Books

Electa presents Oilà, the new series, edited by Chiara Alessi, that tells the stories of twentieth-century female figures who distinguished themselves in the Italian and international creative setting (from design to fashion, architecture to music, illustrations to graphics, photography to literature) by practising disciplines and professions that had always been considered part of the male universe. The graphics are developed by Studio Sonnoli.

The first three titles, which will be simultaneously released on March 8, are dedicated to Elsa Schiaparelli, Lisetta Carmi and Vanessa Bell: three protagonists, three characters, three stories, three individuals stories that transformed the way of interpreting art, design, photography and fashion and that contributed to the social and artistic emancipation of women. The stories take place in the midst of wars, displacements and social revolutions, in a world, or profession, not considered suitable for women.

The books

The books, intended to be read aloud from beginning to end in forty-five minutes – a short journey –  detail the stories of people’s biographies, jobs, private situations and public achievements. Small in format, with a defined layout and special cover for each individual title, the texts were entrusted to scholars, experts, writers and professionals. Each series begins with a story or anecdote on the life and profession of these women, digging into their childhood, family or sentimental relationships, based on the correspondence and diaries preserved in the archives, or on unpublished and unknown projects, to free women from preconceptions only aimed as seeing them as daughters, wives or sisters (such as Vanessa for Virginia Woolf).

And so, the series, or collection, of monographic readings based on the characters’ personal stories was created in the form of notebooks.

The title

The playful title of the series, Oilà, was taken from the famous verses of the socialist song La Lega [The League], which then became part of common italian women workers’ life. “Although we’re women, we’re not afraid, we have beautiful and nice mouths to defend ourselves. A oilì oilì oilà and our league will grow.”

Oilà is also a way to greet someone unexpected, the sound of someone caught by surprise. This series represents the voice and work of women.

Rossella Locatelli

The future, whatever it may hold. Elsa Schiaparelli

Elsa Schiaparelli’s circumstances seem like an ongoing struggle in the name of small freedoms. Alongside other women sharing this feeling. Fashion comes from instinct, revenge, necessity. Hers is a quick and absolutely spontaneous revolution. Although ironical or cruel at times, Schiap’s vision of fashion is closely linked to women’s obsessions and manias, or to a profound desire of independence. And… She is never alone in her fury.

Anna Toscano

With love and friendship. Lisetta Carmi

The hands, eyes and heart. Initially, Lisetta Carmi’s fingers run up and down the black and white keys of a piano, her eyes follow the keyboard from left to right, and her heart beats to the rhythm of a well-tempered harpsichord. Then, Lisetta Carmi’s fingers record and write the life of others through pictures. Pictures of people, streets, harbours, theatres, hospitals and cemeteries. Pictures of death and sex: of humanity Eyes and hearts to help her understand both others and herself. With love and friendship.

Luca Scarlini

Life is terrible and fun. Vanessa Bell

Vanessa Bell is always available for others: her husband, Clive Bell, despite his betrayals and critical mindset towards the artist’s life; Duncan Grant, the love of her life and colleague, who is however attracted by men; Omega Worshop, which according to its founder and financier, Roger Fry, wants to suppress the cult personality of her representatives; her sister, Virginia Woolf, through whom her work as an artist, graphic designer, decorator and illustrator is always interpreted. Vanessa Bell is there for others, those close to her have never jeopardised her art, on the contrary, they’ve fed it.

Rizzoli Education reinforces its commitment to gender equality and inclusiveness with the launch of the Glow UP empowerment campaign for its sales network.

The initiative has two key goals. The first is to continue interpreting and concretely implementing the Manifesto for gender equality and plurality launched in 2021, promoting the values of multiculturalism and the coexistence of different generations; principles the publishing house has always supported, inspiring not only its editorial and educational offering but its work environment.

The second main goal is boosting self-confidence among the people forming the Rizzoli Education team: highly qualified professionals with certified know-how whose work provides teachers with top-level assistance every day.

With Glow Up, the Mondadori Group publishing house wants to “add glow” to the value of the people in its sales network and establish the conditions for casting light on these people’s “unique”, specific talent, boosting their sense of belonging and fidelity.

In addition, the company wishes to develop an increasingly inclusive workplace where everyone can express their own qualities in the best possible way, creating a system capable of attracting the new generations, who are increasingly sensitive to these issues.

