Maria Francesca Merloni

Maria Francesca Merloni graduated in Political Sciences at LUISS - the Guido Carli International University of Social Sciences.

After a career working in publicity for large manufacturing companies, she decided to follow her poetic vocation in a multi-disciplinary manner, combining artistic expression and the union of poetry and music.

Her first collection of poems in 2004 – Opere – has been followed by numerous other publications and activities, including prestigious collaborations with Tahar Ben Jelloun, Alda Merini, Piero Guccione, Danilo Rea and Alessandro Bergonzoni. As founder and artistic director of the Poiesis Festival in Fabriano, she was awarded the UNESCO “Ombra della Sera” Prize in 2013 for her cultural, social and humanitarian work.

Her work with Poiesis largely contributed to the city of Fabriano being named a UNESCO Creative City in 2013. In June 2014, she organised the first Fabriano Forum 2014 UNESCO Creative Cities with the aim of establishing stable relations between the cities in the Creative Cities Network.

In 2016 she dedicated to the project called "common place, notes, reflections and music for the city". Because of her commitment to promoting creativity as a mean to social, cultural and economic development, in October 2017 she was awarded the title of Goodwill Ambassador for UNESCO for the Creative Cities.