Hello, I am Nora!

Where are you from? What are you doing in Amsterdam?

I am originally from Italy, and I came to Amsterdam with a clear intention: to strengthen my English and deepen my communication skills in an international cultural context. This opportunity emerged through an unexpected yet meaningful encounter with Anna Stolyarova, founder of the Street Art Museum Amsterdam (SAMA). I first met Anna in my hometown of Scandiano, when she visited Italy to present the Toolkit for Youth Workers during European Placemaking Week. The project immediately resonated with me — not only because of its social and cultural impact, but also because it connected institutions and creative actors I was already familiar with, including the Municipality of Reggio Emilia, a local street artist, and Re-Factory, a communication agency in my region. During her presentation, Anna needed practical support, and I volunteered. What began as a simple act of collaboration quickly turned into a dynamic professional exchange. Our cooperation continued beyond that event. Recognising my enthusiasm and communication background, Anna offered me the opportunity to gain hands-on experience at SAMA in Amsterdam. I embraced it without hesitation. Moving to a new country to work within a museum that operates at the intersection of street art, community engagement, and international cultural projects has been both challenging and transformative. It has strengthened not only my language skills, but also my adaptability, initiative, and understanding of communication within socially engaged cultural institutions. This experience confirmed my desire to further develop academically and professionally in the field of communication within the cultural sector. I am motivated to contribute to institutions that see communication not simply as promotion, but as a bridge between communities, culture, and social impact.

Can you tell me something about the place where you come from?

I come from Scandiano, a small town in Northern Italy that taught me early on how culture shapes identity. Despite its modest size, Scandiano carries a strong literary heritage. It is the birthplace of Matteo Maria Boiardo, the fifteenth-century author of L’Orlando Innamorato. His castle still dominates the city centre — not only architecturally, but symbolically. It reminds us that storytelling has always been part of who we are. Every year in May, we celebrate “Festival Love” in his honour. For one weekend, the town transforms: shops remain open at night, concerts fill the streets, food stands animate the squares. It is a moment where public space becomes a shared cultural experience.One of the most striking contemporary interventions in my town is a large mural depicting scenes from Orlando, created by nationally recognised artists together with local youth involved in community projects. At first, I resisted this change — it felt disruptive to the historical aesthetic I was used to. But over time, I realised that this mural was not replacing tradition; it was continuing it in a contemporary language. That shift in perspective was important for me. It made me understand how cultural innovation can coexist with heritage — and how communication mediates that transition.

What do you like to do in your free time?

Curiosity drives me. I explore reality through books, theatre, cinema, exhibitions and travel. I have participated in book clubs, served on the committee of the Premio Asimov writing contest for high school students, and performed for several years in an amateur theatre company. These experiences strengthened my ability to interpret narratives, collaborate in creative teams, and engage with different audiences. Through Erasmus+, I had two formative professional experiences abroad. In Greece, I worked in a recreation centre organising activities for young people, learning how to communicate across cultural and linguistic differences. In Germany, at the Italian Cultural Institute in Stuttgart, I supported communication and event coordination for film screenings, exhibitions and concerts. There I observed how cultural institutions translate artistic content into accessible public programming. These experiences confirmed my interest in communication as a bridge between creators, institutions and communities.

What is your relationship to street art? And to art in general?

Before joining SAMA, I had not deeply engaged with street art as a cultural practice. This changed during a meeting in Reggio Emilia with SAMA and its partners. At Binario 49 — a literary café actively involved in social regeneration programmes — I had the opportunity to listen to the stories of street artists such as Psikoplanet, alongside youth workers working within the city. Through their voices and experiences, I began to understand how significant and deeply rooted street art is in Reggio Emilia’s cultural landscape. I realised that street art is not peripheral — it is a living part of the cultural fabric.I have always appreciated traditional art forms displayed in museums, but street art introduced me to a different dynamic. Encountering art unexpectedly in the urban landscape transforms the act of viewing into something immediate and participatory. It removes barriers. It invites interaction — sometimes even confrontation. Through guided tours and fieldwork, I began to understand street art not only as an aesthetic practice but as a communicative one. It operates within public space, interacts with social realities, and speaks to diverse audiences without mediation. This has deeply influenced how I think about cultural accessibility and the role of communication in shaping perception.

