From sensorial experiences to projects for protection and improvement of the soil, Wines for Landscape announces new horizons for a new visibility and luster for wine landscapes and new prospects for the creation of professional figures working in the field of landscape science. The pilot project joins together the Cerasuolo di Vittoria Wine Road, the Planeta, COS, Arianna Occhipinti, and Valle dell’Acate wineries, and the students in the Landscape Architecture course of the Agrigento campus of the University of Palermo. It is a cultural turning point in the conception of the natural scenery in which wine cellars are immersed, a vision whose point of departure is the reorganization of the ways in the landscape is experienced, one involving the visitor himself and creating a network of synergies among the principal operators of the various areas in which the cellars themselves are the focus of interest and attention.
The coordinator of the work is Fausta Occhipinti, Architect and landscapist, professor of Landscape Architecture at the University of Palermo and the evaluation of the work has been carried out by an expert in this field, Miguel Gregorieff, a landscapist with the Coloco studio and professor at the Ecole Nationale Supérieur of Versailles, who commented the work of the team with these words: “it is interesting to see how the students develop their way of thinking about the protection of the beauty of the landscape. Their ability to frame it in an evolutionary perspective becomes for them a fundamental key to their work if the objective is the promotion of the territory”.
The world of Sicilian wine has always been tied to the landscape” – observes Francesco Ferreri of Valle dell’Acate and president of the Assovini Sicilia association, who was present at the encounter – “as, since ancient times, Sicily has also been devoted to viticulture. Once upon a time, each and every family had a vineyard and this contributed to the preservation of the landscape. Today this awareness is spreading thanks to the contribution of both large and small producers who have become paladins of their territory. Culture and beauty will save the landscape. We have joined Wine for Landscape because to have these students who come to us in our estates and give us their vision of what the world of agriculture is and how to give it new value and prestige is of great utility for me. This is the first step, their work, one which aims for further achievements for our viticulture, and not merely for this”.
