM - Rifugio Panormo
Public meeting "Mountain, Art and Territory - The arts as tools for the protection and enhancement of the mountains", with Elio Guadagno (Mayor of Ottati), Filippo Ferraro (Mayor of Corleto Monforte), Vincenzo Luciano (President of UNCEM Campania), Andrea De Lucia, Enzo D'Arco, Mario Agosto, Nando Vassallo, and Andrea Volpe. Followed by a guided tour of the works in progress.
Friday, August 7, 7:00 PM - Rifugio Panormo
As part of the Wild Camp Fest, presentation of the book "Incognita K. Free tekno e cospirazioni in cassa dritta" with Ana Nitu.
Friday, August 7 - Rifugio Panormo
Inauguration of the final exhibition, presenting the sculptures and installations created during the ten days of the residency: the works become part of the permanent Silvae Fragmenta trail and the diffused museum of Ottati.
Highlights Silvae Fragmenta 2026
- 2026 Theme: "Rituality and Trace in Nature".
- Seven artists from Italy, Turkey, and Cyprus at work in the Monte Panormo woods.
- Public meeting "Mountain, Art and Territory" on August 3 at Rifugio Panormo, followed by a guided tour of the artistic sites.
- Book presentation of "Incognita K" with Ana Nitu on August 7, as part of the Wild Camp Fest.
- Inauguration of the final exhibition on August 7: the works remain in the woods, expanding the diffused museum of Ottati.
Prices Silvae Fragmenta 2026
Practical information — Silvae Fragmenta
Getting there
Ottati can be reached by car via the A2 del Mediterraneo motorway, with reference exits in the Alburni area (Sicignano degli Alburni or Petina), then continuing along the provincial roads that climb the massif. The most convenient train station is Sicignano degli Alburni; the nearest airports are Salerno-Costa d'Amalfi and Naples Capodichino.
Where it takes place
The residency activities are concentrated on Monte Panormo, above the town of Ottati; public events are held at the Rifugio Panormo, in the Campo Farina area. The road leading to the refuge is a narrow and winding mountain road: it is best to leave early and ensure you have a full tank of fuel.
Tips
- Trekking shoes and layered clothing: temperatures drop significantly at altitude in the evening, even in August.
- Water, a hat, and sunscreen for guided tours in the woods.
- The artworks are outdoors and remain visitable all year round: check with the Municipality about the condition of the trails before setting off.
- For accommodation, the village and surrounding countryside offer B&Bs and agritourisms; booking well in advance is recommended during high season.
Information
Municipality of Ottati, Via XXIV Maggio 53, 84020 Ottati (SA) - tel. +39 0828 966002.
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Where does it take place — Silvae Fragmenta
Monte Panormo - Rifugio Panormo
Localita Campo Farina, Monte Panormo, 84020 Ottati