On November 15 and 16, the Paleontological Museum of Montevarchi will once again host a celebration of Paleoart and scientific communication.
For the fifth year in a row, the Italian Paleoart Award returns — an artistic competition promoted by the Paleontological Museum of the Accademia Valdarnese del Poggio in Montevarchi. Its purpose is to spread awareness of a discipline that, through various artistic techniques, brings prehistoric life to the public. The Award also offers valuable visibility to both professional paleoartists and aspiring ones.
The contest took place from March 1 to August 31, during which 106 works were submitted across the “Adults,” “Young Artists,” and “Projects” categories. Entries came from around 90 artists, mostly from Italy, but also from Chile, Mexico, Brazil, Germany, Argentina, Indonesia, Spain, Colombia, Vietnam, Thailand, Ecuador, Australia, Cambodia, and Taiwan.
The selected works will be showcased in an art exhibition opening on Saturday morning, November 15, in the Chiostro di Cennano. In the afternoon, at 5:00 PM in the Accademia’s Great Hall, the winners will be announced during the official award ceremony.
On Sunday, November 16, the Museum will host the second edition of APPI Day, a full day dedicated to scientific communication with a particular focus on paleontology, featuring a rich program of events.
APPI Day is organized and promoted by the Italian Paleontological and Paleoartistic Association, an organization active for years in coordinating and promoting paleontology and paleoart initiatives across Italy.
Program of the Two Days
Saturday, November 15
10:00 AM – Opening of the exhibition in the Chiostro di Cennano.
The exhibition will remain open until December 8 on the following schedule:
Monday–Wednesday: 3:00 PM–6:00 PM
Thursday–Sunday: 10:00 AM–1:00 PM and 3:00 PM–6:00 PM.
5:00 PM – Official award ceremony for the winners of the “Illustrations” category of the fifth edition of the Award, held in the Museum’s Great Hall. The winner of the “Projects” category will also be announced.
Sunday, November 16
10:00 AM – 11:30 AM – Paleorama, a workshop for children and young participants (recommended ages: 7–11). Free event with no reservation required.
12:00 PM – “The Carnian Extinction and the Dawn of a New World”, a lecture by Massimo Bernardi (MUSE – Science Museum of Trento).
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE A SEAT (Bernardi Lecture)
3:30 PM – Presentation and awarding of the “Projects” category of the Italian Paleoart Award.
4:00 PM – Presentation of the book “50 Endangered Animals” (Tomodachi Press, 2025) by Willy Guasti.
Featuring the author and Agnese Innocente.
A Meet & Greet and book signing will follow.
The book will be available for purchase at the Tomodachi booth inside the Museum.
CLICK HERE TO RESERVE A SEAT (Guasti Presentation)
The fifth edition of the Award is organized by the
Paleontological Museum of Montevarchi,
the Accademia Valdarnese del Poggio,
and the Italian Paleontological and Paleoartistic Association (APPI),
based on an idea by Sante Mazzei (graphic designer and scientific illustrator).
The Award is sponsored by the
Municipality of Montevarchi,
the Italian Geological Society,
the Italian Paleontological Society,
and the National Association of Scientific Museums.
The initiative is supported by the main sponsor
Banca del Valdarno – Cooperative Credit Bank,
together with Strada del Vino Terre di Arezzo
and Massimo Manganelli Group.
Media Partners:
Artsupp
and
Visit Valdarno.
