On the night of 15th January 1968, a terrible earthquake struck the Valle del Belice in southwest Sicily.
More than 900 people died. The town of Gibellina was left in ruins.
In 1983 the internationally renowned artist Alberto Burri conceived the idea to transform the rubble of old Gibellina into one of the largest landscape artwork ever created: The Cretto di Burri.
With the exception of the streets, which were left open for visitors to wander through, the whole area of the old town (120,000 square meters) was covered with
1.5-meter strata of white concrete, as if a shroud had been laid over the ruins. From the sky, this is an enormous grey-white tortoise shell molded over the side of the hill, immersed in the beautiful countryside of the Valle del Belice.
1.5-meter strata of white concrete, as if a shroud had been laid over the ruins. From the sky, this is an enormous grey-white tortoise shell molded over the side of the hill, immersed in the beautiful countryside of the Valle del Belice.
My aerial photography project “Shadows from the past” celebrates this wonderful artwork, largely unknown to tourists, and certainly not overrun by Sicilians. The Cretto is an awe-inspiring work, an uplifting and solemn testimony to man's durability and creativity in the face of adversity deserving far more public attention.
