Events

"Community Sundays" are coming to Horti, a bi-monthly event to get together, amongst the green.

On Sunday 1 February, Horti will host its first Farmers' Market, Swap Party, art, music, creative workshops, guided tours and a community lunch.

Download the flyer

A brief and special journey through a language shared by all bodies. I Satelliti, an integrated Social Theatre company, will guide you through the fascinating process that leads from expressive movement to the stage!

A shared moment of freedom and creativity out of the ordinary, in a space rich in art, culture, good food and relationships.

Followed by an aperitif by Horti Bistrot (€15). Registration required at link.

Download the flyer

Horticinum returns to Horti. On Sunday 14 December at 3:30 pm, Simone Miraldi, park guide, will introduce us to four legends from Pavia through the roles of 'storyteller' and 'professor'.

'Lo Sventurato Fasulin', 'La Beffa di Spallanzani', 'Il Cagnolino del Regisole' and 'II Nano del Ponte' will accompany us on a journey of discovery through the city of Pavia and its myths.

Free admission through registration. Followed by biscuits and mulled wine at Horti Bistrot (€5 contribution). Download the flyer.

Horti, in collaboration with Galleria Canesso, until the 12th December is showcasing the exhibition Horti Custos: The Custode dell’Orto within the Extra Art space. 

The work, a very rare case of transposition into stone of the artistic spirit of the Milanese painter Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1526-1593), aims to highlight the profound bond between man and nature; the sculpture is the work of a Lombard artist whose identity is still shrouded in mystery. The temporary exhibition will be in continuous dialogue with the work of British artist David Tremlett, who already enriches the space. 

Horti Bistrot is hosting the initiative "Kites over Gaza – Looking ahead: the road from tragedy to dialogue" on 21 November at 6.30 p.m., organised by Horti and Associazione Amici della Mongolfiera in collaboration with the University of Pavia, EDiSU, the Master's in Cooperation & Development Pavia and Emergency. We will talk about the tragedies in Gaza through the direct testimonies of young people who have experienced them first-hand and try to understand what the path to a future of dialogue and solidarity might look like.

Introduction by Vanna Jahier, Associazione Amici della Mongolfiera. Moderated by Gianni Vaggi, Master in Cooperation and Development. Institutional greetings by Alessandro Cattaneo, Honourable Member of Parliament, Michele Lissia, Mayor of Pavia, Francesco Brendolise, Councillor for International Cooperation of the Municipality of Pavia, and Alessandro Reali, Rector of the University of Pavia.

Followed by Pietro Galinetto, Ente per il Diritto allo Studio Universitario di Pavia (Pavia University Right to Education Authority), Sarah Mustafa, Italian-Palestinian writer from Pavia, Saby Fresko, Mai Indifferenti associazione voci ebraiche per la pace (Mai Indifferenti Jewish Voices for Peace Association), Miriam Signorino, Head of Emergency Pavia.

Afterwards, there will be a solidarity aperitif in support of humanitarian projects (free donation of €15). Register at the link below or send an email to amicimongolfiera@gmail.com with the subject line 'aquiloni'. Dowload the flyer.

On Thursday, 16 October, at 6:00 p.m., Horti Extra Art will host Poverty as a Way of Life: 100 Years since the Birth of Father Costantino Ruggeri. The conference will feature Father Pasquale Ghezzi, Don Roberto Tagliaferri, and journalist Alessandro Beltrami, moderated by architect Andrea Vaccari.

At 7:30 p.m., Alberto Lolli, Provost of the Collegio Borromeo and Director of the Horti, together with Luigi Leoni, President of the Frate Sole Foundation, will participate in the inauguration of the work I Trasparenti by Father Costantino Ruggeri.

Download the flyer.

In collaboration with Sfuso Diffuso and Karama, the Swap Party returns to the Horti.

An afternoon of bartering, in the name of fun and sustainability. Everyone can participate: bring up to 10 items of clothing in good condition that you no longer want and take the ones you like best. Download the flyer.

