2022

The Mondadori Group announces that on today’s date, Reworld Media S.A. has granted a put option through which its subsidiary Mondadori Media S.p.A. is entitled with the right to sell its Grazia and Icon business operations.

The perimeter underlying the option includes the print and digital operations of the two brands, as well as the relating international network comprising over 20 geographies with licensed publications.
In 2021, the perimeter recorded revenue of approximately € 18 million.

Under the terms of the put option, the Purchase Price has been set at €8,5 million, of which € 2 million as earn-out subject to the achievement of certain financial results in 2023, and is based on an Enterprise Value of the perimeter equal to € 11 million (including earn-out), net of the difference between the average net working capital of the last 12 months and the net working capital at closing date.

The Mondadori Group, pursuant to the provisions of law, will launch the consultation procedure with the trade unions, following which the option could be exercised.

Following the ongoing assessments, Mondadori Group will promptly disclose to the market any decision made relating to the exercise of the option and any further steps, terms and conditions of the process underlying the transaction.

The deal – the possible completion of which will also be subject to the outcome of the assessment procedure by the Offices of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers referred to in Law Decree 21/2012 – would be in line with the Mondadori Group’s repositioning strategy of increasing focus on the core business of books and on brands with greater potential for multimedia exploitation.

A hint of Zenzero, the talent agency of the top food creators of the Italian digital scene, has landed in the world of communications.

This one of a kind reality came to life thanks to the founding fathers of Giallozafferano’s workforce – a leading Italian media food brand behind this initiative; practically the result of One Shot Agency’s experience in social communications combined with the creativity, talent and success of five of the most renowned Italian food creators.

Giallozafferano – already renowned with 50 million followers in Italy and abroad – was the first editorial brand to actively work with young food creators and talents, well before the new market trends. Such relationship grew over time and is now consolidated thanks to the new top five creators selected to “co-create” the project. Zenzero Talent Agency.

A significant change of approach to the marketing influencer setting, where the creators are for the first time allowed not only to establish a commercial relationship with an agency, but to actively take part in its development as founding fathers.

The new agency, specialised in the food industry, boasts Daniele Rossi, the Tuscan chef with modern and refined culinary skills linked to local traditions, Cookergirl, the “red apron” girl with a passion for cooking and experimenting, Diletta Secco, the refined, cheerful and spontaneous storyteller always attentive to the environment and healthy eating, Rosy Chin, the chef and entrepreneur who blends traditions with innovations and Luisa Orizio, Giallozafferano’s number one food blogger, among its co-founders.

The Agency’s offer

Zenzero exclusively manages 20 exceptional talents: not only the co-founding creators themselves, but also some of the most renowned and original culinary talents, as well as several emerging figures of growing relevance in the field at different levels of engagement.

The new food agency is the point of contact of an extraordinary hub of creators – relying on a total of 20 million followers, 200 million video views and beyond 10 million interactions a month. The brand has a dual work objective, working on the growth of its talents to enhance their distinctive positioning on one hand and interpreting the needs of businesses to build communication strategies with effective languages bound to also reach the new generations on the other.

Zenzero will become a new point of reference for the food industry, also thanks to its name which is closely linked to GialloZafferano‘s. Zenzero, or ginger, is a fresh and original ingredient that is much appreciated by those who love to experiment in the kitchen or to add a crisp and natural touch to their preparations, just like the Agency’s soul.

Alessandra Rigolio, a young manager with much experience in the media and already Mondadori’s Marketing Director, will lead Zenzero as its CEO, and Gabriele Colasanto, Mondadori Media’s Food Department Manager as its president. The two will be assisted by Luigi D’Alterio, Sales Director of both Zenzero and Hej, and Nicole Cavallo, the Head Talent Manager who will combine marketing and creative management strategies for the customised projects of each talent.

“We are proud to launch a one of a kind and innovative reality such as Zenzero, and to take one more step towards the continuous strategy of evolution that has always distinguished Giallozafferano. In recent years, our brand has always focused on the social media channels and creators, considering them both as essential elements of its success strategy, in particular on Instagram and Tik Tok. With Zenzero, we’ll be able to provide our partners with both a new media solution and creators capable of satisfying their needs with projects bound to generate real value. Our trump card is the relationship we build with our talents: we work with them at every step of the way, invest in their growth and always provide the market with contents that are in line with the new trends and languages,” stated Alessandra Rigoglio, Zenzero’s CEO.

