FABIO ARTUSI Documentary Photographer

" Vampe " of S.Giuseppe, Palermo

The S.Giuseppe Vampa, in Italian fires, is a propitiatory tradition in which the old masses are burned to kick the past and open up to a new future of abundance. They occur on the eve of S.Giuseppe, a carpenter, and in fact old lumber and furniture are burnt. Children make the main part of Pira's construction and adults for safety fire damage. Every neighborhood has its own Vampa, which does not fail despite the prohibitions of lighting fire in the street. Even the puppet burned has its symbolic value, that of eliminating the old Grandpa and giving space to the new.