Ex Libris dal Mondo per Pinocchio

This fold-out brochure advertises a book for sale but also serves as an informative piece about a competition in ex libris (bookplate) design that inspired the book—a catalog of 300 ex libris designs from artists around the world for Carlo Collodi’s most famous literary character, Pinocchio—one of the most famous in all of children’s literature. 

Ex Libris dal Mondo per Pinocchio (Bookplates from the World for Pinocchio) was an international competition and traveling exhibition created in 1983 to celebrate the world's most famous puppet through the art of the ex libris. To accompany the exhibition, a catalog of the same name was published by Salimbeni Editrice in 1983, featuring an introduction by essayist and critic Fernando Tempesti. It features black-and-white illustrated plates reproducing the graphic works of the participating artists, along with short biographical notes on the engravers. The catalog is now a collector's item for fans of graphic art and "Collodiana.

The event was organized by the Fondazione Nazionale Carlo Collodi (National Carlo Collodi Foundation ) alongside the Società Amatori degli Ex Libris to celebrate the centenary of Pinocchio (1883–1983). 

Officially inaugurated in Pescia, Italy, on November 25, 1983, the exhibition coincided with the International Conference of Collodian Studies and brought together hundreds of small graphic masterpieces (including engravings, woodcuts, and etchings) created by both Italian and international artists, all dedicated to Pinocchio and the characters from Carlo Collodi's story.

The exhibition toured internationally for years, and the entire collection is now permanently housed inside the Library Museum of the Pinocchio Park in Collodi (a hamlet of Pescia).








Location: Fulshear, TX, USA

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