On September 30, 2025, Horti will host a conference dedicated to Giuseppe Arcimboldo, the brilliant 16th-century Milanese painter and master of the famous “composite heads.”

Enrico De Pascale, art historian, Francesco Porzio, art historian, Mauro Pavesi, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Giacomo Berra, art historian, Francesca Bianchi Janetti, art historian, Maria Cristina Terzaghi, RomaTre University, and Filippo Maria Ferro, University of Chieti, will guide us on a journey through still life, comic tradition, links with Caravaggio and Milan at the time, to the symbol of the “Guardian of the Garden.”

The complete programme at the link.

Horti Extra Art is exhibiting the Custode dell'Orto (Guardian of the Garden), a late 16th-century sculpture inspired by the artistic work of Arcimboldo, but of unknown attribution. The Viggiù stone used to create it is the same stone used for the columns of the historic Collegio Borromeo building.

The director of Horti, Alberto Lolli, is the artistic director of the “S.Paesa.Menti” festival, a contemporary art exhibition featuring installations, exhibitions, performances, and site-specific projects. 

From September 26th to 28th, the historic town of Varzi will be transformed into an open-air art space for works of art and performances: three days of events that will take place in streets, natural settings, and historic spaces, with the aim of involving the community and visitors in an experience of “disorientation,” or the discovery of the familiar that is not yet known. 

We will see ivan, ker, ninarò, emi.artes, nathan, odol, and many other artists at work. Artistic production by Horti and ivan studio.

All events are free. Download the programme.

Horti Poetry Slam is back. We look forward to seeing you on Thursday, September 25 at 6:00 p.m. at Horti Bistrot!

Eight poets will compete in this event:

Dayan Ravad / Builderbuff / Beatrice / Massimo Muna / Alessandro Pentella / Elena Di Santo / Marzia Staicu / Valeria Benaglia

Presented by Sam Kabauter and Andrea Fabiani. Download the flyer.

On the occasion of the third anniversary of the Horti, the Horti Aperti event, the city's green festival, returns.

The fourth edition will be held from September 19th to 21st and will focus on the theme Avant garden. Cultivating the future. More than 40 exhibitors from all over Italy will be participating. Speakers will include Luca Mercalli, climatologist, Stefano Mancuso, neurobiologist, and Carlos Magdalena, horticulturist at Kew Gardens in London. Discover the complete program and book your ticket at the link.

Every Horti Friend will receive two free tickets to the event. On the day, remember to bring your Horti Card and collect your tickets from the Horti Aperti desk.

A month after the passing of Arnaldo Pomodoro, Tuesday the 22nd July at 9:00 pm Horti dell'Almo Collegio Borromeo and the Arnaldo Pomodoro Foundation are celebrating the Maestro's art and legacy with an extraordinary evening opening of the artistic park.

The event will be introduced by a greeting from Alberto Lolli, Rector of the Collegio Borromeo and Director of the Horti, and Carlotta Montebello, General Director of the Arnaldo Pomodoro Foundation. The concert under the stars, curated by Alessandro Marangoni, internationally renowned pianist and Artistic Director of the Collegio Borromeo, will take place close to Pomodoro's artpice Triade. The event, evoking the three columns of the famous opera, will be divided into three moments and will pay tribute to the artist with songs dear to him and some of his interviews.

In addition to the Triad and the Collapse Movement, displayed in the courtyard of the Extra Art space, Pomodoro also left a deep mark on the Horti through the works of his artist friends Gianfranco Pardi, Mauro Staccioli, Luigi Mainolfi, Salvatore Cuschera and Nicola Carrino, on loan from his Foundation's Collection.

Free event. Download the flyer.

A series to explore the Italian prison system, under the patronage of the Bar Association of Pavia and Libera.

