Genova’s HUB-IN connects public art with urban regeneration
La Via delle Storie (The Street of Stories) presented an exciting opportunity to connect contemporary art with the territory of Genova’s Historic Urban Area (HUA), promoting public art as a driver of urban regeneration. The co-creation process involved professors of artistic disciplines, students from the local Academy of Fine Arts, local stakeholders, and the HUB-IN team.
Listening to people to uncover the city’s history
Developed during the co-creation process in 2023, La Via delle Storie began transforming the HUA with contributions from students and professors who collected stories, painted carpets on selected squares, and created multimedia votive shrines.
Nine stories, gathered by students from the Creative Writing course, were compiled into an first booklet that was also illustrated by the students themselves.
The second phase of the project saw the realisation of colourful painted carpets on the paving of selected squares in the HUA. This phase emphasised the importance of territorial analysis and a deep understanding of the area. When navigating urban spaces, people often look down rather than up, missing architectural details. Students take this habit into account to create graphic-pictorial compositions on the paving of key squares, reinterpreting architectural details and other local elements.
Squares, as shared spaces in cities, are places for exchanging ideas and goods, historically designed as meeting points. By decorating them with seating, the project invited residents and visitors to pause and share their stories. Students from the Scenography course designed simple seats inspired by a well-known designer’s stool. These could also be stacked to form totems. Twenty hand-decorated wooden seats were created in total.
In April 2024, Creative Writing students gathered a second set of stories in different squares within the HUB-IN pilot area. People of varying ages and backgrounds sat on the decorated seats to share stories connected to the HUA. These stories were compiled into a second booklet, featuring 30 stories and photographs taken by Photography students in the same squares.
A multimedia votive shrine to light up public space
Another phase of the project introduced a multimedia votive shrine designed to illuminate public spaces. Using a large LED panel, the installation displayed 16 sacred-themed images inspired by traditional votive shrines, all created by students from the Painting course. The installation, inaugurated in late May, is located within the former church of Santa Fede and visible from the outside. Visitors can scan a QR code to learn more about the authors and their artworks.
Find out more about the regeneration of Genova’s historic urban area here!
