Contemporanea, the women-centered literary festival founded in Biella, Piedmont, in 2020, will make its American debut in New York from October 15 through 17, 2026. Organized during the Week of the c in the World, the 3-day program will explore memory, identity and generational change through contemporary Italian writing.
The theme, “Italian Women Writing,” will guide conversations featuring authors Stefania Auci and Olga Campofreda and cultural journalist Marta Perego. Events will take place at 3 institutions connecting Italian and American culture – the Italian Cultural Institute of New York, Rizzoli Bookstore and SullaLuna Bookstore.
Campofreda will examine Alba de Céspedes and the relationship between literary memory and today’s Italian language, in collaboration with the Arnoldo and Alberto Mondadori Foundation. Auci will participate in 2 events devoted to the Florio family and the international success of her “The Florios of Sicily” saga. Perego will lead a literary walking tour linking New York locations to writers including Elena Ferrante, Patricia Highsmith, Claudia Durastanti and Sylvia Plath.
The festival will also include 2 food-centered gatherings – a Piedmont-inspired dinner prepared by chef Davide Iacoboni at Osteria San Carlo and a literary brunch with Auci at SullaLuna.
Directed by Irene Finiguerra and co-curated by Annalisa Menin, the initiative is supported by the Italian Cultural Institute and Consulate General of Italy in New York. Partners include New York University and Italian Women in USA. An NYU student contest will award its winner a 1-week cultural trip to Italy, including stops in Biella, Turin and Milan.
