Events

To round off Community Sunday, Simone Miraldi, a guide at Horti Park, will lead the public on the Franciscan Walk to mark the anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi.

An event in which the words of his famous composition, the ‘Canticle of the Creatures’, interact with the beauty of the works of art on display at Horti, and his philosophy provides food for thought on our times and the reality of the community park. Free admission.

A weekend to get together, create and share. On Friday 9th, Saturday 10th and Sunday 11th October, ‘Horti in Autunno’ returns – a community festival featuring a host of initiatives that will benefit both us and our planet. There’ll be art and reading workshops, the Farmers’ Market with autumn produce, the Swap Party, the ‘Che io veda’ photography exhibition, tango lessons with I Satelliti, the first open-air cinema at the Horti, and a walk in the footsteps of St Francis.

We’ll be sharing the full programme with you soon. In the meantime, make a note of the dates in your diary! Download the complete programme

It wouldn’t be Community Sunday without the Swap Party. By now, you’re all familiar with our regular event, organised in partnership with Sfuso Diffuso, which attracts hundreds of participants.

The swap party involves exchanging clothes, shoes and bags, but above all, it’s an opportunity to do something good for our planet. Join us for this event dedicated to the circular economy and sustainability. Free entry.

Horti is continuing its partnership with Sfuso Diffuso and, together with Caritas Savona-Noli, is organising the second workshop on reusing sails and ropes.

During the workshop, designed around the culture of giving, participants will create useful accessories for migrants or homeless people by reusing discarded sails and ropes donated by North Sails and Gottifredi Maffioli for the ‘Nessuno si Salpa da Solo’ project. Admission is free, but registration is required at thelink

The Art4Women RoadShow is coming to the Horti – a travelling exhibition project that promotes links between contemporary art, businesses and the local area, aboard an electric cargo van currently touring Italy. Against this backdrop, from 10.00 am to 6.00 pm on Saturday 10 October, ‘Ubuntu Gate’ will take place – an immersive installation by Avvassena inspired by the Ubuntu philosophy: ‘I am because we are’. Shapes cut from donated X-ray films and coloured semi-transparent elements intertwine to form a network of connections that the public can walk through.

From 11.00 am, there will be ‘Dal chiccho al foglio: a watercolour and coffee workshop’, a session led by Avvassena inviting participants to experiment with a painting technique using a natural, everyday material. Drawing inspiration from the shapes of Ubuntu Gate and the greenery in Horti, everyone will be able to create marks and silhouettes which, when combined with those of others, will give rise to a collective composition. Free entry.

On Saturday 10 October at 4.00 pm, Horti is hosting SatelliTANGO, an inclusive Argentine tango workshop.

A free class open to all, offering an introduction to I Satelliti and the chance to experience a form of tango accessible to everyone, regardless of physical ability, gender or age. The class is designed primarily for those curious to give it a go, ahead of the new I Satelliti course with Babalù Tango, which begins in Pavia on 19 October. Sign up at the link

Among the new features for the festive season, the park will host ‘Filmini a Sorpresa’ for the first time – a project launched in 2023 out of a love for cinema and a desire to restore its more communal aspect. On Saturday at 8.00 pm, we’ll meet at the San Marco archaeological site on Monte Bertone for an open-air cinema experience waiting to be discovered. For one evening, the audience will set aside film titles, trailers and expectations, allowing themselves to be guided by curiosity and the joy of discovery. We’ll just let you know in advance that it will be a film in its original language with subtitles.

And as autumn brings cooler temperatures, especially in the evenings, we’d advise you to wrap up a bit warmer. To warm yourselves up, you can also order something hot from Horti Bistrò to enjoy during the screening. Sign up at the link.

Migration is a reality of our times, fuelled by climate crises, geopolitical tensions and inequalities. But to what extent do the media influence our perception of migration and security? The discussion begins by examining the gap between polarised views and the reality revealed by the data, in order to explore the phenomenon beyond mere slogans.

Speakers include Debora Piazza, a criminal lawyer, and Eleonora Camilli, a journalist at La Stampa; the discussion will be moderated by Laura Carrer of IrpiMedia. Register at the link

Is Italy a country for young people?

This is the question we will be addressing in the next episode of La Cattedra della Speranza with Vittorio Colao and Alessandro Rosina. Colao, Minister for Technological Innovation and Digital Transition in the Draghi government, and Rosina, Full Professor of Demography and Social Statistics in the Faculty of Economics at the Catholic University of Milan, will discuss the topics of artificial intelligence, the falling birth rate, the employment crisis and training. The event will be moderated by journalists Mauro Querci and Guido Fontanelli.

Admission is free, subject to registration via thelink.

From May to the end of September, Stefania Santoro is holding the second edition of the "Dynamic Yoga in the Green" course, a summer programme of Vinyasa Yoga that starts with the basics and explores the world of asanas (positions), pranayama (breathing techniques) and meditation in depth. Each lesson consists of yoga sequences suitable for beginners, breathing and meditation practices, to restore the well-being of body and mind.

