To mark its 60th anniversary, Lucca Comics & Games is opening ‘Lucca Legacy: A Comics & Games Story - La Mostra’ in the historic Palazzo Guinigi: an exhibition project that presents the Festival not as an archive to be consulted, but as a living organism to be explored, shaped and, in part, co-created alongside the ‘VisitAutori’ – as the event refers to its audience. The exhibition is organised by Lucca Crea and POLI.design – a centre for postgraduate education founded by Politecnico di Milano – under the scientific supervision of DISEGS – Department of Socio-Economic, Management and Statistical Studies, ‘G. d’Annunzio’ University of Chieti-Pescara – and with the participation of Fondo Caniparoli, the Angelo Nencetti Collection ‘Quando Lucca diventò un fumetto’ and Fondo Bono, National Central Library of Florence. Produced with the support of the Municipality of Lucca, in collaboration with Rai Teche, cultural partner, and thanks to the contribution of numerous collaborators who will take part over time.
The idea is to tell the story of the Festival as a living organism: as in ‘legacy’ games, the VisitAutori (the public) will be able to physically interact with the exhibition and leave their mark. The second floor of the building thus becomes a permanent cultural platform, with adaptive displays designed to evolve over time. Guiding the public are the mascots Luke and Clea, created by Sergio Algozzino, with three ways to explore the exhibition: the traditional room-by-room tour, a paper game (the Check Point Legacy) with small missions to complete, or the dedicated app, which allows you to step into the shoes of one of the two heroes.
The tour is organised across three levels and through various spaces
Intro Level: Luke and Clea’s room, where you choose your mascot and the type of tour.
Main Level, featuring the following rooms:
Cover Stories: stories about the festival in LP format, with RFID tags that activate extra content.
Time Machine: a timeline weaving together history, the festival and pop culture, and a special way to view historic posters. It also traces the graphic evolution of the poster, from David Pascal’s cartooning (1969–1992) to the shift towards painting in 2003, right up to the annual theme.
Tree of Strips: a tree bearing the names of hundreds of artists linked to the festival, and a station where visitors can take and print a photo to leave on the wall of collective memories.
Legacy Room: three stations featuring videos of voices and memories, which can also be updated with visitors’ contributions, plus an in-depth look at ‘Worlds Born of Play’.
Roll of Honour: a ‘literary restaurant’ featuring a menu of award-winning comics and games from over sixty years, selected via rotating plates, and display cases housing collectable rarities.
Dreamers Room: a sensory and emotional experience that brings the Main Level to a close.
Final section: the Hall of Games, where visitors can play live with the box they have previously chosen, and The Vault, accessible according to specific rules: where visitors can deposit an item linked to the festival by filling in a museum form. These objects may become new Cover Stories or be included in the emerging Lucca Comics Museum. The exhibition will be continuously updated over time.
A very special challenge has also been launched: the ‘La mia Lucca’ call to action, which has gathered stories from visitors, enthusiasts and artists about their first experience, or their most memorable one, at the Festival. A selection is screened in the Legacy Room and will continue to be updated.