This turnkey offer and one of a kind strategy, consisting of many tricks of the communications world, along with the know-how of a partner such as One Shot Agency, an Italian agency operating in digital management and communications for years, will be supervised by the team’s account manager Daniele Tozzi.

“As far as our group is concerned, Zenzero consolidates our experience in the management of talents and represents a new ambitious and specialised challenge bound to become a point of reference for the marketing influencer strategies of the food sector. The focal point lying in its ability to manage and develop creators of undisputed talent and who have a unique way of influencing the market,” stated Matteo Maffucci, co-founder of One Shot Agency. “Together with Zenzero, we studied a formula intended to transform these projects into a brand experience through a story adapted to the brands and services of the food industry and to their values, talents and social audience.”

Zenzero’s creators

In addition to the five founders, Zenzero already has many creators and talents, among which: Chef Nerone, a young cook from the Campania region who combines his love for his land with spontaneity and improvisations: 2foodfitlovers, a social media couple with a passion for fitness and good food; Foodqood, third cooking tiktoker worldwide; Rossella pane e cioccolato, renowned for her exquisite contents; Valeria Ciccotti, of Vale cucina e fantasia, with her creative and simple recipes; Fernanda Michela Nicotra, of Il caldo sapore del sud, a native of Catania who loves traditional dishes and more; Monica Pannacci, of Ricette del cuore, promoter of simple, instinctive and zero waste type of cooking; Gessica Runcio, of Le ricette di Gessica, who alternates precious traditional family recipes to quick and easy to make dishes for all; Sebastian Fitarau, a refined chef with creative, light and tasty suggestions; Nonna Nella, the most social Italian grandma who conquered TikTok and the heart of food lovers; Cuori Veggie, with a simple and quick veggie-based cuisine; Aurora Cortopassi, Giovanni Castaldi and Manuel Saraceno,Giallozafferano‘s three renowned faces. These talents are capable of igniting a passion for cooking among all Italian generations, by covering all tastes and languages across the platforms.

Zenzero’s seat will soon be inaugurated in Milan, right next to Giallozafferano’s: a creative hub in the city centre with spaces entirely devoted to the production of food creator projects, recording studios, sets and equipped kitchens, but also a place for organising events.

Zenzero will have a special team to support the talents in the design and implementation of their projects. The go to the market section will be launched thanks to Mediamond’s expertise and to its Brand on Solutions structure, to ensure the implementation of brand initiatives, contents and influencing.

A partnership with the historical archives of Italy’s most prominent companies has produced “Posters by major Italian companies”, a special publishing initiative by the Mondadori Group for collectors of timeless treasures of the art of advertising.

The initiative involves a number of Italy’s biggest and best-known historic brands – Barilla, Manetti & Roberts, Martini, Pavesi, Pirelli, Olivetti, Ducati, Fabbri 1905, Voiello – bringing back ten unique vintage advertising posters of great artistic and cultural value that made their mark on the advertising scene between the Thirties and the Nineties.

Starting this week, selected points of sale will offer fans of vintage collectors’ items a limited edition of the first five items in the series:

• “Notte di Stelline” (“Starry Nights”), a poster from the historic wall calendar designed by Adolfo Busi in 1931 for Barilla, the company founded by Pietro Barilla 145 years ago. In the illustration, chubby, lively children play with pasta of different shapes, demonstrating that pasta is good for you and gives you lots of energy, in an indirect response to the Manifesto of Futurist Cooking and its call to abolish pasta.
• “Venere moderna” (“Modern Venus”), an iconic advertising poster published by Manetti & Roberts. Designed in the Thirties by an artist from Puglia, Gino Boccasile, it is inspired by the maternal elegance of the archetypal figure of woman at the time, portraying a child playfully sprinkling the “Modern Venus” with talcum powder.
• “Jockey”, a work Martini commissioned of French painter Jean Droit in 1948. With a great focus on detail and bold expressive power, Jockey metaphorically recalls a horse race in which jockeys ride vermouth bottles: the Martini bottle is in the lead, while the other two lag behind in the background.
• “Bambino con i Pavesini” (“Baby with Pavesini biscuits”), designed by Gian Carlo Rossetti in 1961, brings back the timeless image of the Pavesini baby, a representation that was repeatedly brought back and updated over the years to suggest that Pavesini biscuits are nutritious and appropriate for even the smallest children.
• “Pirelli BELTED tyre”, a 1961 advertising poster designed for Pirelli by Riccardo Manzi. The artist designed book covers and advertisements in his humorous style, bringing a note of colour and merriment to the graphics in this poster popularising an essential product: reinforced tyres guaranteeing perfect safety at the wheel, paradoxically and ironically suggesting they are safe even if the driver can’t see properly.

