Vicoli e Piazze

A Sannio village turned into an open-air gallery

Vicoli e Piazze is the cultural event through which Pannarano, a town of just under two thousand inhabitants in the province of Benevento, opens its historic center to contemporary art. For two evenings in August, artworks—primarily paintings and performances—are placed along the alleys, under the arches, and in the village squares: not in an exhibition hall, but exactly where the community's daily life unfolds. The result is an immersive and evocative route that you can traverse on foot, slowly, letting every corner of the village reveal a different artistic intervention.

Art as a tool for urban regeneration

The event's significance goes beyond aesthetics. The municipal administration presents it as an urban regeneration project: Mayor Antonio Iavarone explained that art can be a tool capable of stimulating interest in small towns exposed to the risk of depopulation, describing each work as «an act of resistance against abandonment and oblivion», a spark around which a community can rediscover itself, engage in dialogue, and regenerate. This perspective concerns many villages in the Campanian hinterland, where culture becomes one of the few concrete levers to bring people and activities back to emptied historic centers.

The 2025 comeback: the 14th edition

After a few years of hiatus, the event returned in 2025 with its 14th edition, hosted on August 17 and 18, with activities starting at 6:00 PM. The reopening of the town's spaces to culture was covered with great attention by the local press of Sannio and Valle Caudina, which highlighted the dual nature of the initiative: on one hand, the artistic route, and on the other, an itinerary of rediscovery of the village, with its network of alleys, open spaces, and mountain views.

Young artists, masters, and awards

The selection of authors favors new generations. In the comeback edition, students and young artists from the studio of Benevento-based master Mario Ferrante exhibited their work, alongside local artists and some finalists of the Premio Rua Viva in Naples. The formula creates a dialogue between the research of emerging authors and a minor yet highly distinctive architectural context, offering beginners a rare opportunity: to work not on a blank wall, but on the lived-in space of a town.

A collaborative community

Vicoli e Piazze succeeds because a broad network of associations rallies around the Municipality. Participants include:

• Pro Loco of Pannarano
• Anspi
• Slow Food Valle Caudina
• WWF Sannio
• Comunità Montana del Partenio
• local sports associations Asd Pannarano and Asd Giovanni Luciano

The project is supported by public funds dedicated to territorial cohesion: co-financing comes from the 2021-2027 Development and Cohesion Fund, as part of the Cohesion Agreement of the Campania Region approved by CIPESS resolution no. 70/2024, within the «Illumina la Notte» project.

Pannarano, between Valle Caudina and Partenio

Pannarano is located at the southern tip of the province of Benevento, in Campania, bordering the Irpinian towns of San Martino Valle Caudina, Roccabascerana, Pietrastornina, and Summonte. The town is nestled in the Partenio mountain range, a protected woodland environment that also hosts a WWF oasis and has become one of the key themes of local cultural programming in recent years, alongside the food and wine of the Caudina area. Visiting Vicoli e Piazze therefore means combining art, walking through the village, and the Apennine landscape within a few kilometers.

What to know about the 2026 edition

As of late July 2026, the Municipality of Pannarano has not yet released official dates or a program for the new edition of Vicoli e Piazze. The event is traditionally held in mid-August, around the Ferragosto holiday, as it was in 2025. Those wishing to attend should follow the Municipality and Pro Loco channels in the preceding weeks, as announcements are usually made only a few weeks in advance.