Rizzoli Education’s empowerment campaign will begin with a series of events focusing on women, promoting the affirmation of an increasingly feminine and inclusive leadership style in its sales network. The pillars of this process, which will be the focus of a series of webinars, meetings and events, are three keywords:  education, to generate awareness of one’s own value, flexibility, to support women making important life choices, and confidence for development of personal skills.

The first event – intended for women in the publishing house’s sales network – featured Francesca Rigolio, Chief Diversity Officer and Head of Human Resources in Trade Education Books for the Mondadori Group, with Alessandra Andriani, partner and general manager of the consulting firm MCA, and Annalisa Aceti, Rizzoli Education Sales Manager. The themes discussed at this inspirational meeting included career, power, language and stereotypes that can represent obstacles for gender equality.

Rizzoli Education‘s Glow Up campaign will continue throughout the year 2023 with monthly initiatives for the entire sales network to boost self-confidence and the ability of members of the publisher’s sales staff to respond to the new challenges of the market.

Salman Rushdie, one of the most important advocates of contemporary international culture, returns to bookstores with a new novel published by Mondadori: Victory City. The story speaks of the creation and development of Bisnaga (literally “Victory City” in 14th century India) by the will of the Goddess Pampa Kampana, who revealed herself to a young orphan bearing her name; but, above all, the story emphasises the most important goal: that of ensuring equal power to women in a patriarchal world.

Synopsis

In 14th century India, following a bloody battle between two long-forgotten kingdoms, a nine-year-old girl makes a divine encounter bound to change the course of history.

The very young Pampa Kampana, overwhelmed with pain since her mother’s death, becomes a medium for her homonymous Goddess, who not only begins speaking through her, but who also grants her huge powers, thus revealing her role will be determinant for the birth of a great city called Bisnaga (literally “Victory City”).

Over the following 250 years, Pampa Kampana’s life is deeply intertwined with that of Bisnaga: from its creation, which was made possible thanks to a bag of magical seeds, to its tragic destruction, which was caused by the arrogance of the powerful. The story, whispered through the words our heroine, gradually gives life to Bisnaga and its citizens in the attempt to fulfil the task entrusted to her by the Goddess: ensuring equal power to women in a patriarchal world. However, all stories have a way of becoming independent from their creator, and Bisnaga is no exception. Over the years, following a succession of rulers, battles won and others lost, the fabric of Bisnaga continues to assume an increasingly more complex pattern, at the centre of which our heroine endures. Brilliantly structured like the translation of an ancient epic, Victory City is a saga of love, adventure, myth and a confirmation of the power of storytelling.

The author

Salman Rushdie, born in Mumbai, in 1945, moved to London at the age of fourteen and studied at King’s College, in Cambridge. Not only has he written novels such as Shame, Midnight’s Children, The Moor’s Last Sigh, Shalimar The Clown, The Enchantress of Florence, Quichotte, but also news stories and many essays. Following the 1988 publication of his novel, The Satanic Verses, he became subject of various serious threats and was forced to lead a semi-clandestine life under police protection. On August 12th 2022, he was severely stabbed at a literary event near New York. He is unanimously considered one of the most important advocates of contemporary international culture.

D Scuola, one of the leading Italian scholastic publishers with the Deascuola editorial line, and the Bracco Foundation present the first edition of “Le 100 esperte STEM vanno a scuola.”

The new training programme was studied to introduce the perspectives and opportunities of the technical and scientific disciplines to students and teachers with a specific outlook on gender equality and guidance, in line with the most recent ministerial guidelines on developing, as a national educational priority, the STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) in schools.

As also demonstrated by the recent data provided by She Figures and Almalaurea, obstacles and stereotypes still currently exist and influence students’ educational path, especially for girls. This at a time during which businesses and institutions are increasingly searching for technical-scientific figures, as the same are necessary for better being able to address future transitions and challenges.

“The Bracco Foundation has always regarded women’s empowerment and gender equality as priorities,” states Diana Bracco, President of this important reality, which was founded in 2010 as a result of the values acquired and matured by the Bracco Family and Group in their over 95 years of history. “Among the many initiatives we support, 100donne contro gli stereotipi has thus become particularly relevant. The project is very complex and also aims at involving schools by involving female role models.
With D Scuola, we now promote a webinar cycle to put scientists and experts in contact with teachers and students nationwide. I’m certain that the professional and private stories of these amazing women of science will serve as a source of inspiration for many girls.”

