Latest news with #Stramurales
Fox News
05-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Fox News
Ghost town brought back to life is now a thriving tourist magnet thanks to street murals
An abandoned ghost town in southern Italy has come back to life thanks to over 140 vibrant murals that have turned the area into a street art hotspot. The region's population had been shrinking as young people left for jobs and fewer babies were born there, news agency SWNS reported. Local artist Lino Lombardi, 57, grew frustrated as he saw his hometown crumble — and launched Stramurales, an annual street art festival, in 2017. "At first people thought I was crazy, but I couldn't just watch the town fade away," said Lombardi. "I started looking at the walls as blank canvases, which could be turned into something beautiful." The festival invited artists worldwide to paint murals, with six created at the first event in 2018. Today, more than 140 murals can be seen around Stornara, in the Puglia region, with inspiring themes represented each year, including agriculture, migration within Italy and local life. Residents vote on the topics each year. Tourism has surged 25% since 2020, SWNS said, sparking the opening of eight new businesses, including restaurants and B&Bs. The population has stopped shrinking and is slowly growing again as young families move back, according to locals. Café owner Antonio Maglione was about to close his business before the murals brought in crowds that made him learn to speak the word "welcome" in five different languages. "The murals saved my business, but more than that, they saved our community," Maglione said. Rita Gensano returned after spending 20 years away. She said initially, she felt like she'd walked into a ghost town. "The murals saved my business, but more than that, they saved our community." "It felt like a sacrifice," she said. "But it has become something extraordinary." Now a tour guide, she called Stornara "the coolest town in Italy." Retired olive farmer Salvatore Nappi said the murals helped residents regain their pride. "We had lost our pride, but the murals reminded us that our town and our stories are worth celebrating," SWNS reported. Lombardi founded a nonprofit that runs art workshops for high school students to keep the creative spirit alive. "Art doesn't just decorate our walls, it reminds us that even small places can dream big," Lombardi said. Other struggling towns have asked for help after Stornara's success, SWNS reported. "We never planned to be a case study, but if our experience can help other communities, that's even more meaningful," Lombardi said. The 2025 Stramurales festival is featuring artists from every continent for the first time.
Daily Mirror
25-06-2025
- Daily Mirror
Ghost town with dying streets brought back to life by unexpected tourist boom
Stornara, in the Puglia region, was once known for producing wheat and olives, but began to decline as less babies were born and young people left for jobs in big cities, outside agriculture An Italian "ghost town" has made an astonishing comeback, drawing in thousands of tourists by transforming into a canvas for over 140 Instagram -worthy murals. Stornara, nestled in the Puglia region and once famed for its wheat and olive production, witnessed a decline as birth rates dropped and the youth migrated to larger cities for non-agricultural employment. Local artist Lino Lombardi, aged 57, watched his beloved hometown deteriorate and was driven to reinvent it as a tourist hotspot. In 2017, he launched Stramurales, an annual street art festival that beckons artists globally to adorn the town with their work. The inaugural festival in 2018 saw six murals painted; now, the town boasts 140 striking artworks, attracting throngs of visitors each year. Tourism revenue has risen by 25% since 2020, and the town has seen the opening of eight new businesses, including eateries, B&Bs, and an art supplies shop. The local population has ceased its decline and is on the upswing, with young families returning, according to town residents. Café owner Antonio Maglione was on the verge of shutting down when an influx of camera-toting, guidebook-clutching tourists replaced his sparse clientele, leading to queues snaking out his door. He exclaimed: "Suddenly there were loads of people turning up with cameras and guidebooks. I had to quickly learn to say 'welcome' in five different languages. The murals saved my business, but more than that, they saved our community." Rita Gensano, 45, was heartbroken to find her hometown of Stornara in ruins after two decades away in Turin, but now she's leading the charge in its transformation, dubbing it "the coolest town in Italy". Returning in 2017 to care for her parents, Rita, who has since become a tour guide, recalled: "When I first returned it felt like a sacrifice, it was like walking into a ghost town. I had left it full of life and laughter but when I returned it felt like it was dying. But actually it has become something extraordinary which I have been fortunate to be a part of." Stornara's turnaround has caught the attention of other towns seeking similar rejuvenation. Lino, a local artist, expressed his passion for the project: "Art doesn't just decorate our walls, it reminds us that even small places can dream big. Our community has painted itself back to life, one wall at a time. "At first people thought I was crazy, but I couldn't just watch the town fade away. I started looking at the walls as blank canvasses which could be turned into something beautiful. Every mural reflects both the artist's vision and our community's heart." The unexpected role model status of Stornara is not lost on him: "We never planned to be a case study, but if our experience can help other communities that's even more meaningful." Lino didn't stop with murals; he founded Stornara Life Aps, a charity running art workshops for high-school students. The over 140 murals adorning Stornara's streets and squares draw inspiration from its agricultural heritage, emigration stories, and the spirit of its residents. Locals have the chance to cast their votes on potential themes for murals before each festival, which is when the artworks come to life. Salvatore Nappi, 69, a retired olive farmer, shared: "We had lost our pride, but the murals reminded us that our town and our stories are worth celebrating." The 2025 Strmurales festival, set for July, will for the first time showcase artists from every continent.