The second limited edition collection will be available at selected points of sale starting on 17 November:

• “Vera pasta all’uovo” (“Real egg pasta”), an illustration depicting the emblematic Cubist chicken in support of the quality of Barilla pasta, produced in 1954 by Erberto Carboni, the great graphic artist and coordinator of the company’s image. The poster is a true homage to the quality of raw materials.
• “Tetractys”, an advertising poster created in 1956 by Giovanni Pintori, the designer whose original graphic works made Olivetti products known and recognised the world over. The tree-like portrayal of Tetractys underlines the proliferative potential of the Olivetti computer.
• Ducati 916, a true work of art in motion created in 1993 by designer Massimo Tamburini, incarnates the essential values of Ducati: Style, Sophistication and Performance. Probably the most iconic of all the motorcycle manufacturer’s models, the Ducati 916 offers an all-new synthesis of technology and design; its tempered headlights, in the middle of the poster, mesmerised the world in the Nineties.
• “Brezza che ristora” (“Refreshing breeze”), an advertising poster from the Forties for Amarena Fabbri (Fabbri 1905): an invitation to face the summer heat with Fabbri, renowned for its historic ties with the world of advertising – with Carosello and Fabbri telling the story of “a painter a week – Renato Gottuso” – and the world of art, with the Fabbri Award for Art.
• The print by Voiello – main sponsor of “Procida Italian Cultural Capital 2022” – dates back to the second decade of the twentieth century. The unknown artist offers an allegorical representation of Mediterranean identity and the city of Naples – underlining the company’s ties with the area – conveying a message about the Italian identity and quality of the ingredients and the production process.

The posters – available at the news-stand in specially designed display units emphasising their unique qualities – are sold with an exclusive booklet providing information in which collectors can find out all about the history of the product, the artists, the companies and much more.

The ten advertising posters are available in the best news-stands and supermarkets at a price of € 8.90 each.

The Wom, Mondadori Media’s 100% inclusive digital media Brand, becomes a leader in the women’s segment with 8 million individual users and over 5 million fans on the social networks just under a year of its launch (source: Audiweb, July 2022).

With a primarily social and 100% inclusive nature, The Wom is present on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook and WWB with a main profile and thematic vertical channels. Such transversal offer has led the Mondadori Media brand to become a point of reference for the new generations, thanks to its ability to relate the interests of both the millennial and Z generations.

The brand enhances individual uniqueness through contents by sharing the values, experiences, emotions and sensations of an ever increasing number of people by overcoming stereotypes and taboos.

“We are very happy with these results: The Wom made its way up the web and social rankings and become a point of reference for the new generations of women in just 8 months. For us, The Wom means the pursuit of happiness and our content proposal is refreshed daily, thanks to the constant exchanges of ideas and emotions of all those involved in the project – from the creators and editors, to the very strong community that developed around the brand – and who share our values, beyond all labels,” stated Daniela Cerrato, Mondadori Media’s Mass Market Brand Manager.

The offer is now expanding by adding The Wom Horoscope, full of astrological contents and articles so as to meet the needs of the new generations’ increasingly more evident passion, to The Wom Beauty, The Wom Fashion, The Wom Healthy, The Wom Life and The Wom Travel.

The website contains a special area devoted to daily horoscopes illustrated with The Wom’s unmistakable stylistic code and in-depth insight on the characteristics of each sign.
The Instagram profile provides daily inspirations and curiosities in a fun and ironic key: infographics, memes, astro stories and astro reels related to the zodiac signs, but also fashion, beauty, health and lifestyle forecasts developed together with the creator Luigi Torres Cerciello, insta-astrologist and author just acquired by The Wom. Viral contents are presented in the language of digital natives and are able to reach over 700 thousand followers on Instagram, a fan base mainly consisting of under 35 female users and which further strengthens the brand’s audience in this age group.

Today, The Wom boasts a team of over 60 talented experts, who contribute to the production of 1.000 original contents each month between the website and social networks which reached a total of 16 million video views (source: Shareablee and Instagram reels insights, September 2022).

