Stories from the day before yesterday

Stories from the Day Before Yesterday is an exhibition organized by the Order of the Knights of the Langhe in collaboration with the Corso Torino 18 Professional Workshop. Born from a dialogue between images and words, it entrusts photography and memory with the task of capturing a world only seemingly distant.
From February 21 to March 27, 2026, at Corso Torino 18 in Alba, the exhibition will lead visitors through life in the Alta Langa in the second half of the 20th century, when daily existence was deeply intertwined with working the land and its relentless rhythms.
The photographs of Malvina Manera, who recently passed away, compose a sober and direct visual narrative, capturing the harshness of a predominantly rural life without resorting to rhetoric or idealization. The repeated gestures of agricultural labor, the bodies marked by fatigue, the silent gazes recount a reality of sacrifice and daily resistance, where work was not merely a necessity, but an individual and collective identity.
Alongside these images, there are also moments of respite and relaxation: parties, gatherings, and moments of lightheartedness that break the severity of days in the fields. These fragments restore complexity to the narrative and remind us that, even in the harshest conditions, there was a vital need for social interaction, sharing, and simple joy.
The visual journey is intertwined with the written testimonies collected by Celeste Oricco, who over the years preserved the stories of her mother and aunt, Luigina and Teresina Martino, who grew up in Pavaglione, a symbolic place in the Alta Langa. Both passed away in 2023. Their words convey a memory experienced from within, made of sacrifices, relentless work, and deep family ties, offering an intimate and authentic interpretation of the images.
The exhibition is curated by Antonio Buccolo, Alberto Cacciatore, Roberto Coro, Pierguido Fornaro, Enzo Giacone, and Andrea
Vero, who have crafted a harmonious and measured journey, combining historical dimension, human testimony, and a focus on photographic language, avoiding any form of celebratory nostalgia.
Stories from the Before Yesterday is dedicated to Malvina, Luigina, and Teresina, and, ideally, to all the women who, over the past century, have supported the fortunes of so many families in the Alta Langa. Often invisible, yet central, women, silent pillars of domestic and rural life, guardians of the continuity and transmission of knowledge. The exhibition thus emerges as an act of recognition and shared memory, capable of transforming individual stories into collective heritage.

Several cultural events are planned during the exhibition's opening:
On Saturday, March 7th, at 5:00 PM, in collaboration with the L'Arvàngia Cultural Association, "Between Pots and Spites" will be held, a conversation with Romano Salvetti dedicated to the figures of the chisinere (traditional wooden witches) and the masche (witches).
On Saturday, March 14th, at 5:00 PM, in collaboration with the ALEC – Gianfranco Alessandria Association, the meeting "High Lands, Deep Lives" will take place, a conversation with Antonio Buccolo, Matteo Cerrina, author of the book "From Marginal Area to Original Land – The Alt(r)a Langa," and Celeste Oricco.
Finally, on Saturday, March 21st, at 5:00 PM, Professor Gianmarco Gastone will give a fascinating talk entitled "Work and History: The Langhe."