mendrisiotto.ch :: Regione Mendrisiotto e Basso Ceresio - Ticino - Switzerland

What were those young artists seeking when they moved from Basel to the Mendrisiotto around 1925 with sudden enthusiasm? Their names led to the creative experience of the “Rot-Blau”, whose distinctive feature is chromatic expressiveness.

In those days the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio was a poor, farming area where those young artists found a natural and human landscape with strong, vibrant colours and warm, Lombardy light. For them the Mendrisiotto was an inexhaustible source of uncontaminated inspiration of stimuli for art.
As in those days, this is still a land of stimuli today. There are few European regions which can offer a territory so rich in artistic testimony in few square kilometres.

The Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio has been a land of very well-known artists, painters, sculptors and architects for centuries; from the famous architects Francesco Borromini, Carlo Fontana and Carlo Maderno who worked in Rome, from Baldassarre Longhena, who was famous in Venice to the Masters from Campione who worked in France, Russia and Poland and to Mario Botta; from the sculptors Vincenzo Vela and Apollonio Pesina to Remo Rossi and Ivo Soldini; from the writers Francesco Chiesa and Alberto Nessi to the naturalist Luigi Lavizzari and to the many young local painters, sculptors, writers, photographers and musicians who make the artistic life of this region very interesting; a region which, by tradition, is a cultural bridge between the important artistic poles of Milan, Zurich and Basel.
Many Swiss and foreign artists have been guests in this Swiss Lombardy; at random we can mention Petra Weiss, Giacomo Puccini, Gerhart Hauptmann or the heroes of the Italian Risorgimento.

Those who love to discover a region by walking will find precious treasurs, to be enjoyed with respect and peace; in the Muggio Valley they will also find an exceptional Museum in the territory.

The hills of the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio, dotted with olive trees and covered by vineyards, by thick woods of chestnut trees and beech trees, by intense green in summer and bright colours in autumn, surround villages which hide real artistic and architectonic treasures, like the Züst Cantonal Picture Gallery in Rancate, Casa Cantoni in Muggio, the Pollini and Torriani mansions in Mendrisio, the Romanesque church of Saint Agatha in Tremona, the Paleochristian Baptistery in Riva San Vitale, the Vela Museum in Ligornetto, the Fossil Museum in Meride, the 18th century loggia of the Allio House in Arzo, the Servite Cloister and Art Museum in Mendrisio, the villas in Brusata and Loverciano, the farms of Mezzana and the Villas of Puccini and Leoncavallo in Vacallo or the family homes of famous contemporary architects like Tita Carloni, Ivano Gianola and Mario Botta, which offer a kind of ideal dwelling model for a class of cultured people.

But the bucolic landscape tinted with nostalgia should not make us forget that this land is extremely modern and dynamic and is an important place of European culture thanks to the Academy of Architecture in Mendriso, a cosmopolitan and humanistic centre where the students can meet international celebrities like Zaha Hadid, Franck Gehry and Massimo Cacciari inside the walls of the neo-classical Turconi Villa, which has been rendered less severe by a huge multicoloured bird, the work of Niki de Saint-Phalle.

The cultural dynamism of the region is also obvious from the numerous open-air summer events and from the programme of the Cinema Teatro in Chiasso, which is an architectonic jewel from 1930 ca. and has been recently restored. It is open not only for prose and cinema, but also for contemporary dance and music.
Beside this active cultural laboratory, which is projecting the image of Chiasso again, an original artistic pole has been created: the new, avant-garde m.a.x.museum, dedicated mainly to graphics, design, photographs and video, as well as the Spazio Officina.

Besides these works the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio Region also offers the attentive visitor great simplicity and popular art, which can be found in the numerous churches and chapels, in the ice-houses, in the potters’ boutiques, in the kilns and artistic foundries which complete the rich offer.
Together they make this land a true place of culture!

The Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio is a small triangular shaped region which borders on Italy to the south and is a short distance from Lugano, Lake Maggiore, Como and Varese. With the development in communications, this small region at the gateway to Switzerland has become an important point of commercial and tourist transit.

Those who have the chance to discover this generous land in more depth will find a corner of paradise between enchanting landscapes, sparkling hills and green heights painted by nature’s colours, which change constantly. Between oaks, firs and birches are oases of peace with a totally soothing calm.

This whole land is to be discovered; from the serenity of the lake to the soft contours of the hills, from the gentle plains to the terraced hills of the vineyards and up to the highest majestic peaks, from lakeside villages to those clinging to the steep sides of the mountain.

This region, small but rich in contrasts, is pleasant for a holiday in all seasons: in spring, when the woods and gardens burst into life; in summer, when respite from the heat can be found beneath the pergola of a "grotto" or by the lakeside; in autumn, when the landscape is magnificent in its warm and varied colours; and lastly in winter, which is often mild and without snow.

Canton Ticino is called a land of artists. This image is certainly true also for the southernmost part of the territory. Among the best-known artists from our region the figures of Francesco Borromini and Vincenzo Vela should be remembered.
The former is one of the greatest protagonists of the history of architecture. He was born in Bissone in 1599 and after an apprenticeship as stone-mason in the Lombardy capital of Milan he moved to Rome, where he became one of the greatest Baroque masters.
Vincenzo Vela (1820 – 1871) was born in Ligornetto, but at the age of 14 was already an apprentice in Milan working on the building site of the cathedral.
After a career in Turin where he was ordained as one of the main artists of his time he returned to his native village, where he created his home-museum (see the Vela Museum).

