Gibellina Italian capital Contemporary art 2026

Gibellina, in the province of Trapani, is the ‘Italian Capital of Contemporary Art’ for the year 2026. The proclamation took place today at the Ministry of Culture in the presence, among others, of the Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, of the general director of Contemporary Creativity, Angelo Piero Cappello and, connected from Turin, of the president of the Jury, Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo. The city will be able to enjoy funding of 1 million euros.

Gibellina prevailed over the finalist cities, which had presented their dossiers in the public hearings: Carrara (MS) with the project ‘Carrara – Contemporary from 2000 years’; Gallarate (Va) with ‘The Culture of Making. The Making of Culture’; Pescara with the project ‘Pescara contemporary city – An open door to dreams’ and Todi (Pg) with ‘Contemporary bridge’.

Giuli: “Capital Contemporary Art tribute to the Italian genius”

“With the proclamation of the city as winner of the title of Italian Capital of Contemporary Art, the first stage of an ambitious journey, imagined, thought out and implemented with great political foresight, comes to an end”, said Minister Giuli. The establishment of this title “wants to pay a new, powerful tribute to Italian creativity and genius, it is the confirmation of the Government’s active commitment to restore to Italy, its cities, its territories, its inhabitants, the awareness to be Italy”.

For the minister, “all the projects presented, from the 23 initial applications to the five finalist cities, were certainly of the highest level. And there is no doubt that the winning city will live up to the title recognized with a program capable of enhancing the own territory by involving the young talents of national and international contemporary artists, generating cohesion, social inclusion, innovation, economic growth, individual and community well-being”.

“This institution – continued the minister – is confirmation of the great vitality of Italian culture and of the need to enhance a sector, contemporary art, in continuous movement. Before and more than in the rest of Europe, cities have contributed to shaping the political and cultural geography of Italy: its territories and its populations, in its characteristic symphony of memories, customs, traditions. From the age of the Municipalities to the Risorgimento, we can say that the city is the Italian political form for excellence. The model of organization of collective memberships, precisely due to the history and inclination of our Nation”.

“The cities of Italy – Giuli recalled – have been the vital center and driving force of civilization over the centuries, the place and public space in which the main challenges of all time have been experienced, the context and dimension in which the most interesting solutions, the theater of the most relevant and fruitful processes of social, cultural and economic participation”.

“And even today – observed Giuli – the cities of Italy have been the heart of culture, science and the arts. From the Second World War to late modernity, contemporary art takes shape with its creations and representations, the its expressive and symbolic models, its creativity and its capacity for vision, in that urban context which inherited the best artistic experiences of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries”.

“By its nature – underlined the minister – contemporary art looks at what exists with a demanding eye, a critical spirit, sensitive to civil commitment. A bridge between the memory of the past and the creation of a livable future, art contemporary art invites us to rethink our time, its social concerns and its great collective challenges in a public, urban and civil habitat, in which the presence of beauty remains a common, typically Italian requirement that deserves to be recognized and sustained. In Italy – he concluded – there are already numerous public experiences in which contemporary art has contributed to the rebirth of urban centers and their social life”.

Schifani: “Gibellina symbol of rebirth, recognition rewards the whole of Sicily”

“I express profound satisfaction for the proclamation of Gibellina as the Italian Capital of Contemporary Art 2026 – declared the president of the Sicilian Region, Renato Schifani – This recognition celebrates a city symbol of cultural and architectural rebirth, a place which, since the tragedy of the earthquake, has been able to resurrect itself as an international point of reference for contemporary art and creative innovation. The choice of the Trapani town underlines not only the historical and cultural importance of this Sicilian municipality, but also the incredible contribution of our region to the artistic panorama. national”.

“The designation – he added – represents an extraordinary opportunity to support new projects and to make the artistic and cultural identity of the Municipality grow even further. As already happened with Agrigento, which next year will be the Italian Capital of Culture, we we will work to ensure that Gibellina, beyond the state contribution, can also count on further financial resources that give impetus to initiatives that enhance the territory and promote contemporary art in all its forms. This is a success for all of Sicily, which is confirmed its position as a land of culture and creativity. I thank the Ministry of Culture, the jury chaired by Patrizia Sandretto Re Rebaudengo, and all those who supported this path – concluded the governor – will be a proud protagonist of the Italian artistic panorama in 2026, offering a testimony of how beauty and culture can be drivers of development and social cohesion”.

Mayor of Gibellina: “Recognition of a sign of rebirth and new impetus”

The proclamation of Gibellina ‘Italian Capital of Contemporary Art 2026’ is a recognition “certainly important for the city of Gibelllina and for the territory because it will be able to give a new impetus”, said the mayor Salvatore Sutera, present today in Rome at the ceremony proclamation. The mayor, immediately after the news of the ‘victory’, wanted to remember “before anything else” the former mayor Ludovico Corrao “who with his visionary dream allowed this city, which had been destroyed, to be reborn by giving it a ‘identity he didn’t have’. “Rewarding Gibellina – he added – is a signal to say that even from dark moments, marked by the many catastrophes we are experiencing, absolutely new realities can arise. It is a message that Italy can give to the whole world”.

For the mayor, “becoming the capital of contemporary art is a great emotion. Gibellina presented a project that he shared with many institutions both at a local and national level. From this point of view we therefore take on an even greater responsibility. In this regard, I would be happy to find a way to collaborate with the other finalist cities who presented absolutely valid projects. We all deserved this title”, concluded the mayor.