The Wom’s novelties and milestones were celebrated in the heart of Milan at 21WOL during an exclusive event, “The WoMderful Squad,” which brought together all of the brand’s top creators for the first time, as well as some exponents of The Wom Committee, among which Benedetta De Luca, Gender and Inclusion Editor, Federica Gasbarro, Climate editor, Ariman Scriba, mental health advocate and Victoria Oluboyo, civil rights activist and intersectional feminist.

The special evening focused on the stories of those who strive to ensure the brand’s success each day, such as the creators Paola Torrente, Samuele Bartoletti, Henry Scorner, Abbia Maswi and Hiba Omra. The performance of the emerging artist Marsali animated the evening.

The Wom received excellent feedback, also for the work carried out by Mediamond, the agency that designed the advertising solutions, through a series of special projects in constant development, and thanks to which over 30 customers decided to get involved in the brand’s initiatives within the first 6 months.

Mondadori Store, the largest network of bookshops in Italy, and J-POP Manga, one of the main Italian manga publishers, launch “Destination Cartoomics”: a special project and a series of appointments dedicated to Japanese Comics fans bound to dominate the Milan Games Week & Cartoomics, the great comic exhibition entirely devoted to the world of comics, graphic novels and gaming.

The initiative will be presented in the Mondadori Stores – Rizzoli Galleria, Milano Duomo, Arese (MI) and Vimercate (MB) – within the “Just Comics” section, the area dedicated to manga, superheroes, and graphic novel – with an unmissable promotion for all anime fans. Readers can get their J-POP passport: a special manga-style document to be completed by November 26^th with different hankos, or iconographic stamps representative of the Japanese company that will be affixed to each purchase of two titles published by J-POP Manga in the participating bookstores and on Mondadoristore.it.

The passport must be completed at the info point of the Just Comics stand, pavilion 12, during the exhibition held from November 25^th to 27^th, to receive special gadgets and discount coupons.

THE EVENT CALENDAR

The project is also based on a series of appointments open to the public: the participating Mondadori Stores will welcome readers and comics fans with live manga sketching and presentations, organised with the publisher J-POP Manga and the students and professionals of the Comics School of Milan.

 Among the events, on Friday October 21^st, at the Rizzoli Galleria bookshop, the presentation of the second issue of the Japanese manga Dandadan, written and sketched by the author Yukinobu Tatsu.

The series of appointments with the professionals of the Comics School will start on October 22^nd, at the Rizzoli Galleria bookshop, from 16:00 to 18:30, with the presentation Kishōtenketsu: telling it like a manga and live sketching with professor Gabriele Mareri and the cartoonist Mattia Salvaneschi.

 On November 5^th, at the Mondadori Megastore of Duomo, from 17:00 to 19:30, professor Sabrina Sala will speak of the  Timeless classics, or evergreen titles that captured the attention of entire generations, together with the cartoonist* Fra Fusconi, who will entertain the audience with special live sketching.

On November 10^th, at the Mondadori Megastore of Arese, from 17:00 to 18:30, the cartoonist Richmond Montanano will create customised sketches of the audience’s favourite techno-futuristic scenes of the manga world.

On November 19^th, at the Mondadori Bookstore of Vimercate, from 16:00 to 17:30, the cartoonist Rosy Battaglia will create live sketches of children’s favourite manga scenes.

The complete event calendar is available on the following link.

The “Pisanello. The World’s Tumult” exhibition opens in Mantua.  An exhibition created to mark the 50th anniversary of the exhibition curated by Giovanni Paccagnini, where one of the most important acquisitions in the field of art history in the twentieth century was presented: the discovery in the rooms of the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua of the Arthurian cycle painted using mixed techniques around 1430-1433 by Antonio Pisano, known as Pisanello.

The exhibition, produced and promoted by the Mantua Palazzo Ducale, is part of a wide-ranging, long-term programme to promote the work and the Sala dedicated to the artist, together with the adjacent Sala dei Papi. In fact, the layout of the entire room (9.50 × 17.50 m [31.16 × 57.41 ft]; 3 walls out of 4 have also revealed the frescoed sinopie; 100 square metres between the frescoes and sinopie) was permanently remodelled to make better use of an exceptional discovery for Italian artistic heritage.

Thanks to a new lighting system, the project completely restores clarity to the paintings, which were pulled out and relocated over fifty years ago. Instead of the natural diffused lighting from before, warm lighting is now aimed at Pisanello’s wall paintings, bringing out the reflections of the golden inserts and the painting’s magnificent details. In addition, a raised platform allows the visitor to appreciate the paintings at the correct distance calculated by the artist as, until now, the guided tour path was 110 cm [43,30 inch] lower due to subsequent changes to the room.

