THEOn July 1st and then on July 6th, 7th and 8th, the Pigneto neighborhood in Rome welcomes you the tenth edition of the event dedicated to the world of female comics. Here’s why you shouldn’t miss it
His neighborhood Pigneto in Rome is preparing to host the new edition of the festival Bande de Femmesthe event dedicated tofemale excellence in comics and illustration: an explosion of creativity, discussions and art, a real “gang of women” who will meet in one of the most representative neighborhoods of Rome, socially and culturally, for a full immersion in the world of pencils and paints.
“Bandes de Femmes” was born in 2013 on his initiative Tomba Librarylibrary of women who chose this name in a language game combining the French term “Bande dessinée“, “comics”, in the group of artists, illustrators and cartoonists in a unique celebration.
The aim of the festival, which this year turns 10 years old, is to bring creativity to the streets and buildings of Pigneto, and the 2023 edition kicks off in style on July 1st with the “Night of Color”, an exhibition that spreads through the streets of the neighborhood in the presence of the artists and continues on 6. , 7 and July 8 between meetings and discussions. Through animated presentations, discussions, art and book exhibitions, “Bande de Femmes” will create a space for discussion and exchange of ideas on fundamental issues such as the female body, women’s writing, politics and LGBTQIA+ issues.
Bande des Femmes program and guests
As part of the festival, there will be animation presentations, live painting performances with international artists and a series of meetings ranging from discovering unconventional stories to authors presenting their comics to exploring new artistic and linguistic propositions. Among the guests of the event Lorena Rowerswinner of the Gran Prix Artemisia for the comic “Verdad” and author of the first issue of the series “ANIMAls – the decomposed magazine”, and then Kalina Mukhova Bulgarian illustrator living in Bologna for years, co-founder of self-production collective Brace, from Macerata Claudia Palmarucciwinner of the Andersen Award for Best Illustrator in 2023 and Laura Mangoauthor of “How I Organized My Political Union” (full event schedule follows).
The project “Bande de Femmes” was selected and funded by the Department of Culture of the Capital of Rome in the framework of the two-year public call “Estate Romana 2023-2024”, in collaboration with Siae, and has supported the female presence for ten years in the world of comics and illustration, offering a space of promotion and exploitation for female artists and creating a unique cultural event of its kind in Rome.
Women conquering the world of comics
Bande de Femmes is just the latest of the events organized in Italy to show how the world of female comics is experienced in Italy period of great fermentation and growth, with more and more female writers and illustrators gaining the national and international scene. In fact, there are many Italian artists who have used comics to bring new themes and perspectives to the panorama of Italian comics, contributing to break down gender stereotypes and challenge contracts. Works characterized by a unique style and a special sensitivity to telling stories, emotions and reflections through images.
Festivals and events dedicated to women’s comics have, over the years, become not only a platform for exposure and exchange for female writers, but also hubs for promoting inclusion and diversity in the world of comics, encouraging female participation and leveraging their artistic offering. Just think Bad comicsthe pseudonym Josephine Yole Signorelli, who with courage and almost brutal honesty narrated her transition journey in the trilogy “Explicit Novel”, “My trans adolescence” and “Anesthesia” (published by Feltrinelli Comics) or again Zuzuborn to Giulia Spagnolo, who with the graphic novel “Cheese” talked about adolescence, bodies and suburban life, becoming the youngest author ever published by the publishing house Coconino.