The aesthetic improvement of the landscape context of a territory contributes to the quality of life of those who live and travel there: starting from this consideration, Valle Mosso’s Rotary Club appointed a management committee and promoted the launch of +bellezza in Valle, an award aimed at acknowledging and highlighting any work conducted in the Biellese area that constitutes an improvement of the landscape. The competition is held annually and eligible works must have been carried out in Valsessera and Valle Cervo in the five years preceding the submission deadline. Specifically, the initiative is divided into two sections: one is dedicated to construction works, the other focuses on environmental interventions*. Participation in the award is voluntary and open to both private and public subjects, and entries can be submitted by the author or by third parties with the consent of the author.
The call
The call, which has been extended after the Covid-19 emergency, will be open until 31st May 2021, while the award ceremony for the winning projects is scheduled for Saturday 9th October 2021.
It should also be noted that the +bellezza in Valle award is also benefitting from the partnership of the BIellezza Foundation – promoted by Gruppo Zegna, Banca Sella, Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Biella and Cittadellarte – which intends to enhance both the environmental and tourist appeal of the Biellese territory. With this view, the objective is to extend the award to the entire wool district starting from its third edition in 2022. Currently, the municipalities included are Bioglio, Callabiana, Camandona, Casapinta, Lessona (Lessona, Crosa) , Mezzana Mortigliengo, Pettinengo (Pettinengo, Selve Marcone), Plate, Strona, Valdilana (Mosso, Soprana, Trivero, Valle Mosso), Vallanzengo, Valle San Nicolao, Veglio, Ailoche, Caprile, Coggiola, Crevacuore, Curino, Guardabosone, Portula, Postua, Pray and Sostegno. “This initiative represents a positive response to the needs of the Mosso Valley and is in line with the expectations of the Council of Europe towards our country,” said the organisers, “and consistent with the commitments undertaken upon signing the European Convention of Landscape and with the Italian Constitution”.
The jury
“The examining jury, appointed by the award management committee, is led by a president,” we read in the call, “the evaluation procedure involves a first selection of five entries for each section of the award, which will be made public as finalists. The jury will then identify among them the winning project for each section. The decisions of the jury, as well as its working methods, are final and unquestionable“. The jury is composed of professionals from different fields: Corrado Panelli, forestry doctor (president); Elena Accati, agronomist and writer; Alberto Barberis Canonico, entrepreneur; Luisa Bocchietto, architect and designer; Andreas Kipar, landscape architect; Cristina Natoli, architect and official at the Superintendence of Fine Arts and Landscape; Andrea Rolando, engineer and university professor; Giovanni Vachino, architect. Michelangelo Pistoletto will also be part of the jury.
The winners will be acknowledged with the awards and, on presenting them, the jury will be able to make special mentions as well as give further recognition to subjects (persons or organisations) that have distinguished themselves for the quality of the initiatives in line with the contents of the open call.
Beauty
The contest’s key word is defined on the website of the award: “Beauty is a resolved balance that we can feel around us (in objects, works, people, landscapes),” the portal reads, “through the involvement of our senses. The way of perceiving relationships and balance between forms is not subjective and responds to proportional rules that we find in us and in the nature that surrounds us. Beauty and its appreciation also involve the cultural aspects in which we are immersed. Beyond its physical appearance, it must be the bearer of a meaning that we recognise as valuable. It responds to parameters that are shaped by our culture and by our being part of a world of shared opinions, which ultimately condition our judgment. In beauty, therefore, value and appearance, ethics and aesthetics are combined, and that is why it has a captivating power that is difficult to resist. The resolved balance generates a natural sharing. Beauty has always been used to communicate value because its language conveys positivity and well-being. Increasing the beauty of a place can only have recognisable effects and produce more quality”.
Valle Mosso’s Rotary Club
As reported on the award website, the Valle Mosso’s Rotary Club was founded in 1977 with the concession of a part of the territory by Biella’s branch of the Club. The headquarters are at Valle Mosso’s Hunters’ Club, in via Roma 50, a historic meeting place for entrepreneurs and professionals in the valley. The valley, known as Valle di Mosso or Valle Strona, with reference to the name of the stream that runs through it, was the cradle of the woollen textile industry that would then characterise the entire Biella area. Starting from the second half of the 19th century, it stood out for its entrepreneurial ability and industrial development, important dynasties were born there that still represent brands of excellence in the world of textiles. It was in fact a member of one of these families, Aldo Zegna, who promoted the idea of the Club. The service activity is particularly focused on training young people, on supporting initiatives in favour of the more vulnerable sections of the population and on territorial management.
