L'Italo-Americano

I n a sleepy village 50 m i l e s n o r t h w e s t o f Rome, Alice in Won- derland ponders her fate, Peter Pan refuses to grow up, and Don Quixote still lunges at windmills. Wel- c o m e t o S a n t ' A n g e l o d i R o c c a l v e c c e - I t a l y ' s I l Paese delle Fiabe or Town of the Fables. Once upon a very recent time, Sant'Angelo was one of Italy's 5,000 villages experi- encing serious population decline. By 2017, the town numbered around 100 citi- zens, most all retired farmers and shepherds. A storybook- level rescue was needed, but rather than hope and pray for P r i n c e C h a r m i n g t o c o m e along, an innovative idea was put into action by those whose roots run deep in this tiny vil- lage overlooking the Tiber Valley. When Roman-born author Gianluca Chiovelli paid an overdue visit to his ancestral village of Sant'Angelo in 2015, what he found left him dis- traught – untethered structur- al decay and an aging popula- tion fading away unnoticed. His concern quickly fueled his vision for innovative, locally guided change. Alongside his sister Paola Chiovelli and s e v e r a l c o u s i n s , G i a n l u c a founded A C A S - A s s o c i - azione Culturale Arte e Spettacolo. Initial ambitions were small: restore the church fountain, revive the ancient public washhouse, and crowd- source funding for further improvements to piece the town back together. Like seedlings, the initial tasks of the ACAS became the catalyst for taking good to great. Local resident Egle Rosseti was the plot twist needed, a virtual real-life fairy godmother whose ingenious idea launched an amazing transformation. Rather than restore monu- m e n t s o r b u i l d n e w o n e s , Rosseti proposed using the available "canvases" of stone walls, the living structures of time and history and story. T h e i d e a r a p i d l y g a i n e d momentum; the theme must be timeless, fun, and appeal to all. The ACAS successfully recruited Tina Loiodice, an already well-known Roman street artist, to partner with and help guide the project. Her belief in the power of the community-guided project led to the first actualization of a mural featuring Alice in Won- derland. Painted on a large wall in the town piazza as if they'd just stepped from the pages of a book, Alice and the frenzied White Rabbit with his ever-present pocket watch gaze whimsically over the scene. Revealed on Novem- b e r 2 7 , 2 0 1 7 , t h e d a t e i s e m b r a c e d a s t h e o f f i c i a l rebirth of Sant'Angelo. It's no accident that the time on the pocket watch is set at precise- ly 11:27. Loiodice has presided as artistic director since the inception and coordinates a league of female-only nation- al and international street artists. Why only female? Seeking deep emotional con- nectivity rather than just technical skill, Gianluca and P a o l a i n v i t e d a n i n i t i a l ensemble of female artists to live in the village, learn its family lore, and experience t h e r h y t h m s o f l o c a l l i f e . Trust was built. The outdoor gallery evolved from an initial 1 2 t o a l m o s t 7 0 m u r a l s reflecting beloved storybook characters rich in emotion… and frequently immortalizing the face of a local nonna or wizened shepherd. Male artists aren't exclu- s i v e l y l e f t o u t , h o w e v e r . When a fairy tale broadens into plans for marble bas- reliefs or physical sculptures, w h i c h a r e a l s o f o u n d throughout the village, male artists are welcomed. The walls themselves, however, r e m a i n l i v i n g s t o r y b o o k pages created exclusively by women. T h e a e s t h e t i c b e a u t y a d d e d t o S a n t ' A n g e l o through the painted murals has been much more than a simple happy ending, howev- er: it initiated transformation and renewal for the villagers and their dying town. Prior to the painting of Loiodice's first mural, every shop, every trattoria had shut its doors. As the curious began to arrive more frequently, there was reason to dust off doorsteps and reopen businesses cater- i n g t o v i s i t o r s . F o r w a r d - t h i n k i n g l o c a l s o p e n e d a handful of B&B's, eateries, and souvenir shops. But even perhaps more importantly, a sense of pride and purpose was reborn. Just inside the village, a small tourist information and souvenir shop is open daily and run by local senior volun- teers. Whimsical paper maps are given for free, along with advice on where to find the likeness of various townsfolk peering from the faces of well-known storybook char- acters. Linger long enough, and you might be privy to hearing a real-life tale shared by one of the elderly resi- dents along with advice on where to stop for the best cof- fee or bowl of homemade pasta. And if you're really lucky, a spontaneous person- ally guided tour might be yours, as well. To see the entire collection is worth the two hours or so it requires. Rather than laid out in linear rows, the murals and other installations are purposefully woven into the irregular structure of the vil- l a g e . N a r r o w a l l e y w a y s , winding stairwells, and small piazzas hold artistic secrets waiting to be discovered; it can't be done quickly. And all by design to slow the pace of v i s i t o r s , t o l e a d i n t o t h e smallest areas of the commu- nity that would otherwise be overlooked. Like the best of stories, each page of a fairy- tale painted upon a wall is meant to be savored and per- haps bring a smile of nostal- gia to all who pass. Like ripples in a magic pond, the positive effects of the ACAS project have car- ried over to other struggling hamlets in the Viterbo region. Inspired by the rebirth occur- ring in Sant'Angelo, nearby towns such as Celleno (Il Borgo Fantasma) have repur- posed what remained and created new reasons to come for a visit. Once a virtual g h o s t t o w n , t h e d r a m a t i c ruins of the Orsini Castle can now be reached by a safe p a t h w a y , a n d p r e v i o u s l y abandoned buildings have become reimagined open-air museums where cultural and historical events are celebrat- ed. A collaborative series of h i k i n g t r a i l s h a s b e e n restored and updated to con- nect Sant'Angelo with Celleno and other nearby villages r e i n v e n t i n g t h e m s e l v e s through community-led ini- tiatives. A reawakening and renewal of cultural, artistic, and historic tourism in these s m a l l h a m l e t s i s a c t i v e l y underway, all thanks to the grassroots vision of Chiovel- li and the collective ACAS. T h e A C A S i n i t i a t i v e t u r n e d p a i n t b r u s h e s i n t o m a g i c w a n d s t h a t t r a n s - formed and restored without government assistance an isolated and fading commu- nity. And the magic is spread- ing like fairy dust over other small hamlets in the region that have initiated their own upswing through commu- nity-based programs. It's a very happy ending, indeed. "We didn't just want to paint walls; we wanted to wake a sleeping village up from its oblivion, proving that our smallest hamlets still have stories left to tell the world." ~ Gianluca Chio- velli PAULA REYNOLDS Once Upon a Wall: how storybook murals revived a dying Italian village THURSDAY, JULY 23, 2026 www.italoamericano.org 16 L'Italo-Americano Storybook murals cover the walls of Sant'Angelo di Roccalvecce, where fairy-tale figures often incorporate the faces and memories of local residents. Image: Dreamstime ALL AROUND ITALY TRAVEL TIPS DESTINATIONS ACTIVITIES

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