https://www.atlasobscura.com/articles/gibellina-failed-modernist-utopia * * Trips [aoa_logo_a] Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura! Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life. Visit Adventures Trips Highlight Street scene in Oaxaca. Mexico * 7 days, 6 nights Tasting Oaxaca: Culinary Delights & Cultural Insights from $3,825 USD [blank-f2c3] Turkmenistan * 10 days, 9 nights Turkmenistan and the Gates of Hell from $4,285 USD View all trips * Experiences Upcoming Experiences View All Experiences >> [blank-f2c3] Members only Antiques and Their Afterlives: Inside the Bone Museum [blank-f2c3] Members only Gazing Into Totality: How to Prep for an Eclipse w/ Dr. Kate Russo [blank-f2c3] Hot Springs Atlas Obscura's Ecliptic Festival [blank-f2c3] Fort Myer The Spies of Arlington National Cemetery [blank-f2c3] Washington The Spies of Georgetown * Courses Upcoming Courses View All Courses >> [blank-f2c3] When the Sun Disappears: Exploring the Solar Eclipse With Dr. Moiya McTier [blank-f2c3] Bee-licious: Taste Honey Like a Sommelier With Marina Marchese [blank-f2c3] How to Read a Landscape: Botany & Ecology With Annie Novak [blank-f2c3] Destination Space: Exploring Space Travel With Ashley Christine [blank-f2c3] Spice School: The Foundations of Flavor With Claire Cheney of Curio Spice Co. * Places + Top Destinations + Latest Places + Most Popular Places + Random Place + Lists + Itineraries + ------------------------------------------------------------- Add a Place ------------------------------------------------------------- + Download the App Latest Places View All Places >> [blank-f2c3] Concord, Massachusetts Brister Freeman Homestead Site 42.4454, -71.3417 The desk atop Hancock Hill in 2021. Alpine, Texas Sul Ross Desk 30.3664, -103.6533 T.C. Steele House Nashville, Indiana House of the Singing Winds 39.1314, -86.3485 [blank-f2c3] Westminster, Vermont Grave of William French 43.0716, -72.4552 Top Destinations View All Destinations >> Countries + Australia + Canada + China + France + Germany + India + Italy + Japan Cities + Amsterdam + Barcelona + Beijing + Berlin + Boston + Budapest + Chicago + London + Los Angeles + Mexico City + Montreal + Moscow + New Orleans + New York City + Paris + Philadelphia + Rome + San Francisco + Seattle + Stockholm + Tokyo + Toronto + Vienna + Washington, D.C. * Foods Latest Places to Eat & Drink View All Places to Eat >> This chocolatier is one of the oldest in the United States. The Hebert Candy Mansion Prosecco makes for a lighter twist on a Negroni. Bar Basso In here, it's forever Holy Week. Bar Garlochi Order your dogs topped with chili, mustard, and onions. The Roast Grill Anyone with a fear of clowns may want to run as far away as possible. Cirkuskroen (The Circus Pub) * Stories + Recent Stories + All Stories + Puzzles + Video + Podcast Most Recent Stories View All Stories >> The first skull fossil from Jebel Irhoud, found by a miner in the early 1960s, was initially thought to belong to a Neanderthal. Where Did Humans Evolve? (Probably Not Where You're Thinking) [blank-f2c3] Podcast: Buffalo Soldiers National Museum Bierstadt's signature Slow-Pour Pils is a must-order for first-timers--as is their pretzel with beer cheese. 9 Unique Eats You Have to Try in Denver Sponsored by Visit Denver Mercantile elevates hearty, flavorful dishes with fresh seasonal ingredients and a farm-to-table ethos. Gastro Obscura's Guide to Sustainable Denver Dining Sponsored by Visit Denver * Newsletters * Sign In Join * Explore Newsletters * Sign In ----------------------------------------------------------------- Join * Places near me Random place [bGwuanBn] What Can You Do With a 'Failed' Postmodern Utopia? Gibellina, known as "Sicily's Marfa," is looking to its visionary past for a future revival. by Vittoria Traverso February 16, 2024 What Can You Do With a 'Failed' Postmodern Utopia? Copy Link Facebook Twitter Reddit Flipboard Pocket A massive sculpture by Pietro Consagra, known as Porta del Belice ( Door of Belice) or the Star of Belice, marks the entrance of Gibellina Nuova. Catrina Genovese/Shutterstock In This Story [blank-f2c3] Destination Guide Italy 98 Articles 990 Places The landscape around Route A29, which connects Palermo and Mazara del Vallo, is a travel-brochure version of rural Sicily: rolling hills dotted with