So, there is now a “new” tour path, enhanced by additional equipment, which allows the public to rediscover the richly-detailed work from the “correct” point of view, as described by Pisanello, as well as its curving lines and the artist’s extraordinary meticulous touch.

The permanent work in the Sala del Pisanello is supported by the work of the Politecnico di Milano, the regional campus of Mantua, under the supervision of Eduardo Souto de Moura; the temporary part of the exhibition is designed by Archiplan Studio which has also been in charge of providing all the artworks.

“Pisanello. The World’s Tumult”, curated by Stefano L’Occaso, is an exhibition that involves two large adjacent, connecting rooms on the main floor, the Sala del Pisanello and the adjacent Sala dei Papi, in addition to the rooms on the ground floor, set up to exhibit an overview of Late Gothic culture in Mantua, displaying an excellent selection of paintings, sculptures and miniatures.

The Sala del Pisanello is dedicated to the cycle of paintings linked to the preparatory drawings, the wall paintings and the sinopie exhibited. The Sala dei Papi is permanently set up with historical photos, the material traces of a special removal operation, some currently unexposed sinopie and everything that can describe the technique in Pisanello’s paintings, their discovery, the aforementioned exhibition in 1972 and the restoration work from the 1960s to today.

An interactive multimedia system completes the exhibition. It’s possible to view all the details of the Arthurian cycle at a magnification never seen before via a touchscreen monitor, and navigate an accurate three-dimensional reconstruction of the Sala del Pisanello created by the 3D designer Matteo Morelli when it was still called the Sala dei Principi, or at a point in time prior to the work that led to the discovery of the cycle.

Finally, in the rooms of the Appartamento di Santa Croce on the ground floor, suitably shielded from outside light, there are works from about the year 1400 to the middle of the 15th century that show and give an overview of the panorama of contemporary artistic culture in Mantua. These include the Dalle Masegne statues that now decorate the cathedral; the works of Stefano da Verona, another leading figure in the age of Pisanello; the illuminated manuscripts that show the development of the Gonzaga family’s tastes, a development that leads to the example of the missal of Barbara di Brandenburgo, started by Belbello da Pavia and finished by Girolamo da Cremona, in a richly Renaissance style.

Works by Pisanello that are not directly linked to the Arthurian cycle also find a home in this room.

The exhibition includes about 30 works, including international loans such as Pisanello’s masterpieces like the Virgin and Child with Saint Anthony and Saint George from the National Gallery of London, in Italy for the first time since its “departure” in 1862, and the paintings in the Louvre Museum in Paris. There’s also the Adoration of the Magi by Stefano da Verona from the Pinacoteca di Brera in Milan and, last but not least, the precious Madonna of the Quail, one of Pisanello’s juvenilia, considered to be one of the symbolic works of the Castelvecchio Museum in Verona, also available by virtue of an existing promotion agreement between the two Museums based on the artistic relations between Verona and Mantua.

Among the contributors supporting both the exhibition being undertaken and continued, we must highlight the Banca Agricola Mantovana Foundation. For many years it has offered its support to the initiatives promoted by the Palazzo Ducale, contributing to the promotion of the national artistic heritage and the dissemination of art and culture in the Mantuan community.

The exhibition comes with a brochure published by Electa and will be open until 8 January 2023.

From 6 October 2022 to 22 January 2023 the Palazzo Ducale in Genoa presents the grand exhibition “Rubens in Genoa” dedicated to Pietro Paolo Rubens (1577–1640) and his relationship with the city. The exhibition was produced by the City of Genoa with the Palazzo Ducale Cultural Foundation and our publishing house, Electa, and thanks to the support and participation of the sole sponsor, Rimorchiatori Riuniti S.p.A.

The curator is Nils Büttner, professor at the Staatliche Akademie der Bildenden Künste Stuttgart as well as Chairman of the Centrum Rubenianum in Antwerp, and Anna Orlando, a Genoese independent scholar and co-curator of the exhibition “The Age of Rubens” held at the Palazzo Ducale in 2004.

Sixteen sections of the exhibition are set up in the rooms of the Sale dell’Appartamento of the Palazzo Ducale on the main floor of the building. Paintings, drawings, tapestries, furnishings, precious accessories and antique books are also exhibited together. There are over a hundred works, demonstrating the greatness of an artistic capital visited by one of the greatest artists of all time. It’s a selection that affirms the name of Superba that was given to Genoa, where Rubens stayed several times between 1600 and 1607. It’s also a selection that allows us to retrace and, in many cases, to reconstruct the relationship with the Genoese patrician, one which continued even after the master’s return to Antwerp.

