Calvino cantastorie: a centenary exhibition at Genoa's Palazzo Ducale

From October 15, 2023 to April 7, 2023, the Doge’s Palace will host the exhibition Calvino Cantafavole, on the occasion of the centenary of Italo Calvino’s birth.

The exhibition, curated by Eloisa Morra and Luca Scarlini, unfolds in reference to the fairy tale seen as a poetic universe. Faithfully following the author’s writings devoted to art and iconographic representation, it traverses the visions of his land as presented by his countrymen painters and artists, such as Carlo Levi, Francesco Menzio, and Enrico Paulucci, about whom he wrote and to whom he was connected by bonds of friendship. The fairy tale, in the long-term collaboration with Emanuele Luzzati, is also investigated in the Genoese master’s illustrations for Calvinian works, but also in the RAI productions in which Luzzati collaborated.

There are two main strands: the presence of artists he wrote about and theatrical representation, investigated in the productions signed with fellow countryman Luciano Berio, but also in the stage productions (for theater and television) of an artist particularly dear to Calvino, Giulio Paolini.

It begins with the creations of the San Remo-born Antonio Rubino, known in childhood and then republished in Einaudi Ragazzi, and then moves on to the long-standing collaboration with Emanuele Luzzati, investigated through the Genoese master’s illustrations for Calvino’s works but also in the RAI productions in which Luzzati collaborated with costume designer Santuzza Calì. From the magical world of the Tarot, which originated in Finale Ligure, we move on, faithfully following the author’s writings dedicated to iconographic representation, to visions of his land, as presented by his fellow countrymen painters and artists such as Francesco Menzio and Enrico Paulucci, to whom he was bound by a friendship. To the map of the many artists Calvino wrote about, all of whom were linked to the fantastic (from Enrico Baj to Lucio Del Pezzo, from Domenico Gnoli to Luigi Serafini), the exhibition flanks an itinerary on the fairy tale as declined in its relations with music, television and theater. The latter side is analyzed through the productions co-signed with Toti Scialoja and Donatella Ziliotto (later revisited in a contemporary key by composer John Dove and Sue Blane, set designer of the Rocky Horror Picture Show) and fellow countryman Luciano Berio, but also in the works for theater and television of the aforementioned Giulio Paolini. The scenic path, which makes the tree the central element, is conceived by Emanuele Conte and Paolo Bonfiglio, and realized by Fondazione Luzzati Teatro della Tosse.

Introduced by an ensemble of painted trees and objects of memory, it unfolds as an ideal journey from the woods of the heights down to the sea, passing through the stone villages of the hinterland, in a tribute to Liguria. Stage director is Andrea Morini. A rich calendar of in-depth initiatives is planned along with the exhibition, ranging from meetings and conferences to explore the multiple dimensions of the exhibition to lecture-shows with interventions by actors and scholars of the writer’s work. Parallel to the exhibition in the Loggia degli Abati, Casa Luzzati offers an in-depth look at the master’s work for Calvino with more than 100 original works. Visitors will be able to admire, among other things, the entire collection of materials from the Cetra Quartet, record covers of Calvino’s fairy tales, original illustrations, interviews, set designs for the theater, the nursery rhyme opera, and for Rai 1’s Barone rampante in Turin. The common denominator that emerges is the spirit of levity and the love of the two protagonists of twentieth-century culture for the land of Liguria, a land of knowledge and tastes, as well as of majestic and harsh landscapes. The exhibition is part of the “Luzzati for Calvino” project that Lele Luzzati Foundation conceived for this prestigious event. Thanks to this project-curated by Sergio Noberini and Lele Luzzati Foundation-important works by Luzzati are on display in the Scuderie del Quirinale and Loggia degli Abati exhibitions, which thus see the active participation of the Foundation dedicated to the Master. Casa Luzzati also designs and offers a series of workshops from Luzzati’s drawings inspired by his fairy tales.

For all information, you can visit the official website of Palazzo Ducale.

Calvino cantastorie: a centenary exhibition at Genoa's Palazzo Ducale

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