Perdifiato, the New Light Sculpture by Marco Lodola at the Greenway Arrival in Varzi

On September 4, 2024, “Perdifiato”, a light sculpture by Marco Lodola, was inaugurated in Varzi. The artwork is dedicated to Alfonsina Strada, the first woman to participate in the Giro d’Italia in 1924. The sculpture is part of a broader project aimed at transforming the medieval village of Varzi into an open-air museum, inspired by the Horti of Collegio Borromeo in Pavia, with which a three-year collaboration has been launched.
Funded by the PNRR, the project seeks to culturally and socially regenerate Varzi by enriching it with artworks that interpret the village’s spaces and engage the community. The sculpture honors the courage of Alfonsina Strada and all women, also recalling the fight against gender-based violence.

Continuously opposed by her family due to her passion, at 24 years old in 1915, she married Luigi Strada, a metal engraver who, on the contrary, encouraged her to pursue her dream and even gifted her a brand-new racing bicycle on their wedding day.