The exhibitions of Lucca Collecting
Hundreds of Masters of Universe collectibles
75 years of Tex, 40 years of Ken the Warrior and 25 of Half Life,
Cavezzali’s satire and sketches from the 2nd century. BC to today
Lucca Collecting 25 and 26 March
Lucca Collectingthe festival vintage-pop dedicated to comic book and to the worlds of fantasyawaits you this weekend (March 25 and 26) for dive one day into the pop atmosphere from the 70s, 80s and 90s.
The festival, organized by Lucca Create (company that produces Lucca Comics & Games)at the Exhibition Center of Lucca this year it grows to almost i 100 exhibitors: the public will find the brands of the great comic book publishers (including StarComics, Edizioni BD-JPop, Panini, Bonelli etc…), comic shops, retailers of original boards and board games and toys. The exhibition area expands by over 1200m2 more than in 2022. A weekend to rediscover the vintage collectible Italian, European, American and Japanese: already since last year, in fact manga ed classic anime find their place in the cultural program. Also noteworthy is the strong increase in the supply of original tables, an incredibly thriving and lively market, which it makes available to enthusiasts many rarities, thanks to the presence at the fair of the best retailers, collectors, galleries and associations that celebrate the emotion of being able to have an “original piece” in one’s own home.
Six exhibitions that can be visited inside the Polo Fiere, starting from 75 years of Tex with Alfonso Font and Claudio Villa with previews of some tables of the stories to be published next summer, the ideal start to a year of great celebrations for the seventy-fifth anniversary of the beloved ranger’s release on newsstands.
On the other hand, those who dreamed, collected and played with He-Man, Skeletor and their adventure buddies as a child (it was the 80s, yes!), cannot get lost Wild Boys of Eterniaa very rich exhibition, dedicated to the incredible world of Masters of the Universe. At the Polo Fiere and only on 25 and 26 March they can all be admired together hundreds of original pieces of the famous toys, including action figures, playsets, vehicles directly from the fantastic universe of Eternia. To accompany us on this journey, he will be a guest too Emiliano Santaluciaillustrator and designer protagonist of the creation of the worlds in which the Masters act, e Giuliano Piccininno, one of the main Italian designers of the creatures of Eternia.
If in the 80s the Masters represented the muscular struggle between good and evil, it is with the saga of Ken the Warrior that the challenge turns into a deeper, more violent and intimate journey, with features that are both grotesque and messianic, in which the strength of the predestined placed at the service of the Sacred School of Hokuto stands as the last bulwark against the brute and uncontrollable violence of a dystopian future. This tells us about the set up The 40 years of Ken the Warrior. Born in 1983 from the brushes of Tetsuo Hara and the pen of Buronson (pseudonym of Yoshiyuki Okamura), Kenshiro has populated and still populates the imagination of more than one generation of enthusiasts. An exhibition-installation will celebrate the heir of Hokuto’s seven stars and the world of him “larger than life” (with a photo-op with the giant statue of Ken).
And speaking of icons, twenty-five years ago a revolutionary video game was born: Half-Lifewhich will be honored with a celebratory installation of its first quarter of a century, an accurate analysis of the influence that the video game saga still continues to exert on creatives today, while in the games room created in the lounge area on the ground floor, stations will also be available to return to that adventure.
The journey dedicated to satire continues, which started last year with the exhibition dedicated to Andy Capp: this year we celebrate the ingenious and pungent art of Massimo Cavezzaliwith the exhibition with the unequivocal title Give me a lever that I get out of my balls. Cavezzali is a well-known illustrator and cartoonist who has populated magazines and newspapers from all over Italy with his characters, for some of the main publishers.
The collaboration continues with the Historical Figurine Museum of Calenzano, with an exposition of the truths progenitors of contemporary action figures and miniatures, original pieces from the 2nd century AD to today, a real time machine that tells the evolution of the art of the “figurino”.
Finally, the partnership between Lucca Crea and the Lucca-based entrepreneurial group is enhanced Giannecchini with a’exhibition of art calendars of the last three years, created with emerging artists and which this year saw the involvement of the winners of the Lucca Comics & Games Project Contest of the last few years, created in collaboration with Edizioni BD.