Nicola Carrino e Pino Spagnulo, due maestri tarantini: opere e documenti

The CRAC Puglia (Center for Research in Contemporary Art), on the occasion of its tenth anniversary (2015-2025), is promoting and organizing a special cultural event on Friday, May 23rd, in its museum spaces (former Convent of the Olivetani Fathers, Corso Vittorio Emanuele II No. 17, Historic Center of Taranto).

This event will be divided into three different segments:
Nicola Carrino and Pino Spagnulo, a tribute featuring a selection of works and documents honoring two Taranto masters who were international figures in Contemporary Art;
an "Experience Meeting" with the participation of scholars in artistic research;
a public debate on the topic “Contemporary Art in Taranto.”


Educating to appreciate beauty is, as someone has argued, "an antidote to the indifference of the times." Beauty contributes to building a citizen’s identity in relation to their territory. In light of this assumption, and following numerous initiatives planned over the years to provide the city of Taranto with a civic gallery or a museum of modern and contemporary art, the Rocco Spani ETS Foundation established the CRAC Puglia – Center for Research in Contemporary Art in 2015 in the historic center of Taranto, as initiated by Giulio De Mitri and a group of intellectuals. This included a library dedicated to the memory of the well-known Taranto historian and art critic Franco Sossi. "A structure for contemporary art," writes Pietro Marino, "has been one of the continuously interrupted dreams (also) of Taranto: from the national painting prize, born in 1948 and soon defunct, to the ambitious ARSMAC project conceived by the Province in 2005 and carried forward for several years before dissipating into nothingness. An active role was played by Giulio De Mitri, an artist who has never ceased to engage socially for his city, even with a Foundation, the 'Rocco Spani,' which performs creative and educational activities for minors and the disadvantaged."

The CRAC Puglia was established in 2015 and acquired twenty-six works by renowned contemporary artists (including Bruno Munari, Getulio Alviani, Nicola Carrino, Luigi Mainolfi, Pino Pascali, Mauro Staccioli, Giuseppe Spagnulo, Oliviero Rainaldi, Joseph Beuys), forming the initial core of the permanent collection: Effe Plan. National Historical Archive of the Artist's Project and Preparatory Study. Over the years, the CRAC was recognized by the Region and became part of the network of Museums of Puglia.

The activity primarily focuses on the methodological tools of analysis, documentation, design, preparatory study, and the planning of theories and practices of contemporary artistic production. It serves as a hub that considers the project before the final product and acts as an incubator for actions and direct interventions on the territory. It aims to serve as a tool capable of engaging with the best practices both nationally and internationally, in order to produce interventions for urban and environmental regeneration, actions to recover and promote historical-cultural heritage through educational workshops, artist residencies, and exhibitions of historical and experimental significance.
Web: www.cracpuglia.it