A single class costs €22. A 4-class pass costs €79 (instead of €88) and an 8-class pass costs €149 (instead of €176). Full course: €219 (instead of €264) 

For Horti Friends, a single lesson costs €20. A subscription for 4 lessons costs €72 (instead of €80) and for 8 lessons €139 (instead of €160). Full course: €199 (instead of €240)

For information and bookings, please write to: info@theyogaeffect.it . 

Download the programme of the course

As part of Horti Aperti, we will also be renewing our partnership with the Fondazione Feltrinelli: on Sunday 20 September, we will be hosting the second edition of L’isolachenonc’è, a fun and cultural programme dedicated to young children (aged 0 to 12) and families.

From 10:30 am, we will be hosting fairy tales, workshops, readings and a show, which will bring many stories to life, inspiring new ways of doing familiar things and imagining completely new ones.

Admission is free, subject to registration.

Horti Aperti returns on Saturday 19 and Sunday 20 September. The theme of the fifth edition of the City Green Festival will be ‘Art and Craft. The intelligent garden, designed with passion and tended with care’. Alongside the exhibition and market dedicated to sustainable gardening, there will be a packed programme of talks, discussions, workshops and hands-on sessions. The cultural programme will complement the selection of the finest Italian nursery growers and producers, creating an immersive experience.

The open-air concert by the Almo Collegio Borromeo orchestra will also return, as will guided tours of the Collegio and Horti, exploring their history and art, with a focus on the gardens themselves. Our collaboration with the Feltrinelli Foundation will also continue: on Sunday 20th, we will host the second edition of L’isolachenonc’è, a day of readings, workshops and performances for children.

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To mark Horti’s third Community Sunday, on 21 June, we celebrated the arrival of summer with our usual farmers’ market, featuring Alveare che dice sì Pavia, the Balançin Social Cooperative, Acli Terra, Coldiretti Pavia and Orto del noi, a yoga masterclass led by The Yoga Effect and Elève, and a mending workshop with Marta Ricchiardi (Rapazebù), who transformed a simple act into a reflection on consumption, care and the value of things. 

After a convivial lunch at Horti Bistrò, we swapped clothes and smiles at the Swap Party with Sfuso Diffuso and unveiled the artwork ‘Origine’, by artist Maria Cristina Carlini: a magnificent sculpture comprising seven stoneware columns, in harmony with Horti’s natural surroundings. The day’s celebrations concluded with the return of the Horti Poetry Slam.

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We welcomed Lama Michel Rinpoche with great enthusiasm for a new instalment of the “La Cattedra della Speranza” series. Born in Brazil and trained in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition, Lama Michel Rinpoche guided us through a profound reflection on the theme of hope in our times – amidst difficulties and opportunities – exploring the relationship between our inner world, our relationships and the search for meaning.

Our heartfelt thanks to Lama Michel for his expertise and willingness to share his insights. And thank you to the many participants who travelled from all over Italy.

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Every Thursday in May we met in Horti for a series of four crochet lessons in collaboration with Matilde Crea.

The course was designed for beginners or for those who want to brush up on their craft and discover new techniques: choose what to make, let Luciana’s expert hand guide you, create your own set and take your creations home!

In a world that seems to leave no room for contemplation, silence takes on new meanings. 

This was one of the themes of our second ‘Chair of Hope’, which featured journalist and writer Nicoletta Polla-Mattiot. The author of the book "Silence is Revolution". Ascoltare il suono segreto della vita, engaged in a dialogue with Mauro Querci and the audience, in a discussion that sought to explore a theme that is simple only on the surface. 

Horti in Primavera was a three-day event filled with discussions, reflections, shared moments and a great desire to be together.

We welcomed lecturers from the University of Pavia and Elio Belisari, from the band Elio e le Storie Tese, to the conference ‘Autism: possible truths amidst hoaxes and fake news’. We organised the Farmers’ Market with local producers and farmers, a crochet workshop with Matilde Crea, and the unmissable Swap Party with Sfuso Diffuso.

The park also came alive thanks to various musical performances by the Bollate Prison band Freedom Sounds and Elena Piro: every moment was an opportunity to build, together, new meanings of community.

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The series of talks entitled “La Cattedra della Speranza” kicked off with the internationally renowned artist Adrian Paci, interviewed by the journalist Mauro Querci. A cultural programme designed to provide a space for dialogue, reflection and discussion on the major issues of our time.

Mauro Querci, a journalist with a keen eye for cultural and social dynamics, guided Adrian Paci through a series of conversations centred on the value of the artistic experience as a source of hope and a means of bringing together different people, stories and identities. The artist’s works have been exhibited in some of the world’s most important museums, including MoMA and Tate Modern.

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