The Chianti Sculpture Park is located in Tuscany about 11 km north of Siena. The area is famous worldwide for its beautiful hilly landscape, its vineyards and the evergreen olive trees and cypress trees. Quiet medieval villages are scattered here and there; the small hamlet of Pievasciata, with its church of San Giovanni Battista, dating back to the XI century, is just one kilometer away.
The Chianti Sculpture Park offers each of its visitors a unique experience. In an untouched wood of ilex and oak trees in the heart of Sienese Chianti, many internationally renowned artists from five continents have created imposing contemporary sculptures in accordance with their own creative ideas and style. Piero Giadrossi the founder of this Park, has travelled extensively for over 20 years and has always collected small and large contemporary sculptures.
His vision was to share with the discerning visitors of Tuscany, his love for sculpture and so he decided to create a permanent exhibition along a shadowy trail which runs through a beautiful wood of oaks. Each artist chose the site for his or her installation, thus each work becomes a unique presence in the corner of the wood where it is mounted.
To select the artists Piero was helped by an Art Committee and careful thought was given to the nationality and the media used. "All the sculptures therefore, can be considered to be truly site-specific, which explains their harmony with the trees, the sounds, the colours, the light, and every other element of the wood. In fact, these man-made works do not extend beyond the limits of nature, rather, they integrate with it and enhance it," says Piero Giadrossi.
Twenty countries are represented so far and this makes the Park truly unique in Italy. One of the objectives of the Park was to give room to artists barely known in Europe, but famous in their country of origin; significant talents that otherwise would have no exposure to the western public.
Temporary exhibition will be held annually in the amphitheatre. Opposite the entrance of the Park an old building which was a pottery, has been transformed into a large art gallery and so visitors who have admired the large sculptures in the Park can have a chance to admire smaller works made by the same artists.
How to get to the Chianti Sculpture Park:
Milan-Rome highway: Firenze Certosa exit.
Superstrada to Siena: Siena Nord exit.
Left onto SS 222, towards Castellina and then take a right turn after 1.5 km towards Vagliagli.
Drive for about 8 km and then turn right towards PIEVASCIATA. It is a country road and you will find the Park at your right after about 4 km.
From Rome: drive the Superstrada around Siena until you find the Siena Nord exit. Then follow the instruction above.
Margit Holzer is an international expert for the travel industry. With a degree in Economics and being a multilingual tourism expert, she is now the CEO for http://www.dde-europe.com Contact her on her mail m.holzer@dde-europe.com for any kind of question regarding travelling, accommodation and tourism above all in Italy.