Description
EXHIBITION “L’INCANTO DEI LIBRI” BY ENRICO DELLA TORRE
“Francesca Calvo” Civic Library
Inauguration Tuesday 23 April at 5 pm

The City of Alessandria celebrates World Book Day by taking part in a high-profile event in the Historical Halls of the "Francesca Calvo" Civic Library: a tribute to Enrico Della Torre, contemporary painter and engraver who passed away recently. He was an artist among those who most characterized Italian abstract/sign-like research from the second post-war period to our days.
Though many years have passed, the exhibition of his etchings at the Ancient and Modern Prints Room in 2006 remains unforgettable. The Cultural Association “Il Triangolo Nero” is giving continuation to that exhibition with “L’incanto dei libri”, a reasoned choice of the artist’s work-books and artist’s books, which were invented, printed, assembled and published during the long and illustrious career of the artist from Cremona.
His passion for creating books went hand in hand with that of painter and engraver and dates to the 1970s, documented by a precious general catalog curated by F.M. Liborio, published by the State Library of Cremona: “Parola e Immagine – Libri d'artista, cartelle e plaquettes con incisioni originali di Enrico Della Torre”.
Considering the outstanding production, it wasn't an easy task to choose which direction to take: however, the curator identified works from these past five decades that offer meaningful glimpses of the truly unique and copious illustrative creativity of the highest level and which has had literary companions, to mention a few, R. Sanesi, V. Sereni, D. Isella, P. Volponi, B. Marin, L. Vitali, G. Dorfles, C. Rebora. R. Roversi, A. Nessi and many more…
Texts and images will be on show alongside several sheets of his complex and fascinating engravings.
It should be recalled that the drawer units of the Prints Room preserve his precious “Blu” folder (1992), with a preface by Gillo Dorfles and contain seven etchings, aquatint and burin engravings due to the masterful press printing by Franco Masoero.


The exhibition, free admission, is organised by the Civic Library in association with ASM Costruire Insieme and will remain open to the public until 31 May 2024, open to visitors from Monday to Friday from 8.30 am to 1 pm, Tuesday and Thursday from 2 pm to 6 pm.

For further information: biblioteca.civica@comune.alessandria.it