The Travel Literature Festival, a 'tale of the world'

(by Ida Bini) "The Festival is the story of the world, it is vast, it contains multitudes". Antonio Politano, director artistic part of the Travel Literature Festival, in Rome from September 26 to October 5, quotes Walt Whitman and from the headquarters of the Italian Geographical Society speaks with ANSA about the event now in its sixteenth edition, entitled 'Islands, Sea, Oceans'. "The Festival is a container of tales, stories and this year is even longer and full of events - he underlines Politano, photographer and journalist -. In ten days at Palazzetto Mattei, in the gardens of Villa Celimontana and around Over 90 events are planned for Rome: exhibitions, awards, shows, meetings, readings, guided walks, initiatives for people with disabilities, activities and workshops for children". "Everything revolves around the journey which is a garden of metaphors - continues the director - and allows us to range with many forms of narration, from literature to photography, from from cinema to music, from dance to comics, all expressions that tell pieces of the world, far away or around the corner, and they evoke places, cultures and people". "At the Festival we will meet many authors and artists - he explains still Politano - because the journey is an invitation to yes to knowledge and discovery, but above all it is an invitation to meeting others, with people". "The human factor is decisive: in the presentation image of the Festival, dedicated at the sea and the islands, I wanted to portray a man while he is diving in the water of Filicudi". In the festival events, where the guest countries are the French Polynesia and Portugal, the protagonists are the sea and islands, delicate and fragile ecosystems, as well as oceans and distant lands, threatened by the climate crisis and from the rising waters. "During the Festival there will be also a focus on roots tourism - explains the director - with moments of music and projection of images in collaboration with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs". "As in previous years - continues Politano - they will come two prizes were awarded: the Navicella d'Oro Geographical Society Italian to the musician Paolo Fresu, to the Swedish writer Björn Larsson, to jurist Francesca Albanese, special rapporteur of the United Nations on the occupied Palestinian territories; to Eyal Weizman, British-Israeli architect and founder of the group of research 'Forensic Architecture', and Mediterranea Saving Humans, Open Arms and Sos Méditerranée, three non-governmental organizations government agencies involved in sea rescue activities. The other, the Kapuściński Prize for reportage, this year will be awarded to the French journalist and traveler Sylvain Tesson, to the writer Paolo Giordano, to the Israeli journalist Gideon Levy, the journalist and TV author Riccardo Iacona and the magazine 'The Passenger' published by Iperborea". At the Festival there is also space for art: 'The Great Adventure. From Ulysses and Corto Maltese, travelling with Hugo Pratt' is the exhibition dedicated to one of the recognized masters of comics international, 30 years after his death. Set up in the form distributed at the Museum of Civilizations, at the National Library Central, at Palazzo della Farnesina and Palazzetto Mattei, is a journey into the life and works of the designer among characters, real and imaginary geographies and the authors who have inspired. "There will also be readings dedicated to the sky and the constellations - concludes Politano -, to poetry (from the 'Canticle of the Creatures' to Baudelaire), to the geopolitics of the sea and to the Earth Constitution as a tool to address the global emergencies and ensure a sustainable future for humanity".