Dialoguri cu Rafinăria
A project by Giulia Vitiello, hosted by Rafinăria la Prezent and 1503 Association.
In 2025 Giulia Vitiello was selected for the Reclaiming Post-Industrial Futures program - in collaboration with EUNIC, the British Council and the Italian Cultural Institute.
During a resedency of multiple weeks, she researched the history, architecture, and heritage of the town of Câmpina and its former oil refinery, now closed, privately owned, and under pressure from re-development plans. The aim of the project was to create site-responsive artworks in public spaces and community venues, to help residents reconnect with the area, their collective memory and unheard stories about the refinery and reflect on the importance of its heritage by getting involved in cultural activities. Through Giulia’s approach, the project invited different grops from the community (former workers, the refinery neigbourhood, family members of former workers and young people) in three workshops that aimed to rediscover the memories connected to the space, reclaiming and decolonising them, discuss the present of the space and imagine a future that would serve the town and it’s inhabitant.
The community was then involved in the creation of a participatory performance and short film. They collaborated with Giulia in writing the texts and recording the voices for “Dialoguri cu Rafinăria” and creating “Enciclopedia Steaua Română. Identitatea rafinăriei din Câmpina” (The Steaua Română Encyclopedia: The Identity of the Câmpina Refinery): this project, which resulted in both a booklet and a short film, was built as an A to Z encyclopaedia of the refinery’s identity. Each word was chosen and spoken by a former worker or community member, who was asked what the refinery meant to them. The process sparked conversations, memories, and reflections, creating a collective portrait of a place that shaped the life and identity of the town and it’s working class community.
Fabrica de Parafina (Voice and Text) https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TFFVp-4o5ZLJf3dfTAMU52XWlxlr3_ks? usp=share_link