Hugo Pratt's Literary Universe Explored in Rome Exhibition

A new exhibition in Rome, 'La biblioteca geografica di Hugo Pratt,' highlights the dialogue between the famed comic artist Hugo Pratt and great writers such as Homer, Rudyard Kipling, Arthur Rimbaud, Robert Louis Stevenson, Kenneth Roberts, and Somerset Maugham, as well as literary references within his character Corto Maltese. The show runs until December 20 at Palazzo Strozzi-Besso, featuring over forty original drawings and watercolors, large reproductions, films, and vintage magazines. Curated by Patrizia Zanotti and Nadège Vaïnas, the exhibition is part of the centenary celebrations of the Fondazione's library. Zanotti, Pratt's former collaborator and managing director of CONG Sa, notes Pratt's vast library and his habit of reading and annotating literature, which influenced his work. The exhibition traces Pratt's geographical and literary journeys, including references to Thomas Moore, William Shakespeare, Gabriele D'Annunzio, Baron Corvo, and Hermann Hesse. Highlights include original plates dedicated to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Pratt's 1963 illustrations for Homer's Odyssey, created for Corriere dei Piccoli.