barley fields, olive groves, and vineyards, and the occasional cluster of ancient ruins. Exit at Salemi, however, and follow the signs for Gibellina Nuova, and a surprise awaits. Like a postmodern version of Roman era city gates, there stands a 70-foot-tall steel sculpture of a five-pointed star by Sicilian sculptor Pietro Consagra. Porta del Belice (Door of Belice) or the Star of Belice marks the entrance to Gibellina Nuova, a town that hosts one of the largest collections of contemporary art in the world and a reputation as a failed art utopia or a surreal, postmodern ghost town. Sometimes referred to as "Sicily's Marfa," a reference to the Texas town that has become a nexus for contemporary art, Gibellina Nuova (New Gibellina) was built in the 1970s after Gibellina Vecchia (Old Gibellina) was destroyed by an earthquake. The old town was not rebuilt as it was, or replaced by bland apartment and office blocks, but instead reformulated with strangely spherical churches, wide avenues, squares that recall the surrealist paintings of Giorgio de Chirico, massive public sculptures, and brutalist buildings, assembled by a roster of world-renowned artists and architects. Its fate, so far, has been the fate of many utopias over the years. Initial enthusiasm faded. Weeds sprouted. People left. It became a curiosity rather than a model. But in recent years, some Gibellina Nuova locals have been trying to put it back on the cultural map, to stage yet another resurrection in the Sicilian highlands. The central square in Gibellina, called Il Sistema delle Piazze, or The System of Squares was designed by architects Laura Thermes and Franco Purini. The central square in Gibellina, called Il Sistema delle Piazze, or The System of Squares was designed by architects Laura Thermes and Franco Purini. Abaca Press/Alamy --------------------------------------------------------------------- Nestled atop a hill in the Belice Valley, Gibellina Vecchia was a town of about 20 acres and 6,000 people. On January 15, 1968, a magnitude-6.4 earthquake destroyed most of its centuries-old buildings and killed an estimated 300 people. "I remember that it was snowing on the night of the earthquake," says Salvatore Sutera, mayor of Gibellina Nuova, who grew up in the old town and was eight years old when it was leveled. "My family took shelter with some relatives in a nearby town after the first earthquake wave hit." In the aftermath of the disaster, residents were housed in temporary shelters while the Italian government worked out a plan. At the time, Sicily had been mostly left behind by the "economic miracle" that helped lift millions of Italians out of poverty during the 1950s and 1960s. "The state saw the reconstruction in the Belice Valley as an opportunity to launch western Sicily into the future," says Angela Badami, a professor of architecture at the University of Palermo and the author of Gibellina, la citta che visse due volte, on the history of Gibellina. The state entity tasked with rebuilding Gibellina--Istituto Superiore per l'Edilizia Sociale, or ISES--looked at trendy urban models of the time, Badami explains. They eventually settled on the "garden city," a design popularized in the 1960s by English urban planner Ebenezer Howard. With satellite communities separated by greenbelts, garden cities were designed to combine aspects of urban and rural living to alleviate the density of the United Kingdom's industrial cities. Applied to an agricultural area in western Sicily, the garden city framework had a weird effect. "It was like putting a mountain hut in the desert," Badami says. An earthquake in January 1968 destroyed the old town of Gibellina and killed approximately 300 residents. An earthquake in January 1968 destroyed the old town of Gibellina and killed approximately 300 residents. Keystone Press/Alamy It was a controversial plan from the start. Ludovico Corrao, a famous progressive lawyer, got heavily involved in the vision for a new Gibellina. A dedicated art collector, he and his artist and intellectual friends had discussed creation of a hub for Mediterranean arts and culture. In a town that was a blank slate, he saw an opportunity. "He sought to recreate a shared identity through arts and culture," explains Davide Camarrone, author I Maestri di Gibellina, a book about the