Press note
COUNTDOWN TO KOINÈ, THE STRATEGIC EUROPEAN EVENT FOR THE RELIGIOUS SECTOR
-From 11th to 14thMarch the 17th biennial exhibition of church furnishings, liturgical items and religious building components organized by Italian Exhibition Group takes place in Vicenza
-Inauguration based on solidarity with the populations and churches involved in the earthquakes of Central Italy
Vicenza, 11th March 2017 – Theproduction chain for the religious sector meets in Vicenza for the major European event in the sector.On Saturday 11th March the 17thedition of KOINÈ, the biennial exhibition of church furnishings, liturgical items and religious building components gets under way, ending on Tuesday14th March 2017in the Vicenza trade-fair quarter.
The Eventis organized by Italian Exhibition Group SpA (IEG) – a company that came into being with the integration between Rimini Fiera and Fiera di Vicenza – in collaboration with the Diocese of Vicenzaand theNational Offices for Cultural Heritage and forpastoral action for tourism of the Italian Episcopal Conference, with the support of thePontifical Council for Culture, the SantaGiustina Institute of Pastoral Liturgy, Padua andthe Santa Maria di Monteberico Higher Institute of Religious Studies in Vicenza.
KOINÈ, set up in 1989, has as its main feature its unusual format which combines displays of products and spaces for reflection, debate and professional training with the latter section organized by KOINÈ RICERCA. Taking part in the 17th edition will be over300exhibitors,of whom32%coming from abroad; they will occupy over22 thousand square metres of exhibition surfacein Halls 7 and 1 in the Vicenza trade-fair site.
There are two product-related sectors: Church & Liturgypresenting products and services dedicated to the clergy (furnishings, liturgical items and garments, glass panes and statuary, as well as high-technology products to create acoustic, heating and lighting installations in religious buildings) andFaith & Devotion, comprising products dedicated to the distribution world (statues, holy pictures, rosary beads, small paintings, icons and gadgets).
There will be a specialist audience of liturgists, diocesan officials responsible for cultural heritage, architects, artists and artisans taking part in the event. Over the years, KOINÈ has seen an increase in the spaces used and in the interest shown by visitors. At the last edition in 2015 over 13 thousand admissions were recorded, with 15% coming from 65 overseas countries.
There are various KOINÈ RICERCA conferences, seminars andworkshops on themes of the liturgy and the architecture of religious buildings. The focus of this edition is the maintenance and improvement of churches and of parish complexes, with particular attention given to the earthquake that has hit the regions of Central Italy.
KOINÈwill openwith an expression ofsolidarity with the populations and the churches whosuffered from the earthquakes. On 11th March, after the inauguration of the event at 11.00 a.m. in the presence of the Bishop of Vicenza, Monsignor Beniamino PizziolandIEG Executive Vice President, Matteo Marzotto, there will be a moment with representatives of the earthquake-stricken dioceses, during which exhibitors will offergifts for the reconstruction of the churches: liturgical vestments, furnishings for places of worship, sacred images and building installations.
Immediately following the earthquake,exhibitors at the event, coordinated by Koinè, manifested their intention to support the local churches which were under stress both because of the loss of human life and the thousands of homeless people, and also because of the huge damage to the ecclesiastical heritage. Soa set of initiativeswas started up to show solidarity, some of which havealready been expressed directly to the dioceses involved.
Also on show during KOINÈ will be the two exhibitionsHoly vases and items for liturgical use and after the success of the previous edition,“Santinid’autore” (Artistic holy cards).Contemporary interpretations for devotional images.
Opening times: 11th-14thMarch, 9.30 a.m. – 6.00 p.m.
ITALIAN EXHIBITION GROUP SPA: FOCUS ON
Italian Exhibition Group SpA, the Company generated by a merger between Rimini Fiera and Fiera di Vicenza, is led by President Lorenzo Cagnoni, together with Executive Vice President Matteo Marzotto and Managing Director CorradoFacco. IEG, which closed 2016 with a preliminary pro-forma turnover of Euro 123 million, an EBITDA of Euro 22.9 million and a consolidate net result of about Euro 6.6 million,is Italy's second player in terms of overall volume with over 60 products - on an annual and two-yearly basis - in its portfolio (relating to Food & Beverage, Green, Technology, Entertainment, Tourism, Transport, Wellness, Jewellery and Fashion, Lifestyle & Innovation) and 216 events and congresses. The Company's priority asset is to favour internationalization in segments representing Beautiful and Well Done around the world, starting from its already solid presences in the United Arab Emirates, where it has an on-going joint venture, and in the USA, China, India and South America. Furthermore, IEG is also the Italian leader in the convention and congress segment. In 2016, IEG events at its exhibition and congress sites in Rimini and Vicenza, totalled 14,593 exhibitors and almost 2.5 million visitors.
ITALIAN EXHIBITION GROUP SPA – VICENZACORPORATE PRESS OFFICE
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