Created to enhance the art of majolica, the event is promoted by the Municipalities of Savona, Albissola Marina, Albisola Superiore and Celle Ligure, the Riviere di Liguria Chamber of Commerce, coordinated by Confartigianato Savona, with the contribution of the Liguria Region and the De Mari Foundation.
“We are once again proposing a high-quality event this year – said the mayor of Savona, Marco Russo – which makes us proud and which unites the municipalities of the Baia della Ceramica even more. Already last year the Festival had an excellent response from the public who were able to appreciate the value and creativity of artists and artisans arriving not only from our territory, but also from many European cities. The conditions for this success to be repeated are all there and the 2024 Maiolica Festival will be an important step in the path towards Savona being the Italian Capital of Culture”.
“The tradition promoted by the Majolica Festival reflects an authentic cultural and economic treasure, which is the one guarded by the Ceramics Bay. A corner of Liguria with a unique character, which for three days becomes the international protagonist of an ancient art – states the President of the Liguria Region – The Majolica Festival enriches the calendar of events in Liguria, further enhancing the already rich tourist offer of the Region, which is preparing for a record-breaking 2024 for the cultural proposals developed in synergy with the territories”.
After the success of the 2023 edition, the four Ligurian municipalities overlooking the sea, united in the Baia della Ceramica brand, return to act as the stage for an event that represents an important opportunity to enhance a priceless heritage and give new life to the artisanal, artistic, trade and tourism in the area.
“For the second year – explains Nicoletta Negro, vice-president of the Italian Association of Ceramic Cities and Councilor for Culture of the Municipality of Savona – the Baia della Ceramica offers a structured program spread across the entire territory. The ambition is growing to be an increasingly attractive center even compared to other Italian cities that share the ancient ceramic tradition with us. This whole process is more consistent than ever with the candidacy for Italian Capital of Culture in 2027 for which we are already establishing a beautiful collaboration with the city of Agrigento and its ceramists”.
With the 2024 edition, the organizers’ challenge is to confirm the Ceramics Bay as a destination for art, culture and quality tourism on a national scale.
“The Majolica Festival is the most important act of a process of territorial tourist promotion of local artisan excellence, the ceramic that the four administrations of the Bay have been carrying out for some years – explain from the municipalities of Albissola Marina, Albisola Superiore and Celle Ligure – With this event, which returns to our territories after a successful first edition, we want to focus on
spotlight on the cultural, museum and artistic system of majolica, with a more innovative slant, engaging for visitors, telling the story of businesses and tradition”.
The heart of the event will be the Monumental Ovens. Four large ovens for cooking ceramics made by local artisans which will be built and accessed for an evocative show available to visitors.
On Saturday 11th May the cities literally light up to give life to an event never before held in Liguria.
Once again the Bay hosts the Italian ceramic tradition: if last year the people of Faenza brought the world of pottery workers to Savona, in May the colorful majolica of Caltagirone will be exceptional guests of the festival with ad hoc initiatives.
“The art of ceramics – underlines Enrico Lupi, President of the Riviere di Liguria Chamber of Commerce – represents a unique distinctive trait for Savona, an element of cultural and tourist attraction of enormous value. Promoting the mastery of our artisans through the Majolica Festival means honoring an ancient tradition, which has been a very important segment for the local economy and the promotion of the territory since its origins. Our Chamber of Commerce has long been engaged, in collaboration with the Region and local artisan associations, in a synergistic action to promote ceramics as well as entrepreneurs in the sector who meet the requirements to boast the qualification of Master Craftsman. We are certain that this initiative can only grow, consolidate and attract visitors from all over Italy.”
With live performances, exhibitions, workshops and laboratories, guided tours, tastings, the three days of the Festival will involve ceramists, artists, galleries and ateliers, associations, traders, citizens and tourists: a rich and varied program that boasts high-profile events excellence as in Albisola Superiore “CeramiCrack” – The regeneration of matter, an unprecedented project of itinerant artistic installations that are linked with the cultural heritage and ceramic works of Albisola in a twinning between revolutionary elements and the reopening with a dedicated Officina 900 event, artistic and cultural space which suffered significant damage due to a fire late last year.
In Albissola Marina, not to be missed, Muda 10, 10 years of the museum with opening of exhibitions of the city’s widespread museum with guided tours and a dedicated shuttle to facilitate travel, in Celle Ligure inauguration of the Caruggio Santa Caterina da Siena and the opening of the exhibition dedicated to the cartoons of Emilio Giannelli, a well-known cartoonist for the newspaper Corriere della Sera.
Savona, therefore, leaves room for design with the Initiatives of ADI Liguria and the Festival della Maiolica 2024 award in collaboration with the Liceo Artistico Arturo Martini and Caterina Sambin Vetro Ceramica. The Majolica Festival is part of the programming of the actions of the candidacy of Savona as Capital of Culture 2027: in the splendid setting of Villa Cambiaso, within an evening of ceramic art and theatre, the Mayor Russo and a representative of the city of Agrigento will seal the Friendship Pact City of Agrigento Italian Capital of Culture 2025 and City of Savona. During the days of the festival, the Savona Ceramics Museum will also be the protagonist: events and workshops are scheduled, without forgetting the opportunity to visit the two ongoing exhibitions, “Arturo Martini. The plot of dreams” and “Being One. Fabrics and ceramics by Alessandro Teoldi”.
“The Majolica Festival is the right opportunity to celebrate the great ceramic tradition of our territory, which as a Foundation we want to enhance more and more synergistically between all the bodies, associations and artisan workshops that continue to invest in this excellence of ours – he comments
Luciano Pasquale, president of the de Mari Foundation and president of the Savona Ceramics Museum Foundation – The Savona Ceramics Museum and the MuDA of Albissola Marina, which we manage as the Ceramics Museum Foundation, are ideal places to promote, experiment and enhance this art and make it important both nationally and internationally”.
Also included within the Festival is the historic Savonese event Stile Artigiano dedicated to food and design. “The Confartigianato Savona event, which reaches its 20th edition in 2024, returns together with the Majolica Festival, confirming a winning combination for a new and high-caliber cultural and tourist offer. A ceramic festival during which Stile Artigiano offers workshops aimed at the public and professional operators. During the event, organized by the Savona companies, the productions will be displayed and sold to the public – explains Giancarlo Grasso, president of Confartigianato Savona – I thank the administrators of the Baia della Ceramica who have chosen us for the second year as the operational entity for the the organization of the event which turns the spotlight on the territory and on our artisan businesses. A path of cultural tourism continues which laid solid foundations in the last edition and which puts ceramic companies at the centre”.
Expectations are high: the forecast is that of a very strong turnout in the Bay, a unique reality that is ready to create and show art.
Complete program on www.festivaldellamaiolica.it
