The MAM is the Museum of Art on the Sea characterized by a real open-air art exhibition located along the promenade of the southern pier of San Benedetto del Tronto. The route winds through over a kilometer where the travertine cliffs, located close to the sea, have been sculpted by artists from all over the world since 1996. Today it has over 170 sculptures, to which are added some works by street art..
The idea of MAM
The MAM is one of the most important permanent art museums, overlooking the Adriatic Sea. It is always open and admission is free.The Museum is enriched every year with new works created through the “Scultura Viva” event. Specifically, the MAM, inaugurated in June 2012, houses 178 works of art, of which 157 are sculptures and 21 are murals made during the Symposium "Sculpture Viva" and “Festival of Art on the Sea”.
Specifically, the event features 154 artists from 37 countries across 5 continents. The first section, approximately 500 meters long, is dedicated to sculpture. Instead, the other stretch of about 400 meters is dedicated to painting and hosts 21 beautiful murals made by street artists Italians and foreignersBut also by some local schools. The MAM is the result of over twenty years of activity and highly successful editions of the sculpture and mural painting symposium in the coastal city.
The symposium
The MAM is unique in its kind both for the beauty of its environment and the length of the route. The San Benedetto del Tronto symposium, conceived in 1996 by Piernicola Cocchiaro, is exclusive and unpublished. For a week the artists create their works on the breakwater blocks, lined up along the promenade, under the fascinated gaze of the public. The symposium has only recently opened up to painting, following the success of the muralists' works that can be admired at the end of the walk. Enriching the Museum are the four other famous sculptures present along the avenue. Specifically: the monument to Jonathan Livingstone Seagull by Mario Lupo, La Vela by Genti Tavanxhiu, the Nativity scene with the Nativity of Giuseppe Straccia.
The MAM path
The unusual museum is, therefore, a stunning open-air journey. It is a path to freedom, leisure, and admiration for the work of man. The charm of a beautiful walk overlooking the sea and the coastline, accompanied by the sounds of the waves, is complemented by the discovery and contemplation of murals multicolored and wonderful sculptures obtained from the white travertine of the rocks which have become living sculptures in the hands of the artists, in a true artistic journey.
The idea of making the rocks of the large pier available to artists and sculptors to protect the city's tourist port is truly original. The beautiful promenade, both pedestrian and cycle path, starts from the big one El Faro of the center, runs along the ancient monument of the Fisherman by Cleto Capponi and continues for over a kilometer of works. Certainly, if you are in San Benedetto del Tronto you cannot miss these wonders in a walk of at least one hour to admire them all.
Thanks for the cover image: Patrizia Cicconi