town. "Sicily has always been at the crossroads of different civilizations, people coming from Africa and from the eastern Mediterranean have all transited through the island, taking with them different languages, religions and cultures." Corrao thought Gibellina could reflect this cultural melting pot and revive it as core to Sicily's cultural identity. He was elected mayor of Gibellina Nuova in 1969 and in 1970 he shared a call for artists, architects, and intellectuals to contribute to the new town. The call, cosigned by novelist Leonardo Sciascia, modern painter Renato Guttuso, and cultural patron Giovanni Treccani, brought the attention of artists, architects, and urban planners, including Consagra, Arnaldo Pomodoro, Ludovico Quaroni, Nanda Vigo, and Alberto Burri. The reconstruction of Gibellina had taken on epic proportions. Ludovico Quaroni designed Chiesa Madre (Mother Church) for Gibellina Nuova. Ludovico Quaroni designed Chiesa Madre ( Mother Church) for Gibellina Nuova. Courtesy Thorsten Burkard --------------------------------------------------------------------- Not everyone could see Corrao's vision, and big plans require big investment--at personal and official levels. "Some of us were disoriented by all that change happening in such a short amount of time," Sutera says. "The earthquake projected us from an agricultural world into a modern world basically overnight." Some citizens grew particularly skeptical when little construction took place in the early 1970s, and when reports of state-level corruption began to circulate in the middle of the decade. Eventually the state funds came through, and by the 1980s, the town was frantic with development. Diego Fontana, who was eight at the time of the earthquake and came of age during the Corrao era, remembers the 1980s as Gibellina's version of a medieval town's cathedral-building, a communal effort that channeled the creative energy and labor of an entire populace. "Artisans, blacksmiths and carpenters were all involved with the realization of artworks," he says, "people had the feeling they were involved with something bigger than themselves." Rosalba Durante, who runs the town pharmacy, agreed to let her home become new an experimental project by architects Franco Purini and Laura Thermes. "Corrao had a vision to create a town based around contemporary art," she says, "most of us believed in it and took risks." The Torre Civica (Civic Tower) of Gibellina Nuova was designed by renowned designer and architect Alessandro Mendini. The Torre Civica (Civic Tower) of Gibellina Nuova was designed by renowned designer and architect Alessandro Mendini. Courtesy Thorsten Burkard Overall, citizens seemed to embrace the mayor's project. "We are the ones who voted in Corrao," Fontana says, adding that he opened the first restaurant of the new town, where artists and locals would have dinner and stay up talking until late at night. More than 50 works of public art and architecture were built during the Corrao years, including the Chiesa Madre or Mother Church, a gigantic sphere resting on a concrete square designed by architect and urban planner Ludovico Quaroni (inspired by the various ancient civilizations that ruled parts of the island a thousand years ago); the Torre Civica or Civic Tower, a megaphone-equipped 65-foot-tall concrete tower by Alessandro Mendrini that marks time with sounds from the audio collection of Palermo University's Anthropology Institute; and the Teatro, a brutalist building composed of rounded blocks of concrete designed by Consagra. As a result, Gibellina is currently the city with the highest number of artworks per capita in Italy, Badami says. Inspired by the ancient Greek city-state model, Corrao envisioned a town where performance was at the center of public life. He turned a former textile laboratory into an arts foundation, called Orestiadi. Locals were actively involved in plays, and the Orestiadi Festival would become one of Europe's leading arts events. "During the Orestiadi, Gibellina felt like the center of the world," Sutera says. "Every hotel in this part of western Sicily was fully booked." But the visitors didn't stick around for long. Sculptor Alberto Burri created the massive Il Grande Cretto (The Great Crack, also known as the Cretto di Burri), a landscape-scale artwork that