Thirty works attributed to the Rubensian oeuvre: eighteen autograph works, together with paintings that definitely left the painter’s workshop under his supervision and with direct work by him, in addition to two priceless accounts of lost works known through subsequent works. It’s a significant collection, the likes of which hasn’t been seen in Genoa — a city that still houses works by Rubens in churches, museums and private collections to this day — since the eighteenth century. In addition, an extraordinary selection of 80 works rounds out the story of the cultural and artistic context of the Ligurian city in its heyday. During his trip to Italy (1600–1608), Rubens definitely saw and studied Tintoretto and Luca Cambiaso. During his stay, and specifically in Genoa, he met Sofonisba Anguissola, Giovanni Battista Paggi and Bernardo Castello; and collaborated with Jan Wildens and Frans Snyders. All these artists are exhibited.

Fifteen never before exhibited Rubensian works appear in Genoa and ten for the first time in Italy. Two examples of the latter. The first, a self-portrait from 1604–1605, from a private collection. Recently rediscovered, it is an oil study in preparation for a self-portrait that Rubens included in a now lost Mantuan altarpiece. The second, Saint Sebastian Healed by Angels, circa 1615, from a private collection, is now traced to the commission by the famous condottiero, Ambrogio Spinola, thanks to a recent and important documentary discovery. Never exhibited fully, The Resurrected Christ Appearing to His Mother (with a figure from an underlying composition), circa 1612–1616. This painting, from a private collection, depicts the risen Christ standing in front of two kneeling women. Both female figures represent the Mother of Jesus. A recent X-ray revealed the presence of a second female image beneath the painting’s surface, which is compositionally similar, but iconographically different. Both figures are now visible. At this event the studies and comparisons with the well-known Rubensian iconography will be exhibited. Among the new additions are two splendid portraits: Violante Maria Spinola Serra, circa 1607, from Buscot Park (Oxfordshire-The Faringdon Trust) and Geronima Spinola with her granddaughter Maria Giovanna Serra, circa 1605–1606, from Stuttgart, Staatsgalerie. These absolute masterpieces of European Baroque portraiture are both exhibited for the first time with their identities rediscovered.

Museums in Italy and abroad, as well as private collectors, have granted special loans in recognition of a project based on long years of studies and scientific research by the curators, and motivated by the support of a prestigious international honorary scientific committee, composed of the top experts in the field. It’s not only thanks to the research to prepare the exhibition, but also due to the rediscovery of a painting by Rubens that had been lost for two centuries, and which was definitely present in Genoa in the seventeenth century. At this event it is submitted to the scrutiny of international scholars who have never seen it before to prove its attribution. The work itself is a study for the altarpiece, The Miracles of Saint Ignatius of Loyola, still in the Chiesa del Gesù church in Genoa.

These and many other new additions are presented to the public in an exhibition on the occasion of the 400th anniversary of the publication of the book, Palazzi di Genova, by Pietro Paolo Rubens, printed in Antwerp in 1622. It is an anniversary celebrated in the first room, where two original copies are exhibited, including a rare copy of the first edition, without subsequent additions.

Three books have been published by Electa on the occasion of the exhibition, curated by Anna Orlando: the brochure, also curated by Nils Büttner, presents all the new additions that have come about due to the new research and important updates that resulted from preparing the exhibition; the guide to the exhibition, an easy tool to follow the guided tour; the guide, In Genoa with Rubens, that accompanies the Rubensian tour to discover the masterpieces in the Genoese palaces and in the churches that Rubens definitely visited. For the occasion, Abscondita has published Palazzi di Genova, edited by Anna Orlando. The book contains tables, plans and sections of the buildings selected by Rubens. There’s abundant material to account for not only the complexity, but also the features and comforts of Genoese homes.

The Palazzo Ducale exhibition event has enabled a great project to be created: “Genova per Rubens. A Network“, imagined and curated by Anna Orlando. Indeed, it’s the most important cultural network ever initiated in Genoa centring on a single artist. More than sixty public and private companies are involved in this project dedicated to Rubens and his special relationship with the city. It is an extensive network of collaborations that has made it possible to create introductory talks, cultural events, special openings, side events and further exhibition projects.

“Rubens in Genoa” will be open until 22 January 2023. For information and tickets: palazzoducale.genova.it and www.ticketone.it.

