MAPPATOUR
MAPPATOUR was a project developed by the collective The Chioskito (Oscar Bettini, Giulia Palaia, and Lorenza Troian) with Associazione La Strada – Der Weg, supported by the Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano through the Bando Generazioni 2021 initiative. The project took place in Don Bosco, a multicultural and rapidly gentrifying neighborhood in Bolzano, and focused on creating artistic responses rooted in local observation and community interaction.

Over the course of days, we collaborated with a group of local artists to research the neighborhood— its rhythms, complexities, and the lived experiences of its residents. This deep engagement led to the development of five final projects, which were later exhibited at Cooltour and Drin, two important cultural spaces in Bolzano.

Working closely with other artists was instrumental not only in understanding the social dynamics of Don Bosco but also in collectively reflecting those issues back to the public and the institutions supporting the project.

My contribution to MAPPATOUR was the creation of a corner for objects exchange — a participatory installation built entirely from items donated by the neighborhood’s residents during the residency. Each object—ranging from old toys and worn shirts to books and even a guitar — was displayed alongside a short story or memory provided by its original owner. These narratives transformed the space into a shared archive of everyday life, inviting visitors to connect with the neighborhood’s people through their belongings and histories.

One of the project’s organizers, Oscar Bettini, joked early on: “They won’t give us gold necklaces.” And yet, people donated objects that were surprisingly personal and, in some cases, quite valuable —not necessarily in monetary terms, but in emotional weight and narrative richness. This idea — that value is relative, and deeply tied to context — echoes the spirit of Group Material’s Arroz con Mango exhibition in 1980s New York, where everyday items became vessels of cultural identity and collective memory.