FLORENCE
In Florence, the initial concept is to investigate the underused space, a space that is not empty per se, but is lacking in purpose and meaning. It challenges the usages, looking at adding new ecological value and meaning. The intervention investigates the idea of rethinking spaces and places through relational and generative mechanisms, leveraging the role of artists as key actors for social and civic change.
The Starting Point
The core challenge A dimora aimed to address was bringing contemporary art to Londa, a live place and not a detached space. The goal was to foster slow, culture-led regeneration in a rural town unaccustomed to such interventions. We sought to do this not just by producing art, but by inviting non-local artists to reinterpret the community’s needs and desires. LAMA acted as a mediator and co-designer, facilitating processes where diverse local instances could be represented. The challenge lay in grounding abstract contemporary practices—both permanent and ephemeral—within a specific community context to create outcomes that were truly engaging and representative of the territory.
The Approach
We developed a flexible residency program spanning the summer months, inviting artists to live and work in Londa for extended periods. This format evolved annually to better align the needs of the artists with those of the local community. To address the complexity of the context, LAMA deployed a multidisciplinary team to support the artists’ research and production while simultaneously managing stakeholder relationships. A crucial part of our approach was keeping the Public Administration at the center of the conversation and ensuring constant, transparent communication with the citizenry to foster a sense of shared ownership over the cultural process.
Luca Boffi (Alberonero), A dimora 2023, Credits Luisa Costa
Key Moments & Decisions
“<<Mettere a dimora>> means placing a plant in the ground permanently.”
Three pivotal moments defined our trajectory. First, in 2024, we relocated the artists’ accommodation from a further hamlet to the town center, significantly boosting their autonomy and natural integration into daily community life. Second, we expanded the public program with studio visits and talks, opening the project to external cultural professionals while deepening local engagement. Third, we facilitated the Municipality’s acquisition of Agnese Banti’s 2023 sound installation, “Fior di Mezzogiorno…”. This decision, driven by popular demand, marked a strategic shift from temporary experimentation to building a permanent public art collection, solidifying the community’s desire for lasting cultural assets.
Challenges
We faced initial skepticism regarding contemporary art and the perceived transience of artists. We addressed this by prioritizing slow integration, facilitating both official and spontaneous encounters. In the third edition, we converted a main square shop into a visible studio, demonstrating that value lies in the creative process, not just the object. Another challenge was operating without a pre-existing cultural infrastructure. Through mapping and community dialogue, we identified underused spaces like an old quarry and a former green area along the lake. We balanced this by organically transitioning from ephemeral performances to site-specific, permanent interventions, ensuring that the works were coherent with the territory rather than forced upon it.
“This place is full of imaginary, we need to work on imagining!”
Qualitative Impact
Feral mapping with Simone Carraro, A dimora 2023, credits Luisa Costa
The pilot successfully introduced contemporary cultural languages to a rural area typically excluded from such circuits, demonstrating how art can drive regeneration by acting on collective imagination and desire. Londa has been enriched with a collection of contemporary artworks, increasing its appeal to both general visitors and the specialized art public. On a policy level, A dimora shifted the local discourse on heritage, moving beyond a static view of conservation to embrace heritage as dynamic and living, encompassing both material works and intangible processes. This impact is evidenced by
the Municipality’s explicit request to continue collaborating on future editions.
“Can we make a map to help people explore all of our artworks in the town?”
Key Lessons & Insights
1. Make sure that the community knows “What’s going on?”: Keeping citizens informed and involved is vital because people make the place.
2. Long-term builds a stronger trust: Long-term residencies prevent artists from being perceived as “aliens” or “conquerors.” Meaningful, extended stays foster genuine relationships.
3. Art can make a place better: Art can improve a place, but the outcome must be mediated. Discussing the final results ensures artworks feel integrated rather than
imposed.
4. Participatory practices help the engagement: Whether led by artists or the organization, participatory practices engage the community’s heart and body, creating a deeper emotional connection to the project.
Samuel Rosi (Muz), A dimora 2025, Credits Eleonora Saviozzi
Cluster: Impermanence
Agnese Banti, A dimora 2023, credits Luisa Costa
Andrea Grasselli, A dimora 2025, credits Luisa Costa
Arianna Pace, A dimora 2024, credits Luisa Costa
The Florence pilot, titled A dimora (2023-2025), unfolded in the municipality of Londa within the Valdisieve area. From the outset, the project understood impermanence as a defining condition rather than a constraint, working within an “indefinite space” that encompassed not just the town, but its ever-transitioning natural surroundings of forests, streams, and plateaus. Designed by LAMA as a culture-led regeneration initiative, the project invited 12 artists (Agnese Banti, Iacopo Seri, Luca Boffi (Alberonero), Simone Carraro, Arianna Pace, Ornella Cardillo, Tommaso Mannucci (Monograff), Andrea Grasselli, Chiara Gambirasio, Gaia Coals, Martina Cioffi, and Samuel Rosi (Muz)) over three summer cycles to live, research, and create within this rural context. Navigating this environment presented distinct challenges, particularly regarding the community. Building trust and demonstrating the intrinsic value of the project required an adaptive, site-specific approach. Consequently, dissemination and communication were adapted to the rural context, implementing the standard promotion to ensure the local population played a central role in A dimora’s narrative. To work productively with impermanence, LAMA relied on informal exchanges, word-of mouth, and integration with the local Montagna Fiorentina festival, allowing the project to remain responsive rather than fixed. This adaptive methodology turned impermanence into an asset, allowing the project to evolve alongside the seasons. The pilot’s legacy comprises nine permanent and three impermanent artworks now owned by the Municipality, which has assumed responsibility for their maintenance. These works serve to solidify the relationship between the urban environment, nature, and inhabitants.
Crucially, very little was physically “built” from scratch. The artistic output prioritized performances involving sound and light, or site-specific interventions on existing elements—such as the quarry, portico, and fountain—rather than heavy construction. Beyond the physical art, A dimora addressed pragmatic issues by reactivating underutilized assets, such as renting vacant apartments and converting a former shop into a studio. By grounding the project in the reality of the landscape, A dimora fostered a new sense of imagination and possibility. Ultimately, it transferred agency to the citizens and institutions, ensuring that while the residencies were temporary, the cultural revitalization and the value placed on these lived spaces remain enduring.
Discover the Pilot:
Explore the Sensitive Mapping from the local coalition around Londa
Read about Londa’s tales.
Browse through the Map of the Processes