person Alex Urso

Max Pezzali entra nel mondo di Topolino con un numero tutto Anni Novanta

Max Pezzali, the iconic frontman of the Italian pop band 883, has been appointed as the guest artistic director for a special issue of the long-running comic magazine *Topolino* (the Italian edition of Mickey Mouse). The issue, number 3680, will be released on June 3 and features a concept-comics format inspired by a concept album, with stories written and illustrated by various artists including Tito Faraci, Alessandro Perina, and Claudio Sciarrone. The cover, drawn by Alessandro Perina, references Pezzali's 1993 album *Nord sud ovest est*, and the issue includes autobiographical elements and nods to 1990s pop culture.

Provincial Cosmos. Interview with Serena Fineschi, the artist who turned off all the lights of Siena

Provincia Cosmica. Intervista a Serena Fineschi, l’artista che ha spento tutte le luci di Siena

Serena Fineschi, an artist from Siena, Italy, discusses her return to her hometown after twelve years abroad, primarily in Brussels. She reflects on her public art projects, including one where she turned off all the city's lights for three minutes without warning, and another titled "Assistere il buio." The interview explores how her time in Belgium reshaped her artistic vision, shifting her perspective from the golden light of Siena to the sharp contrasts of northern light.

Tra i mosaici di Ravenna parte una grande festa dedicata al fumetto

Ravenna is hosting the fifth edition of the Coconino Fest, a major Italian festival dedicated to contemporary graphic novels, running from May 30 to June 2, 2026, with a preview on May 29. The festival's headquarters will be the MAR – Museo d’Arte della città di Ravenna, featuring exhibitions by international artists including David Prudhomme, Olivier Schrauwen, Miguel Vila, and Japanese manga artist Yamamoto Miki. The Biblioteca Classense will host an exhibition by Lebanese artist and performer Mazen Kerbaj. The program includes talks, book signings, and interdisciplinary events blending comics with music, theater, and performance, such as a dialogue between Vinicio Capossela and David Prudhomme on Greek Rebetiko music, and a tribute to Miles Davis by trumpeter Paolo Fresu and cartoonist Paolo Parisi. A collaboration with the Ravenna Festival will present a theatrical adaptation of a graphic novel by Chiara Lagani and Mara Cerri.

Provincia Cosmica. Interview with Giuseppe Stampone, the artist who chose Gran Sasso as his home

Provincia Cosmica. Intervista a Giuseppe Stampone, l’artista che ha scelto il Gran Sasso come casa

Italian contemporary artist Giuseppe Stampone, born in Cluses in 1974, has returned to his native Abruzzo after years living in New York, Rome, and Brussels. Following the loss of his parents, he established his studio in the province of Teramo, where he is restoring a farmhouse under the Gran Sasso mountain to house the Archivio Giuseppe Stampone-Maria Crispal and an artist residency called Abruzzo Mon Amour. Stampone won the PAC2021 prize for his project "La natura delle cose," which explores his bond with the region and will create an archive dedicated to the flora and fauna of the Monti della Laga, Parco Nazionale d’Abruzzo, and Gran Sasso areas.

Mafalda meets Pimpa. In Rome, the dialogue between two authentic comic icons: interview with the curators

Mafalda incontra Pimpa. A Roma il dialogo tra due autentiche icone del fumetto: intervista ai curatori

A new exhibition in Rome titled "Mafalda & La Pimpa" brings together two iconic comic strip characters for the first time. Created by Quino (1964) and Altan (1975) respectively, Mafalda and Pimpa represent different approaches to childhood: Mafalda critically questions adult society, while Pimpa explores a gentle, wonder-filled world. The show runs from May 14 to July 11 at the Instituto Cervantes, featuring over 120 original strips and plates, and is organized in collaboration with ARF! Festival and other partners. Curators Stefano Piccoli and Daniele Bonomo designed the exhibition to highlight both the contrasts and surprising analogies between the two beloved figures.

