Nel segno inciso

In 2011 the Museo Vincenzo Vela will be entering a new partnership when it presents a form of art - copperplate engraving - that has to date been absent from its programmes. By hosting the works of the participants of the AAAC Prize for young engravers and students of art schools, the museum will be meeting one of the desires of Vincenzo Vela, that of having his home transformed into a place for the formation of young artists.

The competition is organised by the Associazione Amici dell'Atelier Calcografico di Novazzano (AAAC) - founded in 1984 with the purpose of increasing knowledge of the art of copperplate engraving - and is now in its fifth edition. To date, the AAAC has published more than sixty prints, some by artists also known outside of Switzerland. A complete series of the prints has been donated to the Cabinet des Estampes in Paris and to the Archivio di Stato del Cantone Ticino. It is regularly updated and has grown to become a valuable collection of this form of art.

The AAAC held its first competition for young engravers in 1999, which was won by Mirjam Niederer. Held every three years (2002, 2005, 2008), the three other editions were won respectively by Stéphanie Baechler, Stéfanie Tschantz and Carla Ferriroli.

This year will be the first time the work of the participants in the AAAC Prize will be shown in a federal museum, a setting that is particularly appropriate for a competition of national importance. It provides a showcase for the young talents of the art of copperplate engraving in keeping with the collection of graphic works held in the Museo Vincenzo Vela (by artists Andrea Appiani, Luigi Sabatelli and Giovanni Fontanesi amongst others).