Some places slowly become part of a shared story. Tornareccio, a small village in Abruzzo located between the Maiella mountains and the Adriatic Sea, is one of those places for the Bitta Generation network. After the experience of 2023, many young artists returned there in the summer of 2025, while others discovered it for the first time through two international meetings based on art, non-formal education and community life.

Bitta Generation 7: MovimenTornareccio was promoted by ARCI Circolo Territoriale Chieti APS and developed through two Erasmus+ Youth Exchanges held in Tornareccio from 31 May to 9 June 2025 and from 12 to 21 July 2025. The project was supported by the Erasmus+ Youth Programme, the Agenzia Italiana per la Gioventù, the Municipality of Tornareccio and the Istituto Abruzzese per le Aree Protette.

The two meetings involved young artists, youth workers and participants from Bulgaria, Serbia, Italy, France, Croatia, Portugal, Germany and Belgium. The main aim was to involve young people directly in cultural and social life, strengthen their active citizenship at European level and support the development of their communities through shared creative processes.

Tornareccio played a central role in the whole experience. Its landscapes, archaeological traces, local stories, traditions and welcoming community became part of the learning process. For many participants, the village has become almost a second home: a place to return to, meet again and continue building a common artistic path.

During the two Youth Exchanges, participants worked with different artistic languages and practical tools, including innovative mosaics, fanzine creation, murals, graffiti, graphic art, video animation and photography. These activities were based on non-formal education methods and helped the group connect personal expression with wider themes such as community, belonging, cultural heritage, public space and youth participation.

The project led to two final publications. The first one, Bitta Generation 7: MovimenTornareccio, is the seventh volume of the Bitta Generation series. It collects artworks, drawings, sketches, comics and impressions created during the two meetings, showing the variety of styles, techniques and narratives developed by the participants. Its title plays with the name Tornareccio and the idea of movement, suggesting a project that travels through places, connects people and brings new energy into local contexts through art.

The second outcome is 2025 Coloring Book MovimenTornareccio, a black and white colouring book with illustrations created by different artists. After the success of the first colouring book published in 2023, this new album invites readers to colour, doodle and repaint the artworks in their own way. It is a playful and accessible result of the project, designed to continue the creative exchange beyond the Erasmus+ meetings.

You are invited to download both publications and discover Tornareccio through the eyes, hands and imagination of young European artists.

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