E fu sera e fu mattina

"Evening came and morning followed"
In Martina Franca, a journey through art, fashion, music, and thought

There are projects that develop like maps, and others like stories. "Evening came and morning followed" belongs to this second dimension: a cultural path that unfolds in time and space, accompanying Martina Franca from April 30 to June 6, 2026, on an itinerary made of intertwined languages and shared visions.
The program takes shape in the symbolic places of the city — Palazzo Ducale, Conservatorio Santa Maria della Misericordia, Biblioteca Isidoro Chirulli — transforming them into traversable spaces inhabited by experiences that connect art, fashion, music, literature, and research.
Opening the journey on April 30 is the presence of Regina Schrecker, a leading figure on the international scene, who will present “In Praise of Sustainable Beauty” in the noble halls of the Palazzo Ducale. A narrative through images and creations that traverse epochs and imaginaries: garments, costumes, and objects inspired by Dante, Andy Warhol, Basquiat, Arnaldo Pomodoro, and even the most recent experiments related to artificial intelligence. A living archive capable of restoring the continuity between tradition and innovation.
Literature enters the program as a space for reflection and storytelling. Presentations will guide the audience through paths touching on biographies, contemporary anxieties, and collective memories: from the final hours of Edith Piaf recounted by Teresa Caricola, to the inner landscapes and journeys of medieval pilgrimage evoked by Marino Pagano and Angelo Palmieri, to the writings of Rossella Dentuto, which navigate between identity and transformation. The literary presentations will be led by Cinzia Cofano, a professor, cultural operator, and writer who won the “Premio Adriatico. A Sea That Unites” in 2024, and curator of the cultural column “Librinstreaming,” in collaboration with Tony Vinci, who will cover all scheduled events with the cameras of Valleditrialivechannel.
Music permeates the entire project with a widespread presence. The piano of Maestro Paolo Palazzo and the voice of Manuel Amati in Solfeggi Notturni present the works of Aprile and Perla, two of the most significant composers from Martina Franca: pieces created for vocal education are here reinterpreted in a non-Philological reading. Almost entirely in modern first performance, the program encourages the rediscovery and enhancement of the region's historical and musical heritage, while the sounds of Simon Armenise and the performances of Luna Dragonieri with the project TuaSorellaMinore create sound environments where electronics and video art engage in an immersive dialogue.
Alongside the artistic events, the program opens spaces for deepening and research. Meetings dedicated to the relationship between art, science, and spirituality, along with reflections on the persistence of the magical in Apulian popular culture, bring back a dimension of knowledge that is rooted in the territory, with the participation of the Museo Etnografico "Alfredo Majorano," a civic institution of the Ionian territory, established in 2003 with the aim of preserving and enhancing the demological collection named after the renowned scholar from Taranto; the exhibits displayed at the Museum indeed articulate a precise narrative surrounding magical-religious rituals and the popular traditions of the region, at least since the 18th century. The research project of Maria Grazia Carriero is configured as an interdisciplinary investigation that uses the codes of contemporary art to explore and document the folk beliefs still alive in the Apulian territory. Through a two-year exploration, the artist adopted dialogue as the primary tool of investigation, gathering a vast array of video and photographic documentation from the streets and homes of various municipalities in the provinces of Taranto, Bari, Brindisi, Lecce, and Foggia.
The focus of the research is the entity known as laùru (or with local variants such as jurj’, avurie, scarcagnulu, or scazzamurrieddhu), an ambivalent "little spirit" that inhabits the collective memory of communities at risk of extinction. The investigation does not limit itself to mere ethnographic collection but transforms testimonies into works of art, installations, and videos (such as the works Darkness and Words to the South), where the documentary and "raw" character of the recordings aims to convey the freshness and pathos of everyday encounters.

Exhibitions, displays, and cultural walks complete the path, offering further opportunities for engagement. Training in the fashion sector with the MITA Moda Academy Foundation will present, in the evocative spaces of the Palazzo Ducale of Martina Franca, an exhibition dedicated to the contemporary reinterpretation of Bisset’s Carmen. The setup proposes a selection of outfits created by the Academy students who reimagine the opera's imagery in a modern key, merging theatrical aesthetics with current sensibilities. The sartorial dimension of haute couture takes center stage, expressed through refined craftsmanship, material research, and attention to detail, giving life to creations that dialogue between tradition and innovation. The exhibition of traditional musical instruments and guided itineraries contribute to building a widespread narrative, capable of involving diverse audiences.
The project is realized with the economic sponsorship of the Municipality of Martina Franca and the moral sponsorship of the Puglia Region and the Province of Taranto, conceived by the Fondazione Caracciolo De Sangro, Aps Federico II, Aps Liberuomo, and Vallisa.
The initiative "Evening came and morning followed" thus becomes a time to inhabit. Martina Franca embraces this movement and reflects it through its spaces, its layers, and its openings. A story that unfolds day by day, revealing connections, encounters, and new perspectives.