Culinaria. Pratiche all’aria aperta. Presentazione del Manifesto di Massimo Ricciardo (Culinaria. Outdoor Practices. Presentation of the Manifesto by Massimo Ricciardo)
29 December 2025, 3:00 p.m.
Civic Museum of Castelbuono
The Civic Museum of Castelbuono will host, on Monday 29 December at 3:00 p.m., the presentation of the Culinaria. Pratiche all’aria aperta. Presentazione del Manifesto di Massimo Ricciardo (Culinaria Manifesto: Outdoor Practices by Massimo Ricciardo), published by Kunstverein Milano Publishing, in the presence of the artist and Maria Rosa Sossai, Head of Participatory Projects at the Civic Museum of Castelbuono.
The event forms part of the ongoing collaboration between the Civic Museum of Castelbuono and the project Culinaria. Pratiche all’aria aperta, winner of the Italian Council 13 (2024) – Strand 3 Grant, supported by the Directorate-General for Contemporary Creativity of the Ministry of Culture. The Museum has been a partner in the project since its initial research and development phases.
Culinaria is an artistic research project conceived as an open, mobile, and participatory process, exploring the relationship between natural landscapes and human-shaped environments through ephemeral culinary practices and temporary structures dedicated to food preparation. Culinary practice is approached as a tool for ecological observation, capable of activating local knowledge, orally transmitted traditions, and place-based forms of social interaction. The open air is not merely a setting, but an active element of the experience—a space for action and shared reflection.
During 2025, the project also took shape in Castelbuono through an artist residency held on 9 and 10 May, during which Massimo Ricciardo developed a programme of participatory activities together with Maria Rosa Sossai. The research evolved from the geographical and social characteristics of the area, combining direct observation, listening, and the collection of culinary practices, narratives, and local knowledge. During the residency, the artist visited local farms, the aromatic plant garden of the Civic Museum, and the community garden at Palazzo Failla, engaging the Castelbuono Youth Council in moments of dialogue and project sharing.
The presentation of the Manifesto represents an opportunity for public restitution and collective reflection on a process that connects Castelbuono to an international network of partner institutions and locations, including Cantieri d’Arte (Viterbo), Fondazione Ebbbio (Ebbio), Hochschule für angewandte Wissenschaften (Munich), Kunstverein Milano, and Future Farmers (San Francisco). It is a project that fosters new ways of bringing together people, places, and artistic practices, guided by an approach attuned to ecological responsibility.
At the end of the event, mulled wine scented with citrus fruits will be served, courtesy of the farm Vanessa Cardui, in keeping with the convivial and relational spirit that underpins the entire project.
Project realised with the support of the Direzione Generale Creatività Contemporanea – Ministero della Cultura, within the framework of Italian Council 13 (2024).