June 25, 6:00 PM – THE RIGHTS OF DETAINEES

Valentina Alberta, President of the Criminal Bar Association of Milan

Pasquale Villani, Judge for Preliminary Investigations and Preliminary Hearings, Court of Pavia

Paolo Setti Carraro, Family member of innocent victims of the Mafia

July 2, 6:00 PM – RESTORATIVE JUSTICE: PERSPECTIVES AND APPLICATIONS

Anna Acconcia, PhD in Criminal Law and Research Fellow at the "Federico Stella" Graduate School of Criminal Justice, Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, Milan

Grazia Mannozzi, Professor of Criminal Law at the University of Insubria and Director of the Center for Studies on Restorative Justice and Mediation

Guido Bertagna, Jesuit and editor of Il libro dell'incontro

Franco Bonisoli, Former member of the Red Brigades, now engaged in restorative justice initiatives

July 9, 6:00 PM – THE PRISON REALITY TODAY

Giorgio Leggieri, Director of Bollate Prison

Davide Broglia, Psychiatrist at the Pavia Prison

Marcello Caruso, Member of the Board of Directors of the Criminal Bar Association

From Friday, June 20 to Sunday, June 22 next week we celebrate the arrival of summer.

Poetry, concerts, fairy tales, guided tours, mural writing performances and workshops: find out about the different events that will enliven the park and join us.

Horti in collaboration with Orto Sartoriale organizes for the first time an “upcycling workshop” to give new life to clothes. You can come empty-handed or bring clothes from home. Through mending, sewing and painting, we will help you transform second-hand clothes into a unique garment.

Admission 10€, including workshop materials. For Horti Friend the cost is 8€. For info and registration write to promozione@horti.it by Friday.

Download the programme

Horti is hosting its first "Silent Reading Party" — a chance to gather together and read, in silence. A unique community moment to share your passion for reading.

Immerse yourself in the calm of Horti's Tree Community: bring a book from home or swap one at the Horti Bistrot book crossing. The event is open to everyone.

A unique experience of art in the making: artist ivan performs a live mural-writing performance.

Words, signs and thoughts take shape before our eyes, in a continuous dialogue between art and audience. A moment to live, to observe, to share. The event is open to all.

Download the programme

Have you ever heard of Yarn Bombing?

We will inaugurate the work Symbiosis by Accademia di Aracne, which will wrap some of our most beautiful trees in a new coat of crocheted wool. The Accademia di Aracne is an association in Ortona founded by Shirley Rowlands, which carries out constant research into nature.

On 17 May at 20:00, the Silent Wifi Concert in Horti returns for the second time, a unique and immersive experience to enjoy music and literary pieces, surrounded by greenery.

Attendees of the Silent Wifi Concert can participate for free in the event ‘Waiting for the bistro: solidarity aperitivo’ at 18:00.

After the Louvre, the Egyptian Museum and the Valley of the Temples, pianist Andrea Vizzini returns to Pavia, together with Antonio Gargiulo, reciting voice. Thanks to the silent piano technology, spectators will be able to listen to the music through headphones and at the same time explore the park and its contemporary works of art.

In collaboration with PianoLink, Yamaha e Silent System.

Untitled by Jannis Kounellis, the great master of Arte Povera who died in 2017, is the newest artwork to make its entrance in the Horti park. The work, created for the Fondazione IRCCS Ca' Granda Ospedale Maggiore Policlinico, will be inaugurated in the Extra Art space of the Almo Collegio Borromeo on Thursday 5 December at 6.30 pm. A toast will follow.

‘Untitled’ is composed of casts of classical heads and limestone elements hung from steel cables that hang from a height of 4 metres, the sculpture has a great scenographic presence, evoking a stage on whose dark backdrop the suspended volumes stand out.

We thank the Ospedale Maggiore of Milan, owner of the work, for the loan of use granted to the Almo Collegio Borromeo of Pavia. 

Download the flyer at the link.

Horti and the Arnaldo Pomodoro Foundation have inaugurated 'La Lunga Arte', an exhibition focusing on the fruitful intellectual relationship between the artist Arnaldo Pomodoro and the poet Francesco Leonetti.

We look forward to seeing you in the Extra Art space in Horti from Tuesday to Sunday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. The exhibition will remain open until 30th October, while the sculpture 'Movimento di crollo' will be on display until February 2025.