Intervista all’artista italiano che ha riempito la città di Stoccolma di sculture-animali

Italian artist Davide Rivalta has installed thirteen monumental bronze sculptures of lions, buffalo, and rhinoceroses across Stockholm, Sweden, in a project titled "Blowing Figures into Space." Organized by the Italian Cultural Institute of Stockholm, the works are placed in strategic locations including Mynttorget, Gamla Stan, Ladugårdsgärdet, and Hagaparken, with installations rolling out from April 2025 through summer 2027. The first sculpture was unveiled near the Swedish Parliament during Stockholm Art Week, and additional animals will appear in public parks on August 29.

L’antica certosa vicino Siena dove il disegno è diventato una performance condivisa. Il report

The third edition of the De Linea Art Festival took place on May 2-3 at the Certosa di Pontignano near Siena, Italy. Curated by Matteo Marsan and Riccardo Guasco, the event transformed the historic monastery into a living laboratory of drawing, illustration, and performance. Nine illustrators—including Marina Marcolin, Francesco Poroli, Elisa Macellari, Gianluca Folì, Ale Giorgini, Gloria Pizzilli, Matteo Berton, Giovanna Giuliano, and Daniele Caluri—participated in a week-long residency, producing works inspired by the site and the festival's theme "Crepe e spiragli" (Cracks and Glimmers), a contemporary interpretation of a Leonard Cohen quote. Over 500 visitors attended workshops, talks, and shared creative sessions, including a workshop by Fondazione Il Bisonte and performances by actress Daniela Morozzi and graphic poet Alessandro Valenti (Alvalenti).

Provincia Cosmica. A Foggia per scoprire la fotografia sociologica di Maria Palmieri

Maria Palmieri (Foggia, 1986) is a photographer who uses her camera as a tool for observation, understanding, and social improvement. After studying law, she turned to visual arts, blending reportage with vernacular photography to uncover truth amid the 'noisy horror' of contemporary life. In an interview with Artribune, she discusses her sociological approach to photography, her return to her hometown of Foggia, and her ongoing documentation of the region's fragilities, including the largest migrant ghetto in Europe.

Svolta per il Museo del Fumetto che chiuse a Milano: nuova sede in un’ex biblioteca di Monza

The Franco Fossati Foundation's Museo del Fumetto (Comics Museum), which was evicted from Milan due to a €180,000 debt to the city, has found a new permanent home in Monza. The Monza city council approved the foundation's proposal on April 30, paving the way for the renovation of a former library in the Cederna district, which has been abandoned for years. The archive of 500,000 pieces will be temporarily stored in Desio while the Monza building is refurbished with €850,000 from the municipality and additional funds from the foundation.

No, the closed Museum of Comics in Milan has not found a new home in Brianza

No, il Museo del Fumetto chiuso a Milano non ha trovato la nuova sede in Brianza

The Museum of Comics (Museo del Fumetto) in Milan, which suspended operations in June 2025 due to a €180,000 debt to the city, has not found a permanent new home despite online rumors. Instead, the Fondazione Franco Fossati, which runs the museum, has secured temporary storage for its archive in Desio (Monza-Brianza) for up to two years, using spaces granted free of charge by the local municipality. The archive—containing over 500,000 items including publications, original boards, and memorabilia—will be cataloged and preserved there, but the museum itself remains closed to the public.

This unpublished comic tries to tell us what the Biennale of the future will be like

Questo fumetto inedito prova raccontarci come sarà la Biennale del futuro

Hurricane (Ivan Manuppelli), a leading figure in Italian underground comics, creates an original comic titled "Biennale 2126" for Artribune, imagining what the Venice Biennale might look like in the future. In an accompanying interview, he discusses his satirical approach, the enduring relevance of underground comics, and the importance of critiquing power through art.