encased the ruins of Gibellina Vecchia in concrete. It was completed after the artist's death. Sculptor Alberto Burri created the massive Il Grande Cretto (The Great Crack, also known as the Cretto di Burri), a landscape-scale artwork that encased the ruins of Gibellina Vecchia in concrete. It was completed after the artist's death. Michal Balada/iStock --------------------------------------------------------------------- Corrao's vision continued to take shape through the 1980s, but the focus on art and artists who did not live there rubbed some the wrong way. In 1994, with some of the most ambitious projects (including Alberto Burri's massive land art memorial, Il Grande Cretto (The Great Crack), also called the Cretto di Burri, which encased all of Gibellina Vecchia's ruins in gleaming concrete) uncompleted, Corrao lost a mayoral election. Over time, a lack of funds led to the decay of some of the new projects. Weeds started to envelop the Cretto di Burri before it was completed, as well as the Palazzo di Lorenzo, a roofless building designed in 1981 by architect Francesco Venezia to preserve some of the walls of a historic palace that crumbled during the earthquake. "After Corrao was gone we lost our sense of direction as a city," Durante says. Many families left the town to look for jobs. Over the course of 40 years, Gibellina's population decreased from 6,000 to 3,500. The garden city, however, was designed for 50,000. Where the old, medieval town covered about 50 acres, the new one sprawled across nearly 500. Large boulevards for cars took the place of cobblestone streets, and there was no piazza that provided a locus for public life. "It feels like a city designed with perfect geometrical proportions," says 27-year-old Riccardo Lattuada, whose family relocated to a nearby town after the earthquake, "but perfection without people can feel alienating." By the late 1990s Gibellina was labeled as a "failed experiment." The city was ranked on lists of "failed architecture," while journalists referred to it as a "ghostly disaster" and a "euthanized utopia." Sculptor Pietro Consagra's Teatro. Sculptor Pietro Consagra's Teatro. Massimo Brucci/Dreamstime --------------------------------------------------------------------- But some artistic visions sometimes die hard. Though Corrao died in 2011, by the mid-2010s the idea of a cultural hub started to take hold again. In 2015, the Cretto di Burri was finally completed after local artist Nicolo Stabile issued a call for its completion, featuring signatures from international artists such as Marina Abramovic. In 2016, the city hosted the first edition of Gibellina Photoroad, an international, open-air art exhibition hosting large-scale photos, prints, and installations arranged around key landmarks. "The Photoroad exhibition gave Gibellina a breath of fresh air," Fontana says. The 2021 edition, hosted a few months after the end of pandemic lockdowns, was particularly heartfelt. In 2019 global fashion house Yves Saint-Laurent shot an ad campaign on the Cretto di Burri, boosting the town's fame on social media. Sometimes Americans whose ancestors left Sicily for the United States pop up in Gibellina, looking to learn more about its history, Sutera says. But echoes of its past remain, like a palimpsest: destroyed town, grand vision, international art destination, depopulated town, largely empty between events. More than 30,000 people visited Gibellina during the three months of the 2023 Photoroad, and appreciated the town's sites. But otherwise it can still feel like a postmodern ghost town. According to Giuseppe Maiorana, president of the Belice's Cultural and Natural Museum Network and director of the Belice/EpiCentro Museum of Living Memory, Gibellina could still be a year-round cultural destination, perhaps if paired with other nearby attractions, such as the archaeological parks of Selinunte and Segesta, and the famous vineyards of Salaparuta. What's lacking, he says, is tourism infrastructure, from hotels, to bus and train connections, to English-speaking guides. Right now, Sutera explains, the town can only host 70 overnight visitors in small bed-and-breakfasts. The Photoroad exhibition, seen here in 2023, brings crowds of art lovers to Gibellina. The Photoroad exhibition, seen here in 2023, brings crowds of art lovers