Photos by © Giorgio Barbato

On July 23 on the final day of the 35th edition of the Porretta Soul Festival, a truly super mural dedicated to musician Sax Gordon was unveiled. The work, 18 meters high, was created by Edoardo Ettorre and Antonio Cotecchia, artists who were already present with two of the thirteen murals created in 2021.

Sax Gordon himself raised a glass with the U.S. Consul General in Florence, Mrs. Ragini Gupta, who spoke on the closing night and stated that “Soul is the most American music we have and Porretta celebrates it at its best, standing out among international music festivals.”

She also announced that from next year the American Consulate will sponsor the festival itself.

Standing ovation to the great chef Massimo Bottura, who was honored on stage at the Porretta Soul Festival for his commitment to social work. He is co-founder with his wife of the Food for Soul association, which promotes the culture of fighting food waste and fights against world hunger.

The cultural project also encourages private and public organizations to set up food recovery soup kitchens around the world. Graziano Uliani, patron of the festival, which is promoted by the Emilia-Romagna Region, presented him with the plaque of honor “for feeding soul with music &food.”