FRANCO: Festival of Culture and Regeneration
28 November 2025
The first edition of the FRANCO Festival took place on October 24th and 25th in the Apennine setting of Lama di Reno, in the province of Bologna (Emilia-Romagna). The event was organised by ART-ER in collaboration with Lo Stato dei Luoghi, Città metropolitana di Bologna, BIS – Bologna Innovation Square, Comune di Marzabotto e Unione dell’Appennino.
FRANCO is… a worksite of ideas and proposals!
It's no coincidence that the first culturally-driven urban regeneration festival took place in a space undergoing regeneration, a factory in transformation. The space is now open to participation, offering a mix of functions: coworking, residential spaces, a bar, an auditorium, exhibition halls, sports and cultural areas. This reflects the spirit of FRANCO: an inclusive space for discussion that explores experiences, analyzes needs, creates opportunities for exchange and collaboration, and develops proposals.
Culture, the soul of regeneration
The dialogue developed during the FRANCO festival, which involved experts, administrators, citizens, and regional stakeholders, highlighted several key factors related to the revitalization of urban spaces. First and foremost, art and participation develop and consolidate a strong sense of community and belonging, creating connections and networks that facilitate the exchange of policies and experiences between different regions and countries. Furthermore, collaboration and shared visions of transformation between institutions, public administrations, and cultural stakeholders are essential for triggering new strategies for change and building more effective policies that are in tune with local realities.
The NEB at FRANCO festival
The festival also provided an opportunity to highlight the clear correspondence between the FRANCO forum's approach and the New European Bauhaus one, which is expressed in the shared language of regenerating places and communities: beauty/culture and participation, inclusion and dialogue between diverse stakeholders, sustainability and the synergy between science and practice. Two well-attended events showcased the NEB: a workshop on opportunities and initiatives at the European level and the award ceremony for the winning projects of the NEB Emilia-Romagna Prize 2025 – Regenerating with Culture. The award-winning projects were Manualetto by Studio Doiz APS, a festival that revitalizes spaces in the Darsena in Ravenna with performing arts and ephemeral architecture, and Sottoponte by Cinqueminuti APS, which will transform the spaces under an overpass in Reggio Emilia from an unsafe place to a hub of sociality, art, and participation. Special mentions went to the experiences Confiscata, sgangherata, vissuta by Libera Bologna and Danzando con Salus by Eta Beta, both from Bologna.
Not just words, the art is in
In such a special space as the Ex Cartiera, artistic expression, curated by Parsec APS, couldn't be missing. The Field Diary exhibition, featuring works by Iside Calcagnile, Caterina Gobbi, and Irene Cassarini, explored landscapes, memories, and processes of transformation. One of the most evocative moments was Dröm, Cassarini's generative live performance, which led the audience through an ever-changing visual and sound ecosystem.
FRANCO’s numbers. 250 participants including local administrators, cultural operators, space developers, researchers, technicians, artists, and citizens; 3,000 square meters of construction site set up; 20 partners; 150 gadgets made from recycled materials; 9 artworks; 1 live performance; 240 minutes of music; 10 talks; 2 workshops; 1 podcast; 50 speakers
The festival left a mark
The 2025 event marks the beginning of a new journey. The success of this first edition confirms the concrete and widespread need to place cultural practices at the center of the regeneration of spaces and relationships. The festival has highlighted trajectories that will be the focus of work in the coming months.
Knowing more
This article is taken from the free newsletter Emilia-Romagna NEB - Rigenerare con la Cultura, produced by ART-ER, aiming to promote NEB values and principles via storytelling of initiatives and projects realised in regional context. All the published numbers are available in Italian in the ART-ER website. If you are interested to receive the newsletter in your email please subscribe it.