Chokolashow’s Charity Chocolate Extravaganza Finds Its Winner

The inaugural CHOKOLASHOW, the event showcasing the creative prowess of young artists tasked with sculpting blocks of chocolate, debuted on May 9th within the confines of the unique Riva tunnel carved under the Palace Rock. This year’s thematic inspiration revolved around the vintage racing cars competing in the Monaco Historic Grand Prix, challenging the interpretive skills of the participating sculptors.

It all started on May 2nd with the allocation of 8 blocks of chocolate, each weighing 12 kg, to 8 students from the School of Fine Arts of Monaco (Pavillon Bosio) and the Academy of Fine Arts of Sanremo. The students had drawn cards corresponding to vintage racing car models. So they were all set to go with their challenge of turning chocolate into great art.

Caroline Bergonzi, a professional Monegasque artist was also tasked with crafting out-of-competition chocolate-art. All this came to a head on May 9th with an Expo of their mouth-watering works within the Riva tunnel.

A Great Chocolatey Auction for Charity

Adding a philanthropic dimension, the chocolatey sculptures were sold in an auction orchestrated by Wannenes, raising a total of 5,000 euros which was donated to 8 associations selected by SAS the Prince of Monaco, as well as by Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, who also signed a chocolate bar and sold it immediately after. The eight charitable associations within the Principality of Monaco benefiting were: Les Enfants de Frankie, Action Innocence, Passion Sea, Fight Aids Monaco, MAP, AMAPEI, Association de Bienfaisance Eugenio Benedetti Gaglio, Société protectrice des animaux.

Royal Tastings

This inaugural Chokolashow offered attendees the opportunity to partake in chocolate workshops and tastings, curated by Claudio Rossi. And it became a Royal affair indeed when the Sovereign visited various of the workshops and sampled the different types of chocolate.

The Chokolashow Trophy

Artist Belinda Bussotti presented the Chokolashow Trophy crafted itself from chocolate. Valentina Trassy, a third-year student at the Pavillon Bosio in Monaco was the winning budding genius. She garnered the most preferences from all the partners and collaborators involved in the initiative. 

Additionally, paying tribute to Lia Riva with a chocolatey artwork created by Caroline Bergonzi, Monaco International Hub, ( MIH ) launched the theme of the next Chokolashow edition, which in 2025 will be dedicated to the world of yachting, of which the Principality of Monaco is a global spokesperson, notably through the Monaco Yacht Show. 

Reflecting on the initiative, Maria Bologna emphasized the transformative opportunity it presented to budding artists, providing a platform for creative expression through a novel medium. 

And as president of MIH and creator of the project, Maria stated: “I am very happy to have seen so many people visit us in the Riva tunnel throughout the day. The tastings offered by the different event partners, as well as the presence of the Sovereign, made this event even more magical. We hope to repeat with the same success and formula next year, dedicating it to the world of yachting…”.