In the town of Spello, the christian tradition of covering the streets with flowers on the day of Corpus Christi, takes place from decades with devotion, originality and high artistic level, to make the Infiorate of Spello a unique and internationally known event. The Infioratori of Spello working full months for the realization of these creations that will last just a few hours. Beautiful and ephemeral, the Infiorate, completed the early morning of Sunday, dissolves themselves after the passage of the religious procession.
The great efforts made, causes commotion among the most sensitive; it remains to them only the satisfaction for a job well done, a few photos, the memory of a night hard, cheerful and a bit crazy; they already dream up on the project next year.
The Infiorate, in fact, are not only a floral trail through the streets of this Umbrian village, built for the passage of the Body of Christ in the procession, but also a moment of aggregation and healthy competition between the factions of Spello. The strip of flowers 1.5 km long, composed of carpets (minimum length 12 meters) and frameworks (area of at least 24 square meters), is evaluated by a jury that decrees the best floral composition.
To win, the teams of infioratori care diligently the long preparatory phases of their masterpiece: the choice of the design according to the road surface available, the combination of colours and flowers, the pick of flowers along the slopes of Subasio, the selection and storage of herbs and petals, the preparation of sketch and molds, the installation of protective tents and related lighting for night, the provision on the pavement of the executive drawing, the arrangement of petals and vegetables, the hydration of the design to keep the vegetation attached to the asphalt and prevent wilting.
The inhabitants of Spello, during this event, give a splendid example of participation, coordination and harmony of purpose; each of the thousands of participants performs the task in which he does best; for them, the huge influx of visitors each year, who admires the Infiorate, is the best satisfaction. The day before the feast of Corpus Christi it is undoubtedly the most exciting. In Spello, the streets, regarding the route of the procession, are closed to traffic since early afternoon. In that moment, it begins a relentless work that will continue for the entire night. Curious citizens and tourists can peer closely artists at work; is the atmosphere of Leopardi’s “Sabato del Villaggio”.
On Sunday morning, everything it is finished, the protections are removed; the streets are covered with a carpet of polychrome and perfumed of 70 infiorate by the religious theme, ready for the passage of the Sacred procession led by Bishop.
The Infiorate of Spello 2019 will be made from 14 to 23 June. They will take place other collateral events during the whole week: the Competition of Hand embroidery “Flowering Windows, Balconies and Alleys“, the competition of Flower Cake Design “Cakes in Bloom”, the floriculture exhibition market of “Spello in Bloom”, night tours of the citizen art sites “InfiorArt”. Throughout the event it is open the Museum of Infiorate, you can see the beautiful flowered balconies and corners of the city and you can eat at the “Tavern of Infioratori”, menu based on flowers.
Enjoy the atmosphere of the Infiorate flower festival, staying at the accommodations of Subasio Park, a few kilometers from Spello.
