IMMACCHINARIUM concluded 2025 with a poetic Land Art intervention titled La foglia sul Lambro (The Leaf over the Lambro River), held on 14 December in the Monza Oasis —a pocket of urban nature stewarded by Legambiente Monza. The initiative took the form of a participatory workshop led by artists Maurice Pefura and Nicolas Dahan, engaging the local community in the creation of a large, symbolic leaf on a small island in the Lambro River.
The Monza Oasis has a small islet formed over the past 200 years at the confluence of the Lambro River and its branch, the Lambretto, after they reunite north of the city of Monza. Created through natural sediment deposition, the island hosts spontaneously grown vegetation and provides habitat for migratory birds, herons, mallards, and kingfishers. Normally closed to the public, the site is opened on special occasions by Legambiente Monza for guided visits and educational activities.
During the workshop, participants worked alongside the artists to trace the contours, central rib, and veins of a large leaf using natural materials found on site—yellow leaves and small branches carried by the river. The resulting artwork was fully integrated into the landscape, ephemeral by nature, and conceived as a poetic gesture of care and attention toward the river ecosystem.
IMMACCHINARIUM represents an experimental, local-scale replication of the PALIMPSEST approach and mechanism. Conceived as a Landscape Service, the project addresses a specific environmental and social challenge: the fractured relationship between people, the city of Monza, and the Lambro River. Within this framework, PALIMPSEST facilitated the connection between Legambiente Monza and artist Maurice Pefura, who embraced the challenge of imagining an “impossible machine” for caring for nature in an area – the island – at risk of inaccessibility due to ongoing hydraulic works designed to give the river more space to flow.
Through poetic action and collective participation, La foglia sul Lambro offered a moment of reflection on coexistence, care, and the evolving relationship between urban communities and river landscapes.
written by Talita Medina in collaboration with Anna da Re
images credit: Fabio Longagnani
Published on: January 21, 2026