The first edition of the Mypersonaltrainer Days, the event in the name of wellness and sports organised by Mypersonaltrainer and which saw the participation of more than 5.000 visitors in just two days, was a huge success.

A weekend with more than 300 free appointments – ranging from training to presentations and medical consultations – that transformed Milan into the capital of wellness on Saturday 1^st and Sunday 2^nd of October.

A territorial event that allowed the brand of the Mondadori Group, a leader in the world of health and wellness, to strengthen and expand its offer, thanks to which it reaches 13.5 million individual online users each month (source: Audiweb, July 2022) and almost 3 million social network fans.

The Mypersonaltrainer Days were Mypersonaltrainer ‘s first opportunity to really meet its community and the many fans of a healthy and active lifestyle who took part in the initiative.

Sports and wellness lovers were able to meet the brand’s multidisciplinary staff and fitinfluencers and to listen to more than 100 exceptional speakers who animated the weekend’s shows under the guidance of Edoardo Stoppa. Among the guests, the sports champions Filippo Tortu, Linda Cerruti, Matteo Giupponi, but also many personalities from the world of entertainment, such as Federica Panicucci and Michela Coppa.

The results of the initiative

The huge success achieved during the Mypersonaltrainer Days event is not only due to the public, but also to the amazing outcomes recorded on the website and social networks: more than 2 million people on the website and beyond 3 million on the brand’s Facebook and Instagram channels.

These numbers are the result of a continuous sharing of stories, posts, articles and interviews exclusively prepared by Mypersonaltrainer’s editorial, social and filming team.

A winning formula that contributed to yet another great result: a media impact of more than 25 million gross contacts, thanks to the communication campaign on all of the brand’s touch points, an advertising campaign designed by Casiraghi Greco & for the social networks, website, press and radio, DOOH, OOH and influencer marketing and a spontaneous media coverage of great impact.

The results of the Mypersonaltrainer Days were beyond all expectations, also in terms of the advertising outcomes – handled by Mediamond – which allow Mypersonaltrainer to immediately lay the foundations for the second edition of the event, planned for next year.

The partners of the event

The success of the Mypersonaltrainer Days was also made possible thanks to the partnership with Brand On Solutions, a unit devoted to the special initiatives organised by Mediamond, and to the partners who believed in the initiative’s holistic approach. During the Mypersonaltrainer Days, businesses of the wellness, sports and lifestyle industry had the opportunity to meet the public in customised experiential corners to promote a renewed and more powerful wellness experience: Zambon, Italian Diagnostic Centre, Eridania, Croatian Tourism Body, Ibsa, Giuliani, Gold’s Gym, My Benefit, Tescoma.

The support of technical institutions and partners

Mypersonaltrainer’s project was supported by the City of Milan, which sponsored the event and which was present at the inauguration with Emmanuel Conte, its Counsellor of the Budget and Real estate Heritage, and Francesco Caroli, its representative of the Welfare and Health Department.

The opening presentation was moderated by Lucia Blini, Deputy Director of Sport Mediaset, and Stefano Gobbi, territorial Head of the Sports and Health Affairs, also intervened.

Mypersonaltrainer Days was a Mondadori Media event organised together with Mediamond.

A huge thanks to MyEvents, Top Run, for the MYPT Urban walk, the partner companies and technical sponsors: Alpro, Esi, Foodspring, K-Well, Lete, Lycia, Yogaessential and Full Breathing.

After announcing the appearance of the master, Norihiro Yagi – author of Ariadne in the blue sky and Claymore – Star Comics and Lucca Comics & Games revealed two other important international guests during the press conference for the 2022 festival that are linked to the massive Knights of the Zodiac – Saint Seiya fictional universe.

At Lucca we’ll be joined from neighbouring France by writer Arnaud Dollen and illustrator Jérôme Alquié, authors of the official Knights of the Zodiac – Saint Seiya spin-off that was announced during Lucca Comics & Games’ official 2022 press conference.

The series, entitled Knights of the Zodiac – Saint Seiya: Time Odissey, will consist of 5 volumes that will be released by the Star label.

The master, Kurumada, personally supervised the project, which has an art style very close to the anime, and gave fans a personal message that can be read in the first issue.

The 5 volumes will be available in a 21 x 28 cm hardback format. Additionally, each of them will also be available in a collector’s edition​, with volumes measuring 25.5 x 33.8 cm, containing unpublished extra material and exclusive content. Both the Regular and Collector’s Edition of the first album will be available from 28 October in comic stores, bookstores, online stores and, of course, at Lucca Comics & Games.

