Rita Orlando
Rita Orlando is Director General of the Matera Basilicata 2019 Foundation. An architect and cultural manager, she has extensive experience in the design and management of territorial development processes, urban regeneration, and cultural innovation, gained in both national and international contexts.
She has been part of the Matera 2019 team since 2014, playing key roles in the successful bid and in the delivery of the European Capital of Culture programme, with a focus on social innovation, artistic residencies, and cultural planning. Since 2016, she has been Head of the Open Design School, a participatory and transdisciplinary design laboratory and official partner of the New European Bauhaus initiative.
Throughout her career, she has coordinated numerous complex projects, including I-DEA – The Archive of Archives and the conversion of Cava del Sole into a venue for large-scale performing arts events. She currently oversees national and European projects of the Foundation, including Fantastico Medioevo and Matera Mediterranean Capital of Culture and Dialogue 2026.
In parallel, she works as a consultant and lecturer in the field of cultural management and coordinates territorial development programmes in the Euro-Mediterranean area.
