Sacra Speranza - 33rd Concorso di Ceramica Contemporanea 'Mediterraneo' della città di Grottaglie

The work consists of a monumental ceramic serpent that emerges from and returns to the ground, inspired by the Ribeira boa (Corallus cropanii), one of the rarest snakes in the world, endemic to Brazil's Atlantic Forest and rediscovered after six decades of presumed extinction.

The project pays tribute to the Brazilian artist Francisco Brennand by "petrifying the movement" of the serpent at the precise moment of its emergence from the soil, capturing the tension between life and stasis, motion and permanence.

The title "Sacra Esperança" (Sacred Hope) refers to the species' rediscovery in 2017 and the subsequent initiation of scientific monitoring in 2025, embodying a powerful intersection of contemporary art, citizen science, and biodiversity conservation.

The project is a finalist of the 33rd Concorso di Ceramica Contemporanea 'Mediterraneo' della città di Grottaglie.