The I.C.B.I.E. Blog

Next Wednesday night, a benefit concert will kick off the autumn campaign of Rome’s ICBIE supporters. This important event will take place in The Factory, located on the Riva Ostiense, on the left bank of the Tiber, at 9 PM. According to the beautiful poster shown below, the encounter will open with a brief presentation by Giuseppina Madonna, who directs the Italian ICBIE association, Roy Zimmerman, ICBIE Honorary President, Livio Ciappetta, representing the Rome city government, and Edvando Luiz Castro Pinto, from the city council of Salvador. But there will also be a speech by ICBIE President Pietro Gallina, who has decided at the last minute that he had to be present for such an important occasion, so he will accompany Mr. Pinto on his flight to Rome! And of course, special attention will be focused upon our two visiting artists, Julio and Bigode.

The musical program promises to be spectacular, with a wonderful lineup of talent that goes way beyond our wildest expectations, and the evening will conclude with a capoeira performance. Everyone is invited!

In a few hours, our great young artists will be taking off for Rome and it’s easy to imagine their excitement. For the ICBIE and for Pietro and Marlene, too, this is a moment to be remembered, when our first students go off alone to Europe, living testimonials of our mission. Julio and Bigode have been with us from the very beginning; they learned to speak Italian from Marlene and studied both with Pietro and with the ICBIE’s many visiting artists. For the ICBIE inauguration, they painted the four big panels representing the muses that decorate the side wall of the Institute. After that, they took their first trip, visiting Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo, were they met some of the most famous Brazilian street artists. Operating from the garage-like space behind the Institute, they have organized a crew of young kids who help them with their work, creating a Bahian kind of artists’ guild that has enlivened many quarters of Salvador with their joyous murals, especially since the city officially hired them, providing a monthly salary and assignments all around the city, decorating parks, schools and hospitals.

But this adventure, sponsored by the City of Salvador, will take them to another level! For more than a month, they will zigzag around Italy, following an itinerary that Pietro has prepared in every detail, exploiting the rich network of ICBIE supporters. And their presence provides a wonderful opportunity, both to show off the products of our labors to people who have so generously supported us over the last four years, and to attract new people into our circle.

Here is a summary of their itinerary:

• From Sept 23 to Sept 25 they will be in Rome, where Marcella and the Socrates crowd will be showing them around the city, introducing them to Italian life.
• From Sept 25 to Oct 1 they will be in the northeast, staying with Maddalena in Verbania and participating in the Bahia Festa at Bassano del Grappa, then a day in Venice, soaking up the art.
• From Oct 2 to Oct 12 they will be in Rome again, for a splash of ICBIE events. On Oct 3 at 9 PM, there will be the biggest ICBIE event ever, with a great cast of musicians offering entertainment. The city of Rome is backing the event, as the Salvador city councilman Edvando Luiz Pinto will be present. He will also accompany them on their visit to the American Overseas School of Rome on Oct 5, where they will spend the day with art students from all over the world, sharing experiences and practicing their craft. Then they will spend a few days in Campagnano with Roy, taking day trips into Rome to see the museums.
• From Oct 12 to Oct 25 they will be in the north again, for the Bahia Festa in Reggio Emilia (3 days), then stops in Modena, Bologna and Ferrara for 5 days, another four days in Venice, then a couple days in Milan.
• With a quick stop in Florence, they will be in Roma from Oct 26 until their departure on Nov 3.

Amazingly, the entire itinerary is arranged without staying in hotels, because nearly two dozen ICBIE friends are offering hospitality to Julio and Bigode.

Stay tuned for more news, as their adventure unfolds.

This wonderful letter just arrived. It was sent as a comment to Pietro’s article ‘Return to Bahia,’ which was posted last July. To leave it buried at the bottom of the archives would be a pity, as it is a moving testimonial to the ICBIE project, and everyone should read it! (English translation follows below)

Ciao a tutti e grazie a Luca per l’ottima presentazione che ha fatto di me a Pietro e non solo a Pietro.

Sono appena tornata da Salvador e…non vi dico il mio stato d’animo.

Nella mia breve ma intensa permanenza in Brasile ho avuto modo di constatare quanto complessa sia la realtà di un paese tanto bello e contemporaneamente “difficile”. Ho voglia però di parlare con una certa consapevolezza di una piccola e meravigliosa realtà…l’ICBIE!

Attorno a questo istituto, e grazie soprattutto a due persone splendide come Pietro e Marlene che ci hanno creduto e continuano a crederci e ad impegnarsi, ruotano persone altrettanto speciali nella loro semplicità, spontaneità e voglia di miglioramento e crescita. Giovani che credono che il Brasile non sia solo povertà, violenza, prostituzione, droga e quant’altro c’è nel nostro immaginario collettivo di turisti superficiali. Giovani brasiliani che credono nel valore della cultura, nella possibilità di migliorare attraverso l’apprendimento che non si risolve solo in studio arido, sterile e fine a se stesso. Lo studio all’ICBIE è interscambio culturale, aggregazione sociale, solidarietà e anche e soprattutto arte: dalla musica allo sport, dal teatro al canto, dai graffiti all’arte culinaria.

L’ICBIE è un piccolo cuore pulsante di energia e di ottimismo nel calderone della terra brasiliana ed è qualcosa che ti entra sotto pelle e non ti lascia più. Mi sento di consigliare l’ICBIE a chi non vuole una semplice vacanza in Brasile ma desidera realizzare un viaggio nel vero Brasile o meglio nella realtà di Salvador e nel cuore della sua gente.

Grazie di cuore a tutti per come mi avete fatto sentire a casa e spero di poter contribuire nel mio piccolo a portare avanti questa meravigliosa creatura!!!

Un abbraccio forte

Marcella

—

Hello to everyone and thanks to Luca, for recommending me to Pietro (and not only Pietro) in such glowing terms.

I have just returned from Salvador… and I can’t talk about my mood.

During my brief but intense visit to Brazil I was able to understand just how complex the reality of the country is, being both very beautiful and also “difficult.” But I want to speak of a small yet marvelous reality, which I had time to appreciate: the ICBIE!

Within this institute, and above all, thanks to two splendid people like Pietro and Marlene, who have always believed in it and committed themselves to it, are found other people who are equally special, in their simplicity, their spontaneity and their determination for improvement and growth. Young people who believe that Brazil is not only poverty, violence, prostitution, drugs and all the rest that is fixed in the collective minds of superficial tourists. Young Brazilians who believe in the value of culture, in the possibility of improving themselves through a learning that isn’t just arid study, sterile and self-serving. Study at the ICBIE is inter-cultural exchange, social aggregation, solidarity and, above all, art: from music to sport, from theater to song, from graffiti to cuisine.

The ICBIE is a tiny heart, pulsing with energy and optimism in the hot body of Brazil, and it is something that gets under your skin and doesn’t let go. I would like to recommend the ICBIE to anyone who does not want a mere vacation in Brazil, but wants to journey into the real Brazil, or better, into the reality of Salvador and into the hearts of its people.

Thanks from the bottom of my heart to everyone, for the way you made me feel at home, and I hope to be able, in some small way, to contribute something, so that this marvelous creature can grow!!!

A big hug,

Marcella