Aprica murals
Aprica murals
Aprica murals
Aprica has also become famous for its murals by Alcide Pancot, who painted three of the six village quarters – S. Maria, Dosso and S. Pietro – and whose fame has even crossed Valtellina’s borders. The works started in 2000 to divulge Aprica’s history and illustrate the Alps’ flora and fauna. The first mural out of sixteen was “bear hunting” in the S. Maria quarter. The artist painted beautiful frescoes on the walls of the houses in this characteristic village whose symbol is the parish church of S. Maria Assunta. Dosso’s murals depict mountain flowers in their natural environment, exactly like those you can see on impervious mountain trails. In S. Pietro, splendid alpine animals, such as bears, eagles and chamois, are depicted within artistic and imaginative frames. Explanatory labels have been added to the murals in S. Maria, whereas those in other quarters are just signed and dated to allow visitors to travel with their imagination across rocky slopes, larch forests, and crystal-clear lakes. The perfect balance between nature, creativity, and colour is the theme of this artistic and cultural journey that starts from Aprica Infopoint, whose façade has also been decorated by Pancot.
Let’s learn from the author what it took in terms of emotions and expectations to create such a beautiful scenery.
“This project is the brainchild of Aprica’s former mayor, Maurizio Bosoni, and Dino Negri, who came up with this idea in 1999. They asked me if I was interested in painting murals across the village quarters because Edoardo Cocciarelli, a mutual friend, had spoken well about me after I painted a Walt Disney character for his children at his home. I painted the first murals, which depict a capercaillie and athletes, on the tower of the Tourist Office in 1999 when Marco Pantani won the Giro d’Italia stage but was disqualified for doping. In 2000, I started the first mural – “bear hunting” – in S. Maria. The depicted scene is the product of my imagination, unlike all the other murals for which I had a model for reference. In 2002, I moved my tools to Dosso, where I depicted high mountain flowers in their endemic environment. For example, mural no. 1 represents the Comolli violet, a flower that you can find only in Valtellina. I represented the flowers’ natural environment following my imagination. Still, I also wanted to meet the requests from some house owners who asked me to add other elements, such as lake Torena, the Alpine troops, a chamois, grazing cows, etc. When I accepted this assignment, I thought I wouldn’t live up to the expectations. But this fear faded away as soon as I received positive comments from people passing by while I was working. They helped bring out the best in me, easing strain when I had to work in uncomfortable positions, like on a scaffolding for hours. Finding long-lasting colours wasn’t an easy task either. For most of my murals, I used tempera paint for outdoor use. However, for the animals in the S. Pietro quarter, I wanted to experiment with enamel. It was an exciting experience because, besides the pleasure of painting, I had the opportunity to know the people from the various quarters who were so kind to invite me for a meal at their places. They were so happy that I was going to enhance the value of their homes with my art. Even if I’m happy with the result, I always want to do better. Even today, I’d like to redo those murals that have deteriorated, touch up others, and finish the few that remain to be done. So, if you take a tour across the quarters, it won’t be strange to see me working on a mural. I like it when I hear people appreciate my art.”
