End of Ka art “Portraits of Humanity”. The Literary Walk for Matera 2019

Portraits of Humanity, the first of the two Literary Walks made within Ka art, drawing the collective map of Basilicata has come to an end. Ka art, drawing the collective map of Basilicata is a Matera 2019 European Capital of Culture project, co-produced by the ArtePollino association and the Matera-Basilicata 2019 Foundation, on the application theme Reflections and Connections.
The walk took place from 2 to 6 October 2018 in the Pollino National Park, launching the first phase of research and collection of data, used by the writers involved in the project to read and reinterpret the Park.
The guests of the walk were: Elvira Dones, of Albanian origin, writer, documentarian and author of many books published in Italy by Feltrinelli, Einaudi and Interlinea; and Marco Cazzato, an illustrator who has collaborated with La Stampa, Il Corriere della Sera, Il Sole 24 ore and other newspapers.
They were accompanied by two authors, Anastasia Frandino and Elena Notarangelo, of the Il Circolo dei Lettori of Turin, a project partner, together with some members of the ArtePollino association.
During the four days spent in Basilicata, the artistic team visited the small towns located within the Park, the Arbëreshe communities and, above all, had the chance to meet the inhabitants of this Southern Italian area, so rich in biodiversity and steeped in history and culture.
The Walk, named “Portraits of Humanity”, was aimed at discovering the landscapes and their inhabitants, meeting unknown places and people, able to arouse emotions and curiosity in the artist who will then narrate them.
For Elvira Dones, the discovery of an Albanian soul in the Arbëreshe villages of the Pollino park was a double emotion: “Reading Matera, Basilicata and the Pollino park as a writer, feeling at home”.
Her meeting with some women from the communities of San Costantino Albanese, Chiaromonte and Latronico (contacted by ArtePollino) was really meaningful, as they welcomed the group in their houses and workplaces and told their stories.
Very intense meetings took place during the journey, which unveiled the stories of people who courageously and resolutely tried, and still try, to resist and empower themselves, despite their many difficulties.
The visit to Matera, the 2019 European Capital of Culture, was an inspiration for the artists and enabled them to “move the tale of the Pollino Park to Matera 2019”, as told by Marco Cazzato in an interview given in Basilicata.