“Le 100 esperte STEM vanno a scuola, developed together with the Bracco Foundation, aims to emphasise both the importance of science in education and the opportunities offered within the STEM context, in particular for the younger generations of women.

We believe this initiative can provide concrete guidance tips to teachers and students, thanks to the direct stories, experiences and testimonials of prominent experts, and become a precious source of inspiration used to better prepare even the youngest to face tomorrow’s challenges. We are very proud of this project, which will become part of the “Educating for the Future” programme, a broader path D Scuola is undertaking with the aim of developing topics such as inclusion, gender equality, sustainability and civic and digital education,” stated Gian Luca Pulvirenti, President of D Scuola.

The initiative, which is due to start on January 26, includes four free afternoon meetings for teachers, one for each of the letters composing the acronym STEM, and two morning meetings dedicated to students.

Each appointment will be held by the female scientists selected from the “100donne contro gli stereotipi ” portal. The project was founded as a result of the partnership with the Observatory of Pavia and Giulia Giornaliste and developed with the Bracco Foundation to give space and visibility to female experts specialised in different fields, thus highlighting the role of professionals adapted to become points of reference for the current generations and media.

During the meetings, the experts will both share their educational background, current projects, difficulties, decisions, mistakes, successes and professional advantages and provide useful tools and tips that can be used in the classroom to guide the decisions of students.

MEETING CALENDAR

S OF SCIENCE

The first of the four webinars of “Le 100 esperte STEM vanno a scuola” for teachers will be held on January 26, from 17:00 to 18:30, a few days following International Education Day. The session aims to provide insight on topics more closely linked to medical sciences, such as medical statistics and neurolinguistics. Among the participants, Sara Gandini, Head of the “Molecular and Pharmaco-Epidemiology” ward of IEO’s Experimental Oncology Department; Valentina Bambini, Full Professor of Linguistics at the IUSS of Pavia; Luisa Torsi, Full Professor of Chemistry at the University of Bari and at the Albo Academy University of Finland.

T OF TECHNOLOGY

The second meeting will be held on February 7, from 17:00 to 18:30, before International Day of Women and Girls in Science (February 11). The same will be dedicated to topics such as robotics for neuroscience and international cooperation in the aerospace context. Among the participants, Monica Gori, Head of a research group at the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) and Simonetta Di Pippo, Professor of Space Economics and Director of the Space Economy Evolution Lab (SEE Lab) at the Bocconi University School of Management of Milan.

E OF ENGINEERING

The third appointment is scheduled on March 13, from 17:00 to 18:30, and will focus on the E of Engineering, by covering topics such as management and aerospace engineering. Among the participants, Bianca Maria Colosimo, Full Professor of Processing Technologies and Systems at the Polytechnic Institute of Milan, and Elisabetta Lamboglia, Aerospace Engineer at the European Space Agency (ESA).  

M OF MATHEMATICS

The last meeting with teachers – M of Mathematics – will be held on Thursday, April 20, from 17:00 to 18:30 – Maria Grazia Speranza, Full Professor of Operations Research at the University of Brescia, will discuss with young mathematicians of different fields, covering the various steps involved from research to corporate application.

The recordings of the webinars will be available at the end of each meeting on both D Scuola and the Bracco Foundation’s websites.

The first meeting with the primary and lower and upper secondary school students is scheduled on February 28, from 11:00 for 12:00, and will focus on Science and Technology. Among the participants, Paola Santini, Researcher at the INAF Astronomical Observatory of Rome, and Giulia Grancini, Associate Professor of Physical Chemistry and at the Department of Chemistry of the University of Pavia.
The second appointment– Engineering and Mathematics – will be held on April 28, from 11:00 to 12:00 and is an opportunity to meet and interact with Lucia Cattani, Researcher and Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Pavia, and Isabella Nova, Full Professor of Industrial Chemistry and Technology at the Polytechnic University of Milan.
Both meetings will be moderated by the climatological physicist Serena Giacomin.

Click here for the complete programme of “ Le 100 esperte STEM vanno a scuola:”https://l.deascuola.it/100esperte/index.html

^[1] Deascuola is an editorial brand of D Scuola.

______________________________

For information: 

Media Relations Gruppo Mondadori
pressoffice@mondadori.it

Ufficio Stampa Fondazione Bracco
Carolina Elefante
carolina.elefante@bracco.com
333.4263484, 02.21772279
www.100esperte.it

Starting this month, Stefano Peccatori takes over as President & CEO of the U.S. publisher Rizzoli International Publications, a market leader in the illustrated books segment, and of Rizzoli Bookstores, which heads one of New York’s most prestigious bookstores.

Peccatori, who has served in the Mondadori Group for 30 years now, in his new position – together with his role as General Manager of Piemme, Sperling & Kupfer and Mondadori Electa reporting to Mondadori Libri CEO Enrico Selva Coddè – will be in charge of the publishing, commercial, financial and administrative units of the two Mondadori Group companies operating in the United States under the Rizzoli, Rizzoli New York, Rizzoli Electa, and Universe brands, and through the Rizzoli Bookstore bookshop.

Concurrently, Marco Ausenda, who has led Rizzoli International Publications and Rizzoli Bookstores since 2002, becomes Chairman of the Board of Directors.

At 31 December 2021, consolidated revenue of the two companies was over $ 55 million, a remarkable performance indeed against the challenging backdrop of the U.S. market.

Rizzoli New York opened its eponymous flagship bookstore in 1964 on Fifth Avenue and began publishing in 1974, becoming an award-winning world leader in fashion, interior design, cuisine, art, architecture and photography. The Rizzoli Universe Publishing brand was launched in 1990, enabling Rizzoli’s entry into the pop culture world of humour, beauty, sports, performing arts and LGBTQ issues with highly successful programming. In 2016, Rizzoli International Publications was acquired by the Mondadori Group. 2018 saw the birth of the new Rizzoli Electa brand, with further boosted the publishing house’s production and publication of art catalogues in English and for the organization of international exhibitions.

Spare, the autobiography of Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, published by Penguin Random House and for Mondadori, in Italy, is being released worldwide today, January 10, 2023.

 From the very first pages, Spare takes readers back to one of the most poignant images of the twentieth century: two little boys, two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin under the entire world’s pained and horrified eyes. As the funeral of Diana was being celebrated, billions of people wondered what Prince William and Prince Harry were thinking or feeling, but also how their lives would move forward from there.

Now, at last, Harry tells his story.

“The Heir and Backup: such definition was neither a judgement nor ambiguous. I was the shadow, the second in line, the plan B… I was summoned as a backup, a distraction, a diversion and, whenever necessary, a spare part. … All of this had been made clear to me since I can remember and reaffirmed periodically ever since.”

Before losing his mother, the then 12-year old Prince Harry was regarded as the cheerful and carefree Backup of the more serious Heir to the throne. However, that time of mourning changed everything. Harry began having issues at school and found himself struggling against his own anger and solitude. Moreover, since he blamed the press for his mother’s death, he had a hard time accepting life under the spotlight.

At twenty, he joined the British Army. Discipline gave him stability, and two missions turned him into a hero at home. However, he soon found himself more lost than ever, suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and crippling panic attacks. But most of all, he was unable to find true love.

Then, he met Meghan. The world was captivated by that novel-like story and rejoiced in their fairy tale wedding. Yet, Harry and Meghan were pursued by the press since the very beginning, struck with numerous insults, racist comments and lies. Seeing his wife suffer, and fearing for their safety and sanity, Harry found himself forced to flee the country in an attempt to prevent history from tragically repeating itself. Few have dared to leave the royal family over the centuries. His mother had been the last to do so…

For the first time, Prince Harry tells his story, an account of his journey reported with unquestionable truth. Spare is an exceptional book full of particulars, revelations and intimate details emphasised by the awareness – conquered at a great price – that love always prevails over pain.

Prince Harry intends to support a certain number of British charities with the profits of Spare. The Duke of Sussex has donated 1,500,000 dollars to Sentebale, an organisation he set up with Prince Seeiso in memory of their mothers and which supports the vulnerable children and youngsters suffering from HIV/AIDS in Lesotho and Botswana. The prince will also donate 300,000 pounds to WellChild, a no-profit organisation he has supported for fifteen years as a royal and which provides home care to children and youngsters with complex health needs whenever possible.

The English versions of Spare will be published in the UK, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa by Random House, a division of Penguin Random House UK, and by Random House Canada in Canada. The book will also be translated and published in 15 other languages: Spanish, Plaza & Janés/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial; German, Penguin Verlag/Penguin Random House Verlagsgruppe GmbH; Brazilian Portuguese, Objetiva/Grupo Companhia das Letras; European Portuguese, Objectiva/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial; simplified Chinese, Penguin Random House China; Danish, Politikens Forlag; Dutch, Hollands Diep, a division of Overamstel; Finnish, Otava Publishing Company Ltd.; French, Éditions Fayard; Greek, Pedio Books; Hungarian, Corvina Books; Italian, Mondadori; Polish, Wydawnictwo Marginesy; Romanian, Nemira Publishing House; Swedish, Albert Bonniers Förlag.

 # # #

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, is a husband, father, human rights activist, military veteran, mental health advocate and environmentalist. He lives in Santa Barbara, California, with his family and three dogs.

Prince Harry

Spare

Mondadori.

January 10, 2023

Hardcover, 540 pages, € 25,00

You can find it here.

Cover credits

Cover design: Christopher Brand

Cover photo: Ramona Rosales

Spare, the memoir of Prince Harry, the Duke of Sussex, is to be published simultaneously around the world on 10 January 2023. The book, whose cover photo has already been revealed, will be published in Italy by Mondadori, in paper and digital formats. It will be released in a total of 16 languages around the world.

From the opening pages, Spare takes the reader back to one of the most poignant images of the twentieth century: two princes, walking behind their mother’s coffin as the world watched in sorrow and horror. As the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales, took place, billions of people wondered what the princes must be thinking and feeling, and how their lives would move forward from there.

Now at last Harry tells his story.

With its raw, unflinching honesty, Spare is a landmark publication. Full of insights and revelations, the book is the result of profound self-examination and the awareness – achieved at great personal cost – that love always triumphs over grief.

Prince Harry wishes to support a number of British charities with donations from the proceeds of Spare. The Duke of Sussex has already donated 1,500,000 dollars to Sentebale, an organisation he set up with Prince Seeiso in memory of their mothers, which supports vulnerable children and young people in Lesotho and Botswana affected by HIV/Aids. The prince will also donate 300,000 pounds to WellChild, a no-profit organisation of which he has been patron for fifteen years, which makes it possible for children and young people with complex health needs to be cared for at home, wherever possible.

Readers can find information about the book on the Mondadori website: https://www.mondadori.it/libri/spare-il-minore-prince-harry/
The English-language editions of Spare will be published in North America by Random House U.S. and Random House Canada; in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia, New Zealand, India and South Africa by Transworld, a division of Penguin Random House UK; in Canada by Random House Canada. The book will also be translated and published in 14 other languages: SPANISH Plaza & Janés/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, GERMAN Penguin Verlag/Penguin Random House Verlagsgruppe GmbH, BRAZILIAN PORTUGUESE Objetiva/Grupo Companhia das Letras, EUROPEAN PORTUGUESE Objectiva/Penguin Random House Grupo Editorial, SIMPLIFIED CHINESE Penguin Random House China, DANISH Politikens Forlag, DUTCH Hollands Diep, a division of Overamstel, FINNISH Otava Publishing Company Ltd., FRENCH Éditions Fayard, GREEK Pedio Books, HUNGARIAN Corvina Books, POLISH Wydawnictwo Marginesy, ROMANIAN Nemira Publishing House, SWEDISH Albert Bonniers Förlag.

Prince Harry, Duke of Sussex, is a husband, father, human rights activist, military veteran, a mental health campaigner and an environmentalist. He lives in Santa Barbara, California, with his family and three dogs.

Prince Harry
Spare
Mondadori
10 January 2023
Hardcover, euro 25,00

A partnership with the historical archives of Italy’s most prominent companies has produced “Posters by major Italian companies”, a special publishing initiative by the Mondadori Group for collectors of timeless treasures of the art of advertising.

The initiative involves a number of Italy’s biggest and best-known historic brands – Barilla, Manetti & Roberts, Martini, Pavesi, Pirelli, Olivetti, Ducati, Fabbri 1905, Voiello – bringing back ten unique vintage advertising posters of great artistic and cultural value that made their mark on the advertising scene between the Thirties and the Nineties.

Starting this week, selected points of sale will offer fans of vintage collectors’ items a limited edition of the first five items in the series:

• “Notte di Stelline” (“Starry Nights”), a poster from the historic wall calendar designed by Adolfo Busi in 1931 for Barilla, the company founded by Pietro Barilla 145 years ago. In the illustration, chubby, lively children play with pasta of different shapes, demonstrating that pasta is good for you and gives you lots of energy, in an indirect response to the Manifesto of Futurist Cooking and its call to abolish pasta.
• “Venere moderna” (“Modern Venus”), an iconic advertising poster published by Manetti & Roberts. Designed in the Thirties by an artist from Puglia, Gino Boccasile, it is inspired by the maternal elegance of the archetypal figure of woman at the time, portraying a child playfully sprinkling the “Modern Venus” with talcum powder.
• “Jockey”, a work Martini commissioned of French painter Jean Droit in 1948. With a great focus on detail and bold expressive power, Jockey metaphorically recalls a horse race in which jockeys ride vermouth bottles: the Martini bottle is in the lead, while the other two lag behind in the background.
• “Bambino con i Pavesini” (“Baby with Pavesini biscuits”), designed by Gian Carlo Rossetti in 1961, brings back the timeless image of the Pavesini baby, a representation that was repeatedly brought back and updated over the years to suggest that Pavesini biscuits are nutritious and appropriate for even the smallest children.
• “Pirelli BELTED tyre”, a 1961 advertising poster designed for Pirelli by Riccardo Manzi. The artist designed book covers and advertisements in his humorous style, bringing a note of colour and merriment to the graphics in this poster popularising an essential product: reinforced tyres guaranteeing perfect safety at the wheel, paradoxically and ironically suggesting they are safe even if the driver can’t see properly.

The second limited edition collection will be available at selected points of sale starting on 17 November:

• “Vera pasta all’uovo” (“Real egg pasta”), an illustration depicting the emblematic Cubist chicken in support of the quality of Barilla pasta, produced in 1954 by Erberto Carboni, the great graphic artist and coordinator of the company’s image. The poster is a true homage to the quality of raw materials.
• “Tetractys”, an advertising poster created in 1956 by Giovanni Pintori, the designer whose original graphic works made Olivetti products known and recognised the world over. The tree-like portrayal of Tetractys underlines the proliferative potential of the Olivetti computer.
• Ducati 916, a true work of art in motion created in 1993 by designer Massimo Tamburini, incarnates the essential values of Ducati: Style, Sophistication and Performance. Probably the most iconic of all the motorcycle manufacturer’s models, the Ducati 916 offers an all-new synthesis of technology and design; its tempered headlights, in the middle of the poster, mesmerised the world in the Nineties.
• “Brezza che ristora” (“Refreshing breeze”), an advertising poster from the Forties for Amarena Fabbri (Fabbri 1905): an invitation to face the summer heat with Fabbri, renowned for its historic ties with the world of advertising – with Carosello and Fabbri telling the story of “a painter a week – Renato Gottuso” – and the world of art, with the Fabbri Award for Art.
• The print by Voiello – main sponsor of “Procida Italian Cultural Capital 2022” – dates back to the second decade of the twentieth century. The unknown artist offers an allegorical representation of Mediterranean identity and the city of Naples – underlining the company’s ties with the area – conveying a message about the Italian identity and quality of the ingredients and the production process.

The posters – available at the news-stand in specially designed display units emphasising their unique qualities – are sold with an exclusive booklet providing information in which collectors can find out all about the history of the product, the artists, the companies and much more.

The ten advertising posters are available in the best news-stands and supermarkets at a price of € 8.90 each.

The “Pisanello. The World’s Tumult” exhibition opens in Mantua.  An exhibition created to mark the 50th anniversary of the exhibition curated by Giovanni Paccagnini, where one of the most important acquisitions in the field of art history in the twentieth century was presented: the discovery in the rooms of the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua of the Arthurian cycle painted using mixed techniques around 1430-1433 by Antonio Pisano, known as Pisanello.

The exhibition, produced and promoted by the Mantua Palazzo Ducale, is part of a wide-ranging, long-term programme to promote the work and the Sala dedicated to the artist, together with the adjacent Sala dei Papi. In fact, the layout of the entire room (9.50 × 17.50 m [31.16 × 57.41 ft]; 3 walls out of 4 have also revealed the frescoed sinopie; 100 square metres between the frescoes and sinopie) was permanently remodelled to make better use of an exceptional discovery for Italian artistic heritage.

Thanks to a new lighting system, the project completely restores clarity to the paintings, which were pulled out and relocated over fifty years ago. Instead of the natural diffused lighting from before, warm lighting is now aimed at Pisanello’s wall paintings, bringing out the reflections of the golden inserts and the painting’s magnificent details. In addition, a raised platform allows the visitor to appreciate the paintings at the correct distance calculated by the artist as, until now, the guided tour path was 110 cm [43,30 inch] lower due to subsequent changes to the room.

So, there is now a “new” tour path, enhanced by additional equipment, which allows the public to rediscover the richly-detailed work from the “correct” point of view, as described by Pisanello, as well as its curving lines and the artist’s extraordinary meticulous touch.

The permanent work in the Sala del Pisanello is supported by the work of the Politecnico di Milano, the regional campus of Mantua, under the supervision of Eduardo Souto de Moura; the temporary part of the exhibition is designed by Archiplan Studio which has also been in charge of providing all the artworks.

“Pisanello. The World’s Tumult”, curated by Stefano L’Occaso, is an exhibition that involves two large adjacent, connecting rooms on the main floor, the Sala del Pisanello and the adjacent Sala dei Papi, in addition to the rooms on the ground floor, set up to exhibit an overview of Late Gothic culture in Mantua, displaying an excellent selection of paintings, sculptures and miniatures.

The Sala del Pisanello is dedicated to the cycle of paintings linked to the preparatory drawings, the wall paintings and the sinopie exhibited. The Sala dei Papi is permanently set up with historical photos, the material traces of a special removal operation, some currently unexposed sinopie and everything that can describe the technique in Pisanello’s paintings, their discovery, the aforementioned exhibition in 1972 and the restoration work from the 1960s to today.

An interactive multimedia system completes the exhibition. It’s possible to view all the details of the Arthurian cycle at a magnification never seen before via a touchscreen monitor, and navigate an accurate three-dimensional reconstruction of the Sala del Pisanello created by the 3D designer Matteo Morelli when it was still called the Sala dei Principi, or at a point in time prior to the work that led to the discovery of the cycle.

Finally, in the rooms of the Appartamento di Santa Croce on the ground floor, suitably shielded from outside light, there are works from about the year 1400 to the middle of the 15th century that show and give an overview of the panorama of contemporary artistic culture in Mantua. These include the Dalle Masegne statues that now decorate the cathedral; the works of Stefano da Verona, another leading figure in the age of Pisanello; the illuminated manuscripts that show the development of the Gonzaga family’s tastes, a development that leads to the example of the missal of Barbara di Brandenburgo, started by Belbello da Pavia and finished by Girolamo da Cremona, in a richly Renaissance style.

Works by Pisanello that are not directly linked to the Arthurian cycle also find a home in this room.

The exhibition includes about 30 works, including international loans such as Pisanello’s masterpieces like the Virgin and Child with Saint Anthony and Saint George from the National Gallery of London, in Italy for the first time since its “departure” in 1862, and the paintings in the Louvre Museum in Paris. There’s also the Adoration of the Magi by Stefano da Verona from the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan and, last but not least, the precious Madonna of the Quail, one of Pisanello’s juvenilia, considered to be one of the symbolic works of the Castelvecchio Museum in Verona, also available by virtue of an existing promotion agreement between the two Museums based on the artistic relations between Verona and Mantua.

Among the contributors supporting both the exhibition being undertaken and continued, we must highlight the Banca Agricola Mantovana Foundation. For many years it has offered its support to the initiatives promoted by the Palazzo Ducale, contributing to the promotion of the national artistic heritage and the dissemination of art and culture in the Mantuan community.

The exhibition comes with a brochure published by Electa and will be open until 8 January 2023.

From 6 October 2022 to 22 January 2023 the Palazzo Ducale in Genoa presents the grand exhibition “Rubens in Genoa” dedicated to Pietro Paolo Rubens (1577–1640) and his relationship with the city. The exhibition was produced by the City of Genoa with the Palazzo Ducale Cultural Foundation and our publishing house, Electa, and thanks to the support and participation of the sole sponsor, Rimorchiatori Riuniti S.p.A.

The curator is Nils Büttner, professor at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart as well as Chairman of the Centrum Rubenianum in Antwerp, and Anna Orlando, a Genoese independent scholar and co-curator of the exhibition “The Age of Rubens” held at the Palazzo Ducale in 2004.

Sixteen sections of the exhibition are set up in the rooms of the Sale dell’Appartamento of the Palazzo Ducale on the main floor of the building. Paintings, drawings, tapestries, furnishings, precious accessories and antique books are also exhibited together. There are over a hundred works, demonstrating the greatness of an artistic capital visited by one of the greatest artists of all time. It’s a selection that affirms the name of Superba that was given to Genoa, where Rubens stayed several times between 1600 and 1607. It’s also a selection that allows us to retrace and, in many cases, to reconstruct the relationship with the Genoese patrician, one which continued even after the master’s return to Antwerp.

Thirty works attributed to the Rubensian oeuvre: eighteen autograph works, together with paintings that definitely left the painter’s workshop under his supervision and with direct work by him, in addition to two priceless accounts of lost works known through subsequent works. It’s a significant collection, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in Genoa — a city that still houses works by Rubens in churches, museums and private collections to this day — since the eighteenth century. In addition, an extraordinary selection of 80 works rounds out the story of the cultural and artistic context of the Ligurian city in its heyday. During his trip to Italy (1600–1608), Rubens definitely saw and studied Tintoretto and Luca Cambiaso. During his stay, and specifically in Genoa, he met Sofonisba Anguissola, Giovanni Battista Paggi and Bernardo Castello; and collaborated with Jan Wildens and Frans Snyders. All these artists are exhibited.

Fifteen never before exhibited Rubensian works appear in Genoa and ten for the first time in Italy. Two examples of the latter. The first, a self-portrait from 1604–1605, from a private collection. Recently rediscovered, it is an oil study in preparation for a self-portrait that Rubens included in a now lost Mantuan altarpiece. The second, Saint Sebastian Healed by Angels, circa 1615, from a private collection, is now traced to the commission by the famous condottiero, Ambrogio Spinola, thanks to a recent and important documentary discovery. Never exhibited fully, The Resurrected Christ Appearing to His Mother (with a figure from an underlying composition), circa 1612–1616. This painting, from a private collection, depicts the risen Christ standing in front of two kneeling women. Both female figures represent the Mother of Jesus. A recent X-ray revealed the presence of a second female image beneath the painting’s surface, which is compositionally similar, but iconographically different. Both figures are now visible. At this event the studies and comparisons with the well-known Rubensian iconography will be exhibited. Among the new additions are two splendid portraits: Violante Maria Spinola Serra, circa 1607, from Buscot Park (Oxfordshire-The Faringdon Trust) and Geronima Spinola with her granddaughter Maria Giovanna Serra, circa 1605–1606, from Stuttgart, Staatsgalerie. These absolute masterpieces of European Baroque portraiture are both exhibited for the first time with their identities rediscovered.

Museums in Italy and abroad, as well as private collectors, have granted special loans in recognition of a project based on long years of studies and scientific research by the curators, and motivated by the support of a prestigious international honorary scientific committee, composed of the top experts in the field. It’s not only thanks to the research to prepare the exhibition, but also due to the rediscovery of a painting by Rubens that had been lost for two centuries, and which was definitely present in Genoa in the seventeenth century. At this event it is submitted to the scrutiny of international scholars who have never seen it before to prove its attribution. The work itself is a study for the altarpiece, The Miracles of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, still in the Chiesa del Gesù church in Genoa.

These and many other new additions are presented to the public in an exhibition on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the book, Palazzi di Genova, by Pietro Paolo Rubens, printed in Antwerp in 1622. It is an anniversary celebrated in the first room, where two original copies are exhibited, including a rare copy of the first edition, without subsequent additions.

Three books have been published by Electa on the occasion of the exhibition, curated by Anna Orlando: the brochure, also curated by Nils Büttner, presents all the new additions that have come about due to the new research and important updates that resulted from preparing the exhibition; the guide to the exhibition, an easy tool to follow the guided tour; the guide, In Genoa with Rubens, that accompanies the Rubensian tour to discover the masterpieces in the Genoese palaces and in the churches that Rubens definitely visited. For the occasion, Abscondita has published Palazzi di Genova, edited by Anna Orlando. The book contains tables, plans and sections of the buildings selected by Rubens. There’s abundant material to account for not only the complexity, but also the features and comforts of Genoese homes.

The Palazzo Ducale exhibition event has enabled a great project to be created: “Genova per Rubens. A Network“, imagined and curated by Anna Orlando. Indeed, it’s the most important cultural network ever initiated in Genoa centring on a single artist. More than sixty public and private companies are involved in this project dedicated to Rubens and his special relationship with the city. It is an extensive network of collaborations that has made it possible to create introductory talks, cultural events, special openings, side events and further exhibition projects.

“Rubens in Genoa” will be open until 22 January 2023. For information and tickets: palazzoducale.genova.it and www.ticketone.it.