Ep 9: Architect turned artist Alessandro Giorgi drawing Sicily
Alessandro Giorgi joins Art Destinations Sicily to reflect on his childhood in a remote Sicilian fishing village Torretta Granitola which he describes as an island within an island. His childhood memories of migrant boats arriving from North Africa in the night and the unspoken presence of the Mafia have found their way into his art. Alessandro discusses his shift from architecture to art, and how drawing became both a meditative practice and a democratic tool.
Alessandro’s work flows across mediums—murals, stop-motion, and fluid drawings. His imagery responds to the rhythms of the sea, resisting borders and tracing connections across place and imagination.
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Ep 8: Claudio Gulli at Palazzo Butera on the art of curating
Step inside Palazzo Butera in Palermo with director Claudio Gulli, where the private collection of Francesca and Massimo Valsecchi transforms the historic palace into an experimental playground for drawing links between ancient art and contemporary culture.
Palazzo Butera displays art as if in a lived-in home, inviting you to feel comfortable and make unexpected connections between historic masterpieces, contemporary works and decorative arts.
In this episode, Claudio speaks about the Valsecchi vision, Palermo’s role as a cultural crossroad, and on how a collection can be viewed as an artwork in its own right.
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Ep 7: Nomadic artist Hanna Burkart walking, sleeping and creating art in dialogue with place
Vienna-born artist Hanna Burkart has spent over a decade without a permanent home, creating art through walking, sleeping and living in places across the world. In this conversation, she shares how site-specific works emerge from deep engagement in landscapes — from sleeping under the stars to transforming abandoned spaces — and how her nomadic life shapes her art.
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Ep 6: Irene Coppola on fight-specific art in Palermo
In this episode of Art Destinations Sicily, Palermo-based artist Irene Coppola shares how her fight-specific art practice draws on walking to connect with the city's layered histories. Through observing, collecting, and moving through the streets, she reveals how Palermo’s fractured coastline continues to reflect the power of the past in shaping the present.
We discuss the legacy of WWII Allied bombings, the Mafia’s role in the Sack of Palermo, and the growing push to restore public access to the sea amid international investment and environmental clean-up efforts.
Irene also reflects on Mammelloni her poetic documentary co-directed with Ruben Monteiro, and spaziomateria, the art space she co-founded with architect Vito Priolo.
Her work speaks to how artists can uncover the hidden stories of a city—and join the fight for a more just and liveable urban future.
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Ep 5: Francesco Vullo on how rocks tell stories of place and self
In this episode of Art Destinations Sicily, we speak with contemporary artist Francesco Vullo, whose sculptural practice explores the tension between permanence and ephemerality. Born in Caltanissetta in central Sicily and now based in Milan, Vullo reflects on his deep connection to the island’s geology, drawing on childhood memories of rock collecting with his geologist uncle and stories of sulphur miners from his family’s past.
Vullo shares how he works with materials like limestone, lava rock, and plastic bands to create poetic installations about environmental fragility, emotional states and deep time. From sculpting volcanic stone in his countryside studio to showing work during Milan Art Week, Vullo balances the very different two worlds.
In this episode we cover:
How Sicily’s layered landscape shapes Francesco’s art
The material, cultural and historical symbolism of sulphur, marble, lava, and limestone
The influence of the 1960s / 70s radical Italian art movement Arte Povera on Vullo's approach to materiality
Navigating the Italian art world as a young artist today
Follow Francesco Vullo’s work on our Instagram page @artdestinations.podcast
Art Destinations is a podcast exploring art, place and belonging. Season 1 will begin in Venice where we interview artists and curators living and/or working in the Venetian lagoon. Season 2 and season 3 will then travel to Lutruwita | Tasmania and Sicily. We take the listener on a journey to purposefully understand a place through artists’ stories.
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