Since childhood lighthouses have always fascinated me, as has the figure of their keeper, and having grown up on an island my relationship with them and what they represent has always been very strong. I wondered: what will the life of a lighthouse keeper be like? Why do they choose such a lonely profession? What do they do all day long? Most lighthouses are located on the coast, others on headlands not far from the sea. Still others stand on rocks, islets or in the open sea, where the seabed is shallow. The lighthouse I wanted to tell about is located isolated from the rest of the world (hence the title “The Furthest Rock”). This silent book was born in Bergamo, during the time of the pandemic. Consequently, the theme of isolation and suspended times arose naturally.
The story is about a lighthouse keeper (cyclops like lighthouse) and his inner journey. The co-star of this silent is time, marked by the waves of the sea. Time to reflect, to read, to be reborn, to travel even while sitting. Thus our lighthouse becomes a place without space or time. In isolation, the keeper transforms lost time into found time and, thanks to a moth – attracted by the light of the lighthouse – decides to travel no longer with imagination but really. Reality, appearance and fiction merge, with a final twist.
I had wanted to enter this contest for years, but never seemed to have the right story. I greatly admire Carthusia’s work and mainly the fact that this contest was dedicated to my mentor and friend Gianni De Conno, an illustrator with extraordinary human and professional qualities. Several times he had advised me to participate and here I am! I hope that this silent can become a way for everyone, young and old, to reflect on the opportunity to live even “downtime” as a pause for reflection, an opportunity for inner enrichment to find oneself.
Graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts in Catania, he is an author and illustrator of children’s books, published both in Italy and abroad. First prize in the competition “The brave Pigafetta and the journey around the World” promoted by the Department of Culture of the Municipality of Vicenza and the Bertoliana Library; Signaled at the BCBF 2023 illustrator exhibition; Third place at the CICLA 2022 in Shanghai; “Popular Prize” at the “Stop” contest 2022 and selected at the “Chaos” contest 2019 organized by the Tapirulan association. Selected at the 2022 Annual and “Bronze” for the 2019 Image Authors Association Annual. Special mention at Lucca Junior 2018. Selected for the 2016/2013 Lucca Junior exhibitions. The graphic novel about Cosimo Cristina was published as an insert at Fatto Quotidiano. Currently living in Bergamo, he teaches illustration and advertising graphics in both the public and private sectors. He organizes workshops on ink hatching (his favorite technique) and works as a freelance graphic designer.