Borgo Universo is an open-air museum in Aielli, a town in the Province of L’Aquila on the slopes of Mount Sirente, in the heart of the Sirente-Velino Regional Natural Park. Along the streets of the Borgo one can admire dozens of murals by the world’s most famous street artists, such as Okuda, Millo, Zamoc, Alleg, Matlakas, Agostino Iacurci, and many others. These include 3 murals dedicated to literature, the most famous being the one reproducing all the pages of “Fontamara,” the work by Marsican writer Ignazio Silone linked to this beautiful and tormented land.
The symbol of the town is the medieval “Tower of Stars,” so called because it has been home since 2002 to an astronomical observatory and a museum of the moon. In fact, Aielli was the birthplace, more than 150 years ago, of the astronomer Filippo Angelitti, to whom the town’s central square is named, where there is a monument reproducing the solar system.
During the month of August, the town is immersed in a symphony of colors, music, art and science, celebrating Aielli’s cultural rebirth and the dialogue here between the earth and the sky. Once again this year, for its eighth edition, the Borgo Universo Festival has a series of must-see events scheduled between Aug. 14 and 15: live and DJ sets, guided tours, cultural workshops and meetings, and playful activities for children, discovering a village out of the ordinary.
It is the perfect time to visit Aielli and immerse yourself in its colors and flavors, between art and nature, to see the stars again.
Aielli and Borgo Universo can be easily reached by the A25 highway, via the Aielli/Celano exit.
Find out the program of the eighth edition:
Borgo Universe Festival 2024 – Program