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Hugo Pratt’s Famous Sailor Lands In Naples
Sailing the sea, under the gentle cloak of thousands and thousands stars, looking for a new adventure beyond the horizon. This is indeed the spirit of Corto Maltese, the famous sea captain created by the genius of Hugo Pratt in 1967, whose ship is now landing to Naples to enter the halls of the MANN – Archaeological Museum of Naples – from 25th April to 9th September 2019.
Born on the island of Malta in 1887, son of a sailor from Cornwall and a gypsy woman from Seville, Corto Maltese is the main character of a series of adventure comics by Hugo Pratt, that have been praised as some of the most high and artistic expressions of graphic novels ever written, translated in several languages and adapted for numerous animated films during the years.
Corto Maltese appeared for the first time in 1967 in the serial Una ballata del mare salato (The Ballad of the Salty Sea) published on the magazine Sergeant Kirk. The story is set in the Pacific Islands during the World War I era and deals with smugglers and pirates. Later on, in 1970, Hugo Pratt moved to France where he began creating a series of Corto Maltese short stories for the French magazine Pif Gadget, an arrangement that lasted about four years. After that, in 1974, Pratt returned to full-length stories with the publication of Corto Maltese in Siberia. Two years later, in 1976, The Ballad of the Salty Sea was published in book format and awarded the prize for best foreign realistic comic album at the Angouleme International Comic Festival.
Some of the original drawings from The Ballad of the Salty Sea together with more than 100 artworks, drawings and sketches by Hugo Pratt will be on display in the exhibition “Corto Maltese, an extraordinary journey” thanks to the collaboration between COMICON and the MANN, a joint venture that offers to visitors a cultural and artistic experience, this time with one of the most fine and refined artists of the 20th century and his world-known adventurous character. It is no coincidence that this unique temporary installation will be in the rooms that host several archaeological findings related to the sea. The exhibition, is indeed part of a course of events, between Mann and the Phlegraean Fields, towards “Thalassa” a large exhibit in preparation, dedicated to the underwater archaeology of the Mediterranean “.
Want to learn more? Please visit MANN official website for further information
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