This is a competition in collaboration with the Municipality of Favignana aiming at making the most of a remarkable context in order to transform Santa Caterina Fortress into one of the most suggestive centers of contemporary art of the Mediterranean. It will have to be a sublime place of encounter, culture and creative research where artists will have the opportunity to relax and enjoy in an untouched place. The latter will be the perfect context to inspire artists’ imagination and make them express the real essence of their inner self.

The overlook atop the island of Favignana is of the language of detached expansiveness that can make one feel small and alone in a landscape of infinite introspection. This solitude is further compounded by the characteristics of the fortress of Santa Caterina, a structure that presents a dynamic palette of spatial volumes types, lighting conditions, and visceral responses for its visitors. The volumes within the fortress shape the emotional qualities of solidarity with contracting spatial volumes, restricted access to natural daylight, and the inescapable presence of heavy, inanimate stone.

These characteristics shape the fortress of Santa Caterina's identity, its immediate impression, and its lasting memory. However, in an environment that is so overwhelmingly polarized, it is easy to become numb and desensitized to its absolutism. To fully understand the sensations contained in Santa Caterina one must also understand the entire experiential dichotomy.