Jérôme Alquié and Arnaud Dollen will be at Lucca Comics & Games from 29 to 31 October. Events that are open to the public that they will be participating in will be announced soon.

From the dawn of time, the gods of Olympus have fought for control of the Earth. Against them stands the goddess Athena, aided by her knights! When a new opponent enters the scene, the Knights’ very future is at stake. Can Ikki, the Phoenix Bronze Knight, unravel the threads of destiny?

Jérôme Alquié

The French illustrator and colourist was born in 1975 and got his start illustrating artbooks for Japanese anime in the ‘80s. A big fan of Saint Seiya, he’s created numerous illustrations over the years, and helped create the trailer for Saint Seiya – The Hades in 2001. In 2003, he made studies for statues of Captain Future and Captain Harlock. In 2011, he formed an artistic partnership with Arnaud Dollen with the series The Supernaturals (Delcourt). In 2019, the Captain Harlock comic mini-series, written by Dollen, started being published with Kana. At the same time, the two were working on creating Saint Seiya Time Odyssey.

Arnaud Dollen

Aerospace engineer, novelist and comic book writer. He began collaborating with Jérôme Alquié in 2002, creating the fantasy novel, The Ring of Seven. After the Supernaturals​​series (Delcourt), he created the recent ​Saint Seiya Time Odyssey, again in partnership with Alquié. He currently works as the lead author on the Cross the Ages project (www.crosstheages.com).

The first retrospective in Italy dedicated to Max Ernst (1891–1976), the German – later American and French – painter, sculptor, poet and art theorist, opens in Milan on 4 October 2022. The exhibition, promoted and produced by the City of Milan – Culture and by Palazzo Reale with Electa, in collaboration with Madeinart, is curated by Martina Mazzotta and Jürgen Pech.

There are over 400 works, including paintings, sculptures, drawings, collages, photographs, jewellery and illustrated books from museums, foundations and private collections, in Italy and abroad. These include the GAM in Turin, the Peggy Guggenheim Collection and the Museum of Ca’ Pesaro in Venice, the Tate Gallery in London, the Centre Pompidou in Paris, the Cantini Museum in Marseille, the State Museums and the Arp Foundation in Berlin, the Beyeler Foundation in Basel, and the Thyssen-Bornemisza National Museum in Madrid.

The long period of study and research carried out by the curators has made it possible to include among the loans about eighty paintings, works and documents that had not been exhibited to the public for several decades. 

The breadth of themes and experiments in Ernst’s work spans over seventy years of 20th century history, between Europe and the United States, constantly eluding any definition. Pictor doctus, profound connoisseur and visionary interpreter of the history of art, philosophy, science and alchemy, Max Ernst is presented through this project as a humanist in the neo-Renaissance sense of the word. If André Chastel claimed to find in Ernst a sort of “reincarnation of those Rhenish authors of Bosch-type devilishness”, Marcel Duchamp found “a comprehensive inventory of the different eras of Surrealism”.

On the main floor of the Palazzo Reale visitors can immerse themselves in a fascinating tour that traces the artist’s adventurous creative path, marked by the great historical events of the twentieth century and filled with great loves, as well as illustrious friendships. The tour recounts events from Ernst’s life, grouping them into 4 main periods, in turn divided into 9 themed rooms that reveal interdisciplinary approaches to his art.

It’s a large, idealised library, that of the artist’s, composed of illustrated books, study manuals, photographs, objects and documents, winding through the entire tour of the exhibition, inviting visitors to engage in games to find the references and similarities between the sources of inspiration and the works themselves.

Like a great cabinet of curiosities, and analogous to Max Ernst’s universe, the exhibition and the companion book challenge visitors to discover fascinating games of perception that are at times marvellous, others astonishing, where logic and formal harmony are combined with unfathomable mysteries, where works, techniques and constellations of symbols lead us beyond painting.

The exhibition will be accompanied by a brochure published by Electa, a guide and a new edition, also by Electa, of two fundamental works by Paola Dècina Lombardi on the surrealist movement: Surrealism 1919–1969. Rebellion and Imagination and Women, Freedom, Love. A Surrealism Anthology.

“Max Ernst” will be open from 4/10/2022 until 26/02/2023. For information and tickets: www.maxernstmilano.it, www.electa.it and www.palazzorealemilano.it