SANTA MARIA CAPUA VETERE – The construction of the world's largest mural created by a single artist. The work, signed by the artist Alexander Ciambrone, will cover 4000 square meters on the facade of the Santa Maria Capua Vetere prison and will have as its central theme the True Financial Freedom.
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With a first brushstroke of red, Ciambrone began to trace the letters of the title of the work, which will surpass the Guinness World Record currently held by the Spanish artist Jorge Lopez of Guereñu, author of a mural of 3.595 square meters in Bilbao in 2008.
“Every time I start a project of this magnitude, I feel a great responsibility”, Ciambrone declared. “This time, in addition to the artistic and physical challenge, there is a strong symbolic value: the mural will convey a message of hope and change.” To complete the work by the 21st May, date of the official verification for the Guinness Book of Records, the artist will live inside the prison, painting without stopping and involving students from local schools who will visit the artistic construction site.
The creative process will be documented in a film, intended for international film festivals, with a soundtrack recorded on site by students of music high schools in Campania. The mural, made with quartz acrylic paint, will represent the main UNESCO sites from all continents, accompanied by quotes from Nobel Prize winners and historical figures on topics such as peace, human rights, fight against violence and valorization of cultural heritage.
The initiative also includes the active involvement of inmates: Those who benefit from Article 21 will work on the external walls, while the others will participate in the decoration of the internal areas and the path leading to the green area of the interviews. The mural will be part of a Tourist route inside the prison, which will also include a restaurant open to the public, designed by a team of university students selected through a call for tenders. The management of the structure will be entrusted to the Caserta brand Pink house.
“In these three years of management I have worked to give a new image to the institute, distancing it from the shadows of the past”Said Donatella Rotundo, director of the prison. “We have created numerous projects with the support of entrepreneurs and institutions, such as the creation of a municipal dog kennel and a veterinary hospital where prisoners trained by the Region will work. Today, with this mural, Santa Maria Capua Vetere becomes a symbol of redemption and creativity”.
Institutional support and sponsors
The project received the moral patronage of numerous Campanian municipalities, including Naples, Caserta, Capua, Bacoli, Pozzuoli and San Giorgio a Cremano. Present at the inauguration was the mayor of Santa Maria Capua Vetere, Anthony Myrrha, who underlined the importance of the initiative: “The Ciambrone mural transforms a place of detention into a message of freedom and hope. It is an invitation to change for the prisoners and an opportunity for the city to be enhanced.” The project was made possible thanks to the support of private patrons, among which Banca Credito Cooperativo Terra di Lavoro, Carpisa, Coelmo, Fondazione Banco Napoli, MD Supermarkets and Luxury Stone Italia, which covered the costs entirely.
Article published on 1 April 2025 - 18:14
And it's a nice project that of the mural, but I hope that the prisoners can really get something good from this experience. Despite the difficulties, art can be a form of freedom for everyone, not just for artists.