Alongside famous names there are many artists of great value who are known only locally or are even anonymous. Visiting the museums and churches in the area is certainly a source of great delight to art lovers; there they can discover works worthy of merit and interest. It may be one of the best ways to appreciate the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio.
Although Borromini and Vela had to go abroad in order to realise their worth as artists, there are others who found inspiration in our area.
This is the case of Gerhard Hauptmann (1862 – 1946), the great German playwright, who wrote the tale “The Heretic of Soana” during a holiday in Rovio.
In this book, considered by many to be Hauptmann’s masterpiece, the writer sets the encounter – clash between the Christian and pagan worlds in Soana, with an ironic eye.
Hermann Hesse, winner of the Nobel Literature Prize in 1946, is also to be remembered; he lived for a long time in Ticino, in Montagnola. He loved the area very much, so much so as to set “Journey to the East”, an allegorical novel, in the gorge of the Muggio Valley.

Throughout the year several festivals and events take place in the area.

Some have fairly ancient roots and refer to religious feasts, others are relatively recent, but they have been able to cut out their own role and acquire a place in local cultural life.

In the period before Easter the Historical Processions in Mendrisio are especially worthy of note.
Their origin dates back to the 17th century and – as in those days – on Maundy Thursday and Good Friday the ancient drama, which is a fundamental event in Christian religion, is re-lived and contemplated in a procession through the streets of the historical centre, following a ritual which has lasted for centuries.

Musical events like Festate, Estival Jazz or popular festivals like the Palio of Mendrisio, the Wine and Chestnut Festivals are also sure to interest the visitor.

The Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio region offers a network of paths of about 300 kilometres which can be walked in every season thanks to the mild climate of the area.

A hike or an excursion by mountain bike is the ideal way to discover and appreciate the most secluded corners of this region of ours.

Indicating some routes rather than others is not an easy task but the following routes must be mentioned:

the climb from Sagno to Bisbino, which enables the peak of the mountain, at 1,325 metres, to be reached in about two hours; the climb to Monte San Giorgio (1,097 metres), from where the view over Lake Lugano is wonderful.

The route of the Nevère (ice pits) winds along the east face of Monte Generoso, a hike of about four hours which, starting from the peak of Generoso (1,704 metres), leads to the discovery of this ingenious, ancient, natural cooling system once used in the whole of the Muggio Valley.

The naturalistic path of Monte San Giorgio proposes a route to discover the flora and fauna of this beautiful mountain.

A walk within the protected area of the Park of the Breggia Gorge enables the tourist to discover the geological profile of an area formed on the bed of the Tetide Ocean during the time from the Jurassic to the Cretaceous periods.
Therefore these outcrops cover a span of 100 million years.

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MONTE GENEROSO


MONTE SAN GIORGIO


THE PARK OF THE BREGGIA GORGE


MUGGIO VALLEY


PARK OF THE PENZ HILL


THE PRE MURIN PARK


FORTHCOMING EVENTS


RECURRING EVENTS


SPECIAL EVENTS


TICINO, LAND OF CYCLING


MEETING FACILITIES


INTRODUCTION


MUSEUMS


ART GALLERIES


HISTORICAL BUILDINGS


CINEMA TEATRO CHIASSO


WALKS


MOUNTAIN-BIKE PATHS


THEMATICS PATHS


TREKKING


GUIDED EXCURSIONS

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News
17.06.2008 | Tuesday
4 itinerari in MOUNTAINBIKE per gustare la Regione
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Events
18.04.2009 | today
Ticinese evening at the Peak
An extremely rich buffet with typical products from...
19.04.2009 | tomorrow
Organ spring
Fourth edition with the performance of Paolo Oreni....
Special events
23.09.2009 | Wednesday
Gastronomic Season in the Mendrisiotto and Lower Ceresio region
Who doesn’t know the Gastronomic season in the Mendrisiotto...

The Park of the Breggia Gorge
The Park, whose area is 1.5 km2, extends along the river of the same name for about 1.5 km; it touches the villages of Balerna, Castel San Pietro, Morbio Inferiore and Morbio Superiore. It was planned in the 80s by the Cantonal Natural History Museum, which suggested setting up a natural park in the lower Muggio Valley within the scope of the Cantonal Governing Plan. Numerous components, both natural and human, are present in the Park, but the particular geological contents of the Breggia Gorge make it one of the most important geo-topes in Switzerland and the first Swiss geo-park. Along this part of the river the natural section created by the excavation of the water has brought to light a geology profile that is almost continuous between the Jurassic and the Tertiary periods (more than 80 million years). Numerous pieces of evidence of ancient seas are...
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Parish Church of Saints Cosma and Damiano
Finished in 1875, it is a neoclassical building, a work of the architect Luigi Fontana. The interior of majestic proportions preserves various works of art: the 17th century Neo-Baroque...
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Guided excursions
5 guided excursions will enable you to discover the secrets of Mendrisiotto region! Wine cellars and wines - Art and architecture - At the bottom of the Ocean - Walking and Nordic...
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Chiasso Danza
Chiasso Danza is an appointment which brings considerable importance to the cultural life of the border town. Over the years artistes of international fame have been invited to Chiasso;...
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UCI road world Championships
Mendrisio 2009. Cycling has deep roots in Ticino where, since decades, the sport enjoys huge popularity.
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