to Gibellina. Courtesy Gibellina Photoroad Official pathways to development in Italy take time and money, so some locals are taking matters into their own hands. During the 2021 Photoroad, Fortuna noticed that a lot of visitors were interested in Gibellina's 50 public artworks but had no tools to learn about them. "There aren't many signs or pamphlets explaining the history of these works," he says. In the past three years, he worked with a local print shop to create leaflets, and has volunteered as a tour guide. "The best part is witnessing people reaction when we explore Gibellina's key landmarks like Quaroni's church," he says. "It's like leading people to find a hidden treasure." A similar DIY spirit animates Nicolo Stabile, the local artist who fought to complete the Cretto di Burri. In recent years, he has worked with architecture departments of major European universities to organize workshops on Gibellina's postmodern architecture. "There seems to be more interest in Gibellina's heritage by foreign institutions than by local ones," he says. According to Stabile, the future of Gibellina will mostly depend on a common vision that is shared by most citizens, as during the Corrao years. Last summer, urban designers ran a series of workshops with local citizens to better understand their experience of post-earthquake reconstruction. The findings were presented during a week-long exhibition at Consagra's Teatro, which was opened to the public for the first time. "Participants mostly approve of the arts part of the reconstruction," says Valentino Matteis, an urban designer at Progetto Materia, a cultural association that organized the workshop. "But they lamented the lack of clear socialization spaces and of work opportunities." Maiorana, who has been working to promote awareness of Gibellina's heritage by hosting free educational events at the town's contemporary art museum, wonders if it will eventually become a version of Noto, a Sicilian city famous for its UNESCO-recognized Baroque architecture, and was also rebuilt from ground up after a powerful earthquake destroyed a previous settlement in 1639. Half of old Noto was wiped out and reconstructed following what at the time was contemporary architecture. "Today, Noto attracts visitors from around the world and is a must-see for students of Baroque architecture," he says, "Maybe in 100 years that will be the fate of Gibellina." Read next In Defense of Eating Brains While some in the West are squeamish, globally, it's more common than not. [blank-f2c3] utopiastravelart outsideabandonedarchitectural odditiesart architecture Using an ad blocker? We depend on ad revenue to craft and curate stories about the world's hidden wonders. Consider supporting our work by becoming a member for as little as $5 a month. Continue Using Ad-Block Support Us Keep Exploring [blank-f2c3] architecture Meet the Residents of the Desert Ecocity That's Been Under Construction for 45 Years Sarah Laskow May 15, 2015 [blank-f2c3] abandoned Podcast: Old City Hall Station One of New York City's abandoned marvels is both easy and difficult to access. The Podcast Team December 18, 2023 [blank-f2c3] outsider art 8 Supernatural Spots You Can Only Find in Northern Kentucky Indulge your proclivity for the paranormal and explore the mystifying side of the Bluegrass State. Sponsored by Meet Northern Kentucky [blank-f2c3] abandoned Podcast: Burj Al Babas This perplexing abandoned housing development is part ghost town, part fairy tale. The Podcast Team August 8, 2023 [eGVkLmpwZw] Video * Wonder From Home See the World Through Its Windows 1:44 [b25lXy5qcG] Video Why Won't These Icebergs Leave Canada Alone? | Untold Earth 7:05 [MDA1LmpwZw] Video Searching for Home and Connection Through Typewritten Poetry 6:12 [LVNUSUxMLT] Video * Discover More in the Bradenton Area The Florida Haven Where Artists Thrive 4:19 Sponsored by Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau [MDEuanBn] Video * AO Docs The Abandoned 'Ghost Mansion' of Northern Italy 2:59 [bGwuanBn] Video There's an Abandoned Futuristic Fort in Portland, Maine 3:32 [cGc] Video * PinDrop This Once-Thriving Hotel Couldn't Compete With Climate Change 1:27 [a2EgMTAuan] Video 4 of Alaska's Most Intriguing Places 13:34 [OC5qcGc] Video See the Ruins of an Estonian Ghost Town 5:25 [c3RpbGwgMD] Video