Gibellina Nuova - Not even art could heal

In January 1968 Gibellina Vecchia was totally destroyed
by an earthquake. Instead of rebuilding the city, a new town was built 9 kilometers west for the residents. The planning of the new city was untypical for the Sicilian region. The narrow streets of the old city were replaced by sprawling streets with public places. Two-storey terraced houses with garages and small front gardens were built. Architects and Artists from all over the world donated their art and spreaded it all over the city. Today it is the place with the highest density of contemporary art in Italy.

City, monument or cemetery?

But the city was never completed. Only a fraction of the old population settled in the new city. Many buildings were either never completed or left empty after completion. Even art could not save the city from decay...