On the thread of memories

A widespread photographic trail

Thursday 6 July 2023, 5.30 pm: Opening ceremony

On Thursday 6 July at 5.30 pm, the opening of the open-air photographic trail ‘Sul filo dei ricordi’ will take place inMergozzoat the Antica Latteria, Vicolo XI, 11a.

In the year marking the 400th anniversary of the first pictorial record of the elm tree on the Mergozzo lakeshore and the 100th anniversary of the War Memorial, a work by the sculptor Giovan Battista Tedeschi, the Granite Ecomuseum, together with Mergozzo Town Council and the Archaeological Group, has organised a photographic trail through the village’s streets, allowing visitors to compare today’s sights with images of how they looked 80, 100 and more years ago. There are over 30 photographs displayed at various locations, marked on a map, so that curious visitors can wander through the village streets in search of them and discover how the village has changed (or, in some cases, remained the same).

Certain colours help guide visitors along the route, grouping the sites into categories: lakeside sites, places and people, places of worship, and sites built of stone and wood.

As well as from the archives of the organising bodies, the images are taken from the parish archives and have been kindly provided by private individuals.

The event forms part of the network-wide programme ‘La pietra racconta’, developed in collaboration with the Granum Museum and Baveno Town Council, which has received funding from the VCO Community Foundation.

The trail will be open from 6 July to 31 August. To mark the opening, following the presentation at the old dairy, there will be a guided walk along part of the trail, ending at the Archaeological Museum with an aperitif entitled ‘on the thread of memories’.

Over the coming weeks, themed events will be held according to the following schedule:

Thursday 20 July • 9.00 pm
Mu.Me. Archaeological Museum
• On the Edge of Archaeology • A guided tour exploring the textile arts through archaeological finds, led by Elena Poletti, archaeological curator.

Thursday 27 July • 9.00 pm
Antica Latteria
• The Warp and Weft • a talk on the use of the traditional loom, led by Maria Vittoria Maulini, weaver.

Thursday 3 August • 9.00 pm
Portico of the Chapels (in the event of bad weather, the Parish Church of the Assumption)
• San Francesco aulente flore • A narrative concert by and featuring Zebo – Zero Emission Baroque Orchestra, as part of the 2023 edition of the “Di Parola in Musica” festival.

Saturday 5 August • 9.00 pm
Antica Latteria
• Il Mondo e due clarinetti • Concert in memory of Luigi Tamini, organised by Vittoria Ecclesia and Paolo Pellegrini, clarinets.

Thursday 10 August • 9.00 pm
Antica Latteria
• In the spirit of tradition: the ginostri • Talk by Emanuele Villa on the Mergozzo custom of decorating ritual trees for the patron saint’s day and other similar traditions; accounts from residents of Mergozzo.

Thursday 17 August • 9.00 pm
Parish Church of the Assumption
• Through the ages: the parish church of Mergozzo • A talk by Gian Vittorio Moro on the origins of the parish church of the Assumption to mark the patron saint’s feast day.

Thursday 24 August • 9.00 pm
Antica Latteria
• The common thread of writing • Lecture by Ferdinanda Cremascoli: reflections on the origins of alphabetic writing and a comparison of various writing systems.

For further information: 0323 840809; 348 7340347;museomergozzo@tiscali.it