In Piacenza, one of the most important murals is the one created on the facade of the complex of the former convent of Santa Chiara by Tony Cuboliquido. The representation alludes to a recovery project of conversion of the complex into a citadel for university students and vulnerable people, represented here, together with various figures of Clarisse nuns, an order that once resided here.
Dedicated to Dante, instead, are the two murals that paint the long 80-meter wall that runs from the beginning of Piazzale Milano to the Wall Street School in Viale Risorgimento in Piacenza, a work of teamwork of two street artists from Piacenza: Fabio Guarino and Antonio Catalani in collaboration with associations in the social field.
Not to be missed is the small village of Bersani, in the municipality of Gropparello.
It is a real fairy tale village and it is nice to get lost in the alleys to discover the many paintings on the houses depicting some of the most famous traditional fairy tales, including Pinocchio, Little Red Riding Hood, Alice in Wonderland, the Pied Piper, but also Peter Pan and Hansel and Gretel.
In Parma, a municipal regulation allows to promote the creation of murals on public and private spaces, as an expression of cultural and tourist enhancement of the area, but also as a requalification of urban environments.
In 2022, the "Free Walls" were established to encourage artists to produce their works, promoting the use of colors that absorb CO2.
So, walking in the Oltretorrente district of Parma, you can recognize the mural "La Metamorfosi" created by the artists Rise The Cat + Pepe Coi Bermuda in Vicolo Grossardi. It is one of the collateral works of the initiative of the City of Parma "Around Banksy" created on the occasion of the exhibition dedicated to Banksy and ended in January 2022. Among these are also the drawings of "Under Yard. Don't call us street artists", the jam dedicated to the theme of multiculturalism in the railway underpass in Via Trieste.
In Via Farini, on the wall of Palazzo Tarasconi, on the occasion of the exhibition dedicated to the artist, an presumed Banksy appeared.
Finally, in the province of Parma, the village of Sesta, in the municipality of Corniglio, is completely painted with works by the painter Madoi, including portraits of famous people, from Sophia Loren to Pier Paolo Pasolini.
Reggio Emilia, a city of contemporary art, is particularly rich in murals to discover.
Do not miss the great work of street art "Come se piovesse"("As if it rained") by Daniele Castagnetti and Hang at the library of San Pellegrino - Marco Gerra, with its blue sky overlooking a house made of books, among animals that symbolize wisdom and conscience. A hymn to culture that saves from ignorance.
Also beautiful is the mural "Ubuntu" by Castagnetti on the walls of the gymnasium of the "Carlo Alberto Dalla Chiesa" school, created on the occasion of the centenary of the birth of Nelson Mandela: 6 hands of different colors represent the continents of the earth and form the word "ubuntu", meaning peace and connection between peoples.
To the champion of the Los Angeles Lakers, Kobe Bryant, who grew up in Reggio Emilia, and to his daughter Gianna, both of whom died in a tragic accident, is dedicated the large mural on the court of Il Noce Park, the busiest basketball court in the city, which covers an old cage and gives it new life.
The result of a collective work, the mural dedicated to human rights is a creation of many young people from Reggio Emilia, authors of several drawings made on different walls, between Via XX Settembre and Largo Marco Gerra.
One of the most famous in the city is the mural of Casa Manfredi in Villa Sesso, near the A1 highway. It is the only partisan house in Reggio Emilia, on which in September 2020 was inaugurated the work of street art by Fabio Valentini in art Neko and Marco Temperilli in art Maik, entitled "Partisan Reggiano", a tribute to the memory of the martyrs of the Resistance, 5 people of the Manfredi family killed by the fascists because they were caught listening to Radio London, and other people of the Miselli family who gave their lives in the war of Liberation.
Whoever comes out of the underpass of the highway will find the large mural in front of him, but also 8 panels that tell the story of Villa Sesso between 1944 and 1945, and on the fence of Casa Manfredi the photos that illustrate this story.
When you arrive in Reggio Emilia by train, one of the first structures you can see is the huge gray shed with yellow writing indicating "Reggiane". One of the 20 warehouses that made up the Officine Meccaniche Reggiane, a disused industrial area that recounts 100 years of Italian and city history, from 1901 to 2008. A place of memory of the economic and social history of Reggio Emilia, today a place of street art stories, a varied urban gallery, fascinating to discover and that can also be admired virtually at www.reggianeurbangallery.it.
