Sti Maschr

A carnival between art and poetry

In Castronuovo di Sant'Andrea, a small village in the province of Potenza overlooking the Pollino National Park, the carnival is called "Sti Maschr", an expression taken from a poem by the great Lucanian dialect poet Albino Pierro, originally from this very place. It is a special carnival, which intertwines popular celebration with contemporary art.

Artist-designed masks

Every year the Polo Museale of Castronuovo — which includes the MIG, International Museum of Graphics — invites artists to design the masks for the festival. Masks designed "for children and for adults who keep a child alive within them", incorporating the village's landscape and paths. A project that transforms the carnival into a unique cultural experience.

The festival atmosphere

The carnival day opens with workshops for children and teenagers, who color the masks in the museum and library rooms. It continues in the square with games, songs, and typical dishes of the tradition, culminating in the afternoon with the masked parade accompanied by the sound of the cup'cup', the popular instrument of the Lucanian carnival.

Castronuovo and its widespread museum

Organized by the Polo Museale together with the Municipality of Castronuovo di Sant'Andrea, "Sti Maschr" is also an opportunity to discover a village that has made culture its vocation, with the MIG and other museum spaces making it a small art capital in the heart of southern Basilicata.