Where did the great artist Joseph Beuys live? The comic story by Gianluca Costantini

Dove viveva il grande artista Joseph Beuys? Il racconto a fumetti di Gianluca Costantini

In the summer of 2022, the author visited Düsseldorf and discovered that Joseph Beuys's former home at Drakeplatz 4 in Oberkassel was for sale, but the city's cultural department declined to purchase it. Beuys lived and worked there from 1961 until his death in 1986, using the space as both a residence and studio. The article recounts the intimate details of family life there, including how Beuys painted the main room white for his wife Eva's photography, and how the family navigated the blend of private life and artistic practice. Two years later, the Brunhilde Moll Foundation acquired the house and opened it to the public, though it was closed for renovations when the author returned. The house now displays about sixty works from Beuys's creative period and will host artist residencies and events.

Andrea Pazienza is alive! A major exhibition opening at MAXXI shouts it

Andrea Pazienza è vivo! Lo urla una importante mostra in apertura al MAXXI

The MAXXI museum in Rome is opening a major exhibition titled "Non sempre si muore" dedicated to Andrea Pazienza, the legendary Italian underground comic artist. Curated by Giulia Ferracci and Oscar Glioti, the show opens on April 24, 2026, and runs until September 27, 2026. It features over 500 original drawings, including a monumental mural Pazienza created live at the 1987 Fiera del Fumetto in Naples, recently restored by the museum. The exhibition is the second chapter of a larger research project by MAXXI, following the earlier show "La matematica del segno" at MAXXI L'Aquila, which focused on Pazienza's formative years. The title quotes a phrase Pazienza said in 1988 to British host Clive Griffiths shortly before his death, underscoring the enduring vitality of his work.

Cosmic Province. Between bar and studio, or the punk life of Jacopo Benassi

Provincia Cosmica. Tra bar e studio, ovvero la vita punk di Jacopo Benassi

Italian artist Jacopo Benassi, born in 1970 and shaped by the punk scene, discusses his return to his hometown of La Spezia after years in Milan, where he worked as a photographer for Rolling Stone. He describes his life revolving around his studio and local bars, and reflects on founding the underground club B-Tomic in 2011, which became a hub for his artistic and photographic work blending music and performance. He also mentions an upcoming book of drawings and texts by Renzo Daveti (alias Benzo), a formative figure from the Italian punk scene.

Nordic Art Week: Stockholm is the European art capital for a week. The interview

Art Week nordiche: Stoccolma è capitale dell’arte europea per una settimana. L’intervista

Stockholm is hosting the Stockholm Art Week from April 21-26, transforming the city into a hub for contemporary art. The event features a citywide program of exhibitions across museums, galleries, and independent spaces, including a retrospective of textile artist Anna Casparsson at Moderna Museet, a photography show by Lotta Antonsson at Fotografiska, and an outdoor bronze sculpture installation by Italian artist Davide Rivalta. The week also coincides with the 20th anniversaries of two major Nordic art fairs, Market Art Fair and Supermarket Art Fair, which are moving to new venues.

From Comics to TV: Quino's Legendary Mafalda Becomes an Animated Series

Dal fumetto alla tv: la mitica Mafalda di Quino diventa una serie animata

Netflix has announced a new animated series based on the iconic comic strip Mafalda, directed by Academy Award-winner Juan José Campanella. Produced by Mundoloco CGI, the project coincides with the 60th anniversary of the character's debut and marks a transition from the traditional black-and-white print medium to a dynamic, colorized digital format. The series aims to preserve the sharp social commentary and rebellious spirit of the original illustrations created by the late Argentine cartoonist Quino.

Bologna Prepares for the Major Children's Publishing Festival: The Director Speaks

Bologna si prepara al grande festival di editoria per l’infanzia. Parla la direttrice

The Bologna Children’s Book Fair (BCBF) has announced the details for its 63rd edition, scheduled to take place from April 13 to 16, 2026, at BolognaFiere. This upcoming iteration will feature Norway as the Guest of Honor under the theme "What if?" and will host 1,500 exhibitors from 90 countries. The fair continues to evolve beyond traditional publishing, integrating transmedia narratives, licensing, and discussions on artificial intelligence alongside major anniversaries for figures like Carlo Collodi, Agatha Christie, and Mitsumasa Anno.