A Journey to Coney Island Creek's Sunken Submarine 11:23 [OSAoMSkuan] Video * PinDrop Step Inside the Giant Dragon of the Wat Samphran Temple 2:00 [MS5qcGc] Video Step Inside Indonesia's Chicken Church 5:28 [eFN0aWxsMD] Video * PinDrop A Home for the Future, Imagined in the Past 1:26 [LmpwZw] Video Inside a Domed Pyramid With Astounding Acoustics and a History of Miracles 4:16 [Zw] Video How Chinese Folk Dancers Continue to Practice During Quarantine 5:01 [MDUuanBn] Video Peek Inside NYC's Iconic Rubber Stamp Shop 3:40 [IFN0aWxsLm] Video * Wonder From Home Show & Tell With Colored-Pencil Cartographer Anton Thomas 11:53 [cGc] Video * PinDrop Oaxaca's Intricate Radish-Sculpting Festival 1:16 [YXR1cmUwMD] Video * AO Docs Memory in Miniature 3:26 [anBn] Video * Gastro Obscura The Beautiful World of Microscopic Food 3:04 [bmc] Video Reviving the Lost Art of Cambodian Shadow Puppetry 3:54 [MS5qcGc] Video * PinDrop A Spherical 'Micro-Nation' in the Middle of Vienna 1:04 [ZXNfMDMuan] Video The Giant Megaphones Tucked Inside a Remote Estonian Forest 6:02 [NjQ4NC5KUE] Video The Wonderful World of a Garden Dedicated to Gourds 9:47 [anBn] Video * Wonder From Home Show & Tell: The Magic of Imperfect Objects With Jessica Oreck 9:58 [NzA5Mi5qcG] Video * Asheville: Off the Beaten Path Inside Asheville's River Arts District 1:37 Sponsored by Explore Asheville [TzRGQS5qcG] Video The Hidden Wonders of the Hudson Valley 03:53 Sponsored by Defender [dC1zdGlsbC] Video In Maine, the Art of Basketry Hangs On By a Thread 5:22 Sponsored by Maine Office of Tourism [aWxsIDAyLm] Video How One Man Built a Sprawling Treehouse With a Dance Floor 6:55 [cGc] Video * PinDrop Step Inside a Surreal, Dizzying Italian Fortress 1:54 [MDEuanBn] Video * PinDrop Step Inside Gaudi's First House in Barcelona 1:24 [cGc] Video * PinDrop Explore a Rescued Frank Lloyd Wright Masterpiece 1:41 Sponsored by Visit Buffalo Niagara [dGlsbCAwMi] Video Why There's an 'Italian' Village in Wales 5:27 Want to see fewer ads? Become a Member. From Around the Web Atlas Obscura Trips NEW -- Italian Food & Wine: Eating Regionally View This Trip See Fewer Ads Become an Atlas Obscura member and experience far fewer ads and no pop-ups. Learn More Get Our Email Newsletter [ ] Thanks for subscribing! View all newsletters >> [Submit] Follow Us * * * * * * Get the app Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play Download the App Places * All Places * Latest Places * Most Popular * Places to Eat * Random * Nearby * Add a Place Editorial * Stories * Food & Drink * Itineraries * Lists * Puzzles * Video * Podcast * Newsletters Trips * All Trips * Trips Blog * Art & Culture Trips * Food Trips * Hidden City Trips * History Trips * Wildlife & Nature Trips * FAQ Experiences * Experiences * Online Courses * Online Experience FAQ * Online Course FAQ * Eclipse Festival 2024 Community * Membership * Feedback & Ideas * Community Guidelines * Product Blog * Unique Gifts * Work With Us Company * About * Contact Us * FAQ * Invest In Us * Advertise With Us * Advertising Guidelines * Press * Privacy Policy * Cookie Policy * Terms of Use (c) 2024 Atlas Obscura. All rights reserved. Questions or Feedback? Contact Us Thanks for sharing! Follow us on Twitter to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. Like us on Facebook to get the latest on the world's hidden wonders. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Want a Free Book? Sign up for our newsletter and enter to win the second edition of our book, Atlas Obscura: An Explorer's Guide to the World's Hidden Wonders. [ ] Subscribe No Thanks Visit AtlasObscura.com Atlas Obscura: An Explorer's Guide to the World's Hidden Wonders Stay in Touch! Follow us on social media to add even more wonder to your day. Follow us on Twitter Like us on Facebook Follow Us on Instagram No Thanks Visit AtlasObscura.com No purchase necessary. Winner will be selected at random on 03/01/ 2024. Offer available only in the U.S. (including Puerto Rico). Offer subject to change without notice. See contest rules for full details. Add Some Wonder to Your Inbox Every weekday we compile our most wondrous stories and deliver them straight to you. [ ] Subscribe No Thanks We'd Like You to Like Us Like Atlas Obscura and get our latest and greatest stories in your Facebook feed. No Thanks [p] Quantcast **