Art Aia - Creatives / In / Residence is a former agricultural center[1] turned into an international art residency[2] in the Italian province of
Pordenone,
Friuli-Venezia Giulia, in the surroundings of the village of
Sesto al Reghena.[3] The artist-run organization is committed to nurturing the
creative process,[4] and it fosters artistic production and
research, especially towards ecology and sustainability.[5][6]
Background and history
Art Aia – Creatives / In / Residence is located in the locality of Banduzzo.[7] In the military cartography of
Anton von Zach (Kriegskarte, 1798-1805.
Duchy of Venetia), it is possible to detect in this area the presence of an isolated building. The complex belonged to the Counts Bion of Padua, who bought it at the end of the eighteenth century from the
Abbey of Santa Maria in Sylvis. From the mid-nineteenth century, the country estate belongs to a branch of the
Morassutti family who used it has an agricultural center during the
Metayage[8][9] and restored the
Small Church of St. Anthony of Padua in 1850.[10]
Today
Art Aia – Creatives / In / Residence operates at a local and international level[11] via
artist in residence programs open to individual artists,[12][13] and multidisciplinary art collectives,[14] such as the Institut für Alles Mögliche of Berlin[15] and has organized courses taught by teaching artists like
John Strasberg, and Italo-Palestinian artist
Mustafa Sabbagh who taught a photography workshop in 2014.[16]
The fact that people come to a place, where everyone makes that commitment, and they are in the country just changes the atmosphere of work so there is a kind of relaxation and camaraderie that is very special. It is a special place.
In 2014 Art Aia has created a subsidiary in Berlin, La Dolce Berlin, an
artist-run space[18] and film production company located in the area of
Wedding.[19] Since 2018 Art Aia – Creatives / In / Residence has been collaborating with the American organization
Centre for Sustainable Practice in the Arts (CSPA) in the ATE: Residency in Sustainable Practice, and in Climate Change Theatre Action 2021,[20] a worldwide series of readings and performances of short climate change plays presented biennially to coincide with the
United Nations COP meetings, where the Italian venue has organized a multidisciplinary event by the
Tagliamento river, together with
Legambiente[21] and the
Regional Environmental Protection Agency.[22]
Due to
COVID-19 pandemic, the venue has partnered with the
TransCultural Exchange supporting the online project Hello World and also with Uronto Artist Community affiliated with Art Initiative Bangladesh-AIB.[23]