Reflektor adopts Horti

Reflektor is a branding and innovation agency based in Milan, founded in 2016 by Martina Profumo and Michele Morosi. Based on an approach that sees Strategy, Design and Innovation as areas in continuous dialogue, Reflektor has worked over the years for large and small brands, with different languages and styles always developed in close relation to the client's needs, characteristics and values.

Reflektor in 2023 reconfirmed its collaboration with Fondazione Italia Patria della Bellezza and adopted the project Horti in Pavia. Italy's oldest university college of merit inaugurated this public space on 17 September 2022, a 35,000 square metre park where natural habitats, contemporary art, cultural reflection, ethical commitment, equity and social inclusion intertwine.

This area, located in the historic centre of Pavia, once dedicated to the cultivation of vegetable gardens and orchards for the College's students, is now a place for sociality, creativity and the interweaving of knowledge. The Almo Collegio Borromeo was founded in Pavia in 1561 by Carlo Borromeo to give boys from the less well-off social classes the opportunity to study at the University of Pavia. The Rector of the College, Alberto Lolli, animated by the conviction that beauty has a redeeming and pedagogical power, succeeded in creating a garden that is characterised as a space of social inclusion open to the public.

Today, this green space offers a rich programme of initiatives. Collaboration with the University of Pavia, the Pavia Botanical Garden and the Sant'Alessio Oasis has made it possible to enhance the park's naturalistic value through the creation of water paths, the planting of thousands of new plants and the installation of bird feeders, insect houses and beehives.

Parallel to the landscaping, the theme of contemporary art has been developed through the placement of a permanent exhibition of sculptures and wall paintings by internationally renowned artists, including Arnaldo Pomodoro, Gianfranco Pardi, Nicola Carrino and Luigi Mainolfi. In addition, in the centre of the park is the archaeological area of the church of San Marco in Monte Bertone, which has been duly brought to light with educational excavations. Finally, the Horti are also an ethical project because they promote social inclusion, solidarity and the defence of sustainability and equity, in a network with the territory.

‘I am honoured that the Horti project has been adopted by such a prestigious organisation as Reflektor for the Fondazione Italia Patria della Bellezza project. I am certain that this new partnership will strengthen the image and reputation of our park and make many people aware of the contemporary need to unite aesthetic beauty with ethical justice. Thank you for the opportunity,' says Alberto Lolli, Provost of the Collegio Borromeo.