New York Post
24-06-2025
- New York Post
The key to reviving a ‘crumbling' ghost town? Make it Instagrammable
After years spent on the decline, this small city in Italy has transformed into a bustling tourist town, where visitors flock from across the world to snap photos of the town's now-famous murals. Stornara, a once-prosperous city in Puglia, was well-known for its production of agricultural goods like wheat and olives, but as the population shifted — younger people began to stop settling down where they were raised, instead moving away from the town in favor of more job opportunities in bigger cities. Though some locals began to resign themselves to the empty streets and broken-down buildings, Lino Lombardi, an artist, decided to try to bring the city back to life. 4 Though the residents themselves love the murals, they attract plenty of tourists who are on the hunt for unique, captivating spots to take photos. Luciano Magaldi Sardella / SWNS Though other Italian towns are known for their collections of Renaissance paintings or their preserved Roman ruins, Lombardi offered up Stramurales, an annual street art festival. Lombardi, along with artists from across the world, painted murals on buildings across the town. While 2018, the first year of the festival, was a relatively slow start — six murals were produced — there are now over 140 in Stornara, adding plenty of color and life to the town that locals and tourists alike have enjoyed. According to SWNS, tourist-based revenue has increased 25% since 2020, allowing eight new businesses — three bed and breakfasts, two restaurants, and an art supplies shop included. 'Suddenly, there were loads of people turning up with cameras and guidebooks. I had to quickly learn to say 'welcome' in five different languages,' explained cafe owner Antonio Maglione in an interview with SWNS. 'The murals saved my business, but more than that, they saved our community.' Lombardi says that the murals that decorate over a hundred town walls are inspired by a variety of themes, including the city's history, migration within Italy, and the importance of the citizens as the core of the town. 4 A crowd gathers around one of the murals in Stornara. Luciano Magaldi Sardella / SWNS 'We had lost our pride, but the murals reminded us that our town and our stories are worth celebrating,' said Salvatore Nappi, a retired olive farmer, when speaking with SWNS. Nappi is one of many citizens who get to vote on the content suggested for each mural, and because a variety of artists work on the pieces, they range from vibrant to muted to cartoonish to ultra-realistic, adding even more texture and life to the town. One woman, Rita Gensano, returned to Stornara in 2017 to look after her parents after being away for years. At first, she said she was dreading moving back, but after Stramurales started up and tourists began to visit, she told SWNS it's 'the coolest town in Italy.' 4 An artist working on their mural. Luciano Magaldi Sardella / SWNS 'At first people thought I was crazy, but I couldn't just watch the town fade away. I started looking at the walls as blank canvases which could be turned into something beautiful,' Lombardi said. 'Every mural reflects both the artist's vision and our community's heart. We never planned to be a case study, but if our experience can help other communities, that's even more meaningful,' he concluded. Following the success of Stramurales, Lombardi also founded a charity that offers high schoolers opportunities to get involved in art. For the July 2025 edition of the festival, Lombardi is inviting artists from each continent to contribute to Stramurales, prompting more diverse visitors and captivating new art to look at — a decision the town's citizens are certainly pleased with. 4 Many of the murals are in central or populated locations in the town, so people can enjoy the art to its fullest extent. Luciano Magaldi Sardella / SWNS 'When I first returned, it felt like a sacrifice, it was like walking into a ghost town,' shared Gensano, who now acts as a tour guide and lives in her hometown full-time. 'I had left it full of life and laughter, but when I returned, it felt like it was dying.' 'But actually it has become something extraordinary which I have been fortunate to be a part of,' she concluded.
