At a press conference, 2024 Guest of Honor Italy previewed its Frankfurt Book Fair plans featuring 120 authors and artists.
With Italy scheduled to be the guest of honor at next year’s Frankfurter Buchmesse, the country’s officials and book industry representatives have presented their plans and priorities today (October 19) to journalists and trade visitors currently at the 75th anniversary edition in a news conference in the Frankfurt Pavilion.
The 2024 program themed “Roots in the Future,” and some 120 authors and artists are to host debates, perform at musical events, and attend art exhibitions in Germany in the coming year, according to the Italