Attilio Cassinelli, Legendary Children's Illustrator, Dies at 100

Attilio Cassinelli, the legendary Italian children's illustrator, died at age 100, just ten days before his 101st birthday on June 18, 2024. Born in Genoa in 1923, he became an adopted Milanese for editorial reasons and later settled in Novi Ligure. With over 200 published titles, his career included a major collaboration with publisher Renato Giunti, whom he met at the third edition of the Bologna Children's Book Fair in 1966. Cassinelli's distinctive style—pure geometries and clear colors—adhered to children's imagination like permanent Velcro. Beyond books, he designed board games, paper zoos, and a porcelain service for Richard Ginori featuring his geometric Pinocchio. In 2016, he returned to illustrating with his daughter Alessandra for Lapis Edizioni. Awards came relatively late: the Premio Andersen and Premio Nati per Leggere in 2017 (repeated in 2020), and a Special Career Mention at the Bologna Children's Book Fair in 2019. In 2021, the Galleria Nazionale di Arte Moderna in Rome, directed by Cristiana Collu, dedicated the retrospective exhibition "Evergreen. Storia di Attilio" to him. International recognition included a tribute from Spanish newspaper El País on his 99th birthday in 2022, written by Tommaso Koch.