The Aosta Valley at Expo
vertical journey between glaciers and snowstorms

Val d’Aosta might be the smallest region of Italy, but at Expo Milano 2015, it presented a week of events ofincomparable public interest. Starting from the 24th to the 30th of July the “Frozen” pavilion demonstrated to 26744 people the meaning of “vertical angle”, water, high altitude mountains, thrill, and emotion.
Val d’Aosta therefore gave voice to an installation which creates an artistic-sensorial experience. It is made of 225 m2 created with 6000 pieces of welded metal, 400 m2 of fabbric, 23 motors and crafty work of 20 artisians which for two months have worked upon this structure decorated with 12 video installations.
The common thread which tied everything together was the theme proposed by Expo: “The rising Earth”.

  “The rising earth”

To welcome the visitors was a violent snow storm which had the ability to create an atmosphere that inserted anyone, in a few seconds, in Cervino. When passing this area the visitors found themselvs in front of a space filled with glaciers, surrounding them were self-propelled indigo walls and reflecting surfaces.
Furhtermore to render the environment even more realistic was the addition of artificial snow and clouds of water vapour. A column, made of screens, displayed images of peaks from Val d’Aosta, Tor des Geants.
Forte di Bard, and from the alps. If one were to close their eyes, they would have been overwhelmed by the whisper of the wind, by the call of birds of prey, by the sound of ice axes sinking into an icey surface. And to conclude the luminescent fog.

  “Valle d’Aosta… Vertical Land” 

If this description can make you think of Val d’Aosta like a hostile land and suitable only for few adrenaline junkies, you are wrong. To show the contrary was a video that throughout the entire Expo 2015 was shown in Italy Pavilion which magnificently told the story of the Power of Beauty, displaying images of Teatro Romano of Aosta, the Cervino, staircase of Castel Savoia of Gressoney-Sain-Jean; also showing the Power of the Savoir-Faire, through the story of Hervé Barmasse the internationally famous Val d’Aosta mountaineer; and the Power of Limit by letting the public learn about highest sparkling wine cellar of Europe, situated 2173 meters, at the station of Pavilion Skyway on Monte Bianco; lastly showing the Power of the Future through images of an apple plant that represents Val d’Aosta in the Italian nursery. This temporary pavilion gave the opportunity to taste the authentic, indigenous and healthy Val d’Aosta food: from Fontina alla Mocetta, to Tegole, to soups.

“We are extremely satisfied for the success obtained in this week presenting Val d’Aosta in Expo Milano 2015 – underlines the President of ExpoVdA SpA, Claudio Restano – due to the dedication and effort of all organizations that collaborated in exposing to the wide variety of the Expo public we were able to show a connected image of our region with all of her different faces and peculiarities”.
To conclude the Val d’Aosta week at Expo were the eclectic fold rock group “L’Orange”, made everyone in the public dance. Val d’Aosta.

Vertical Land. Land of Water. Land of genuine traditions that host and welcome visitors and enchant them to the point of making them feel at home.