A lezione nei luoghi della carta | 1st lesson
“A lezione nei luoghi della carta” Launches: Four Events to Discover Fabriano’s Paper Heritage
Fondazione Fedrigoni Fabriano, in collaboration with the Laboratorio permanente di ricerca storica di Fabriano (LabStoria), is promoting “Lessons in the Places of Paper”, a series of four events dedicated to the history, culture, and memory of Fabriano’s paper mills.
Aimed at Fabriano high school students participating in the project and also open to the public by reservation, the initiative offers a multidisciplinary learning experience spanning industrial archaeology, printmaking, social history, and audiovisual memory. The programme provides new perspectives on understanding the role that paper has played in shaping Fabriano’s identity through the centuries.
The series will open on 24 September 2026 at 3:00 p.m. with architect Fabiola Pancotti, who will present “Il luogo della carta: esplorazione del patrimonio archeologico industriale delle Cartiere fabrianesi" (The Place of Paper: Exploring the Industrial Archaeological Heritage of Fabriano’s Paper Mills) The lecture will guide participants through an extraordinary historical and architectural heritage that still bears witness to centuries of paper manufacturing. It will also offer an opportunity to reflect on the value of industrial archaeology as a tool for preserving and enhancing the city’s productive memory.
The second event, scheduled for 22 October 2026 at 3:00 p.m., will feature printmaker Roberto Stelluti and his talk “OPERA AL NERO. Stelluti, i labirinti del sublime (incisione all'acquaforte)” (OPERA AL NERO. Stelluti and the Labyrinths of the Sublime (Etching)). Drawing on his artistic experience and printmaking techniques, Stelluti will explore the relationship between paper, mark-making, and creativity, highlighting the enduring importance of paper as a medium in contemporary artistic practice.
The programme will resume on 22 April 2027 at 3:00 p.m. with Professor Renata Armezzani and the lecture “Le cartare: donne lavoratrici delle Cartiere Miliani a Fabriano nel '900” (The Paper Women: Female Workers of the Miliani Paper Mills in Twentieth-Century Fabriano). This conference will focus on the history of the women employed at the Miliani Paper Mills, often overlooked protagonists of a long industrial and social story. Through documents, testimonies, and historical research, the event will shed light on the decisive contribution these workers made to the development of Fabriano’s paper industry throughout the twentieth century.
The series will conclude on 20 May 2027 at 3:00 p.m. with “Le cartare: donne lavoratrici delle Cartiere Miliani a Fabriano nel '900” (Fabriano Paper on Film: Stories from the Paper Mills), featuring screenings and commentary by Giovanni Luzi. Through archival footage and historical films, participants will be able to revisit significant moments in the history of the paper mills and gain insight into working environments, production techniques, and the transformations that have shaped the paper industry over time.
The events will be coordinated by Livia Faggioni, Director of the Foundation, and Professor Terenzio Baldoni, President of LabStoria. The initiative has received the patronage of the Municipality of Fabriano, the Marche Region, the Pia Università dei Cartai, and Fondazione CARIFAC.
Through this initiative, Fondazione Fedrigoni Fabriano ETS reaffirms its commitment to preserving and promoting the historical heritage of paper and to fostering knowledge-sharing opportunities between researchers, schools, and the wider community. The programme aims to rediscover a tradition that has made Fabriano an internationally recognised centre of excellence in paper production.