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Where is Oppido Lucano?
di Pietro Zizzania, Architect
ssq Season 02

On the first day of my stay, I left Naples by car to reach Oppido Lucano. After passing Battipaglia, I took the junction towards Potenza. From that point on, the landscape changed: wide, multi-lane highways alternated with narrow, sometimes poorly maintained local roads; scattered settlements and lots of nature surrounded me; along the way, I often drove alone for long stretches. At a certain point, you cross a field of towering white wind turbines on a ridge surrounded by wheat fields. A sign tells me that I have arrived in Oppido. Ten minutes down the road in the campagne separate that sign from the main square of the historic center. An inscription on the facade of a building reiterates: “Oppido Lucano.” There is no doubt, then, that I am “here” in Oppido. 

Durante la residenza ho avuto modo di esplorare il Paese in lungo e in largo, sopra e sotto, a piedi e in auto, alla deriva. Ho avuto la possibilità di parlare con tante persone accoglienti e disponibili. Con ognuno di loro potevo parlare di mille cose, ma di solito mi concentravo sulle storie familiari: storie di migrazioni antiche, verso le industrie siderurgiche tedesche; migrazioni più recenti, verso le città più grandi per studiare e lavorare; storie di spostamenti quotidiani chilometrici; talvolta, anche qualche storia di ritorni, città gemelle, comunità oppidesi e nuovi abitanti. In tutti questi racconti Oppido veniva sempre accostato ad altri luoghi. Ad un certo punto, chiacchierando con una coppia di anziani fratelli che riposavano sulla strada appena fuori la porta di casa, ebbi la sensazione di toccare posti lontanissimi rimanendo seduto per terra ad ascoltarli. Decisi che per capire dove mi trovavo dovevo iniziare a mappare questi “altri luoghi”, apparentemente distanti da “qui” ma così presenti nelle storie locali.

Oppido Lucano is located “HERE” on the map: 40°46′N – 15°59′E. 

Yet, even today, I still feel like I haven't found it yet.

Piera and Rocco are two faithful pilgrims visiting Oppido on July 7 for the anniversary of the apparition of the Archangel Saint Michael to Francesca Lancellotti. Many healings have been attributed to Francesca's intercession. A community has grown up around the figure of Francesca, bringing together people from all over Italy.
The Leone family has had a very intense history. In the 1960s, they all emigrated to Germany, to Solingen Dusseldorf, in the province of Cologne. Despite housing difficulties, they managed to earn enough to support their family in Oppido and build a new house in “Muntron.” “This whole area was built with German money. My children were here, all Italians.”
Due to its size and wonderful hospitality, Oppido proved to be the perfect place for social inclusion. “At Cooperativa 80, we run workshops on inclusion, culture, and ethnic cuisine. It's a wonderful thing, because the region has remained very satisfied, and they have gone from being users of a service to promoters of the project itself. Something that would be very difficult to do elsewhere.”
Gigante is a family with a long history in the production of flour, bread, and pasta. Their focus on quality throughout the supply chain and their connection to tradition bind this small business inextricably to the Oppido area. For decades, people have been coming from all the surrounding villages to buy their products.
Mohamed comes from Rabat, Morocco. He immigrated to Italy years ago. Now he travels between Melfi, Rionero, Potenza, Oppido, and other places to sell his goods. When he arrives in small towns, he uses an old cart to transport his goods through the historic centers.
Lisa and Loredana tell us how the economy linked to the sale of local products has changed. Previously, small producers and retailers were able to sell their products. Today, however, due to the costs involved in health checks, this type of sale is no longer possible. “Take eggs from Serre (SA), for example. The packaging says: sourced from European countries; packaged in Italy. Yes, but where?”
Matera, Potenza, Bari if you want to stay more or less in the area. Rome or rather Milan, if you want to change your life. For the young people of Oppido, choosing where to study is not an easy thing. You can sense their conviction that choosing a place is equivalent to choosing one future over another. “Some want to leave forever. For others, perhaps more attached to the land, the experience away is necessary in order to return.”
“Seeing the world from a greater height. Then, for the work I do, experimenting with the body is very, very interesting.” Andrea studied in Teramo, then in Rotterdam, and found work in Bologna and Paris. But Oppido is his real home. He would love to be able to bring what he has learned elsewhere here. “I would like to get the people of Oppido used to seeing something they have never seen before. Or something they see every day but don't pay attention to. About the body, how we inhabit space, how we get up in the morning, how we go shopping.”
Martina is searching for her balance. She has traveled to many places, lived in Rome, and now lives in Matera. But it is essentially here in Oppido that she rediscovers, every time she returns, her relationship with her family, the fresh air, and a pace of life that is ideal for her. “That's why I started to create connections between yoga and hiking guides. This allows me to feel at home anywhere. Everywhere is a place that belongs to me and where I can rediscover my balance.”