Concluding the celebration of 2013: The Year of Italian Culture in the United States, the Museo Italo Americano in San Francisco, in partnership with the Italian Cultural Institute and the Consulate General of Italy, is showcasing a collection of images of Italy’s UNESCO World Heritage sites as seen through the lenses of 14 prominent Italian photographers.
The traveling show will be on display at the Fort Mason Center in San Francisco till January 26, 2014. Ambassador of Italy to the United States, Claudio Bisogniero, describes the exhibition as, “A journey in pictures, bringing the Italian wonders to the United States. Fine art photography for a fascinating exhibition: a visual adventure across the length and breadth of our country.”
To be proclaimed a World Heritage site, a number of criteria must be met, and the site must hold outstanding universal value by means of exceptional design or cultural significance to a group or civilization. As of June 2013, Italy has 49 UNESCO World Heritage sites, which is more than any other single country in the world.
In 1979, the ancient rock drawings of Lombardy’s Valcamonica became the first site in Italy to be designated by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) as a World Heritage site. Through its World Heritage list, UNESCO seeks to protect and preserve the cultural and natural heritage around the world considered to be of outstanding value to humanity. Today, Italy has 49 UNESCO World Heritage sites – more than any other single country in the world.
The traveling photographic exhibit, unescoitalia – created by Italy’s Ministry for Cultural Heritage and Activities in association with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs – is a collection of images of Italy’s UNESCO World Heritage sites, as seen through the lenses of 14 prominent and contemporary Italian photographers: Olivo Barbieri, Gabriele Basilico, Gianni Berengo Gardin, Giuseppina Caltagirone, Luca Campigotto, Dario Coletti, Vittore Fossati, William Guerrieri, Mimmo Jodice, Giuseppe Leone, Marc Le Simple, Raffaella Mariniello, Luciano Romano and Ferdinando Scianna.
This initiative, launched by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, under the auspices of the President of the Italian Republic, offers a unique voyage through the beauty, talents and ways of life of a country which draws inspiration precisely from its unparalleled past in order to innovate and rise to the challenges of the future.
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