What is the most interesting aspect of street art to you?

Its relational power. During a meeting with one of the artists who explained how working in socially fragile areas allowed him to build connections with homeless and marginalized people, involving them in the creative process. That insight struck me profoundly. Street art can function as a catalyst for dialogue in places where institutional language might fail. For me, the most compelling aspect of street art is precisely this capacity to generate human connection. It demonstrates that art can move beyond representation and become interaction.

What are your responsibilities at SAMA?

I began my collaboration by translating the STAR 2.0 educational toolkit from English into Dutch. Currently, I am categorising and cleaning up the meta data for the content in the Digital Street Art Depot, a project dedicated to preserving SAMA’s collection through digital archiving. Street art is inherently ephemeral; documentation and digitalisation are essential to ensuring long-term accessibility. I work with content management systems and contribute to creating a virtual guide on Bloomberg Connects. In parallel, I would like to assist with office coordination, visitor engagement, workshop preparation and attending SAMA partners meetings from cultural field of Amsterdam. This multifaceted role will give me insight into the operational, communication and strategic dimensions of a cultural organisation in the Netherlands.

Do you have a favourite artist in the collection?

I really appreciate Daniela Frongia’s works: in the SAMA headquarters we have a part from one of her installations hanging on the kitchen door, composed of intricately woven black yarn. Her thread-based installations challenge the conventional idea that street art is limited to paint on walls. What fascinates me most is that her artistic process begins long before the installation: she cultivates the cotton herself before transforming it into thread. This continuity between material origin and artistic outcome adds depth and meaning to her work. It reflects a holistic approach to creation that I deeply admire.

What interests you most about SAMA’s concept?

Its accessibility and its commitment to social impact. SAMA is not confined to a building. Its collection is dispersed throughout the neighbourhood, free and visible to everyone. Art becomes part of everyday life rather than an isolated experience. This model challenges traditional museum structures and demonstrates how cultural participation can be embedded within communities.Recently, during a workshop in SAMA’s community garden I was able to put into practice what I learned from the STAR 2.0 toolkit. This event was led by youth workers of Vooruit organisation, some of whom, like Fabian, I met at the European Placemaking week in Reggio Emilia. Under the supervision of the local street artist and youth worker - Cika - children were given a street art tour, where they learned in a non-formal way diverse styles and techniques for making art in and for public space. Later, they together designed stencils and sprayed their own artworks, encouraged by the youth workers. This is where I see the strength of SAMA: art as a medium for inclusion, dialogue and empowerment.

Which artwork do you appreciate the most?

One work that particularly stands out to me is Tolerance by Alaniz, a mural located in Slotermeer, Nieuw-West. The piece reflects a value historically associated with the Netherlands: openness to diversity. It portrays a woman, Dianne, breastfeeding her child — an image that has long symbolised tolerance and care in both artistic and religious traditions. The message of inclusion and acceptance is further conveyed through the woman’s calm and gently smiling expression. In Nieuw-West, where multiple cultures coexist, this message resonates strongly. The artwork is now fading, marked by time. Yet that impermanence reinforces its meaning. Street art reminds us that physical forms may disappear, but ideas can endure. Preserving them — physically or digitally — becomes an act of cultural and collective responsibility.

What has been the most challenging moment at SAMA?

Taking over responsibilities related to the Digital Street Art Depot and mastering its content management systems. The technical learning curve was steep, and initially overwhelming. However, overcoming this challenge has been empowering. I am learning in a non-formal way how to approach complex systems methodically and to communicate. I have to  work a lot in order to master how to  transform uncertainty into structured learning. I hope that the experience will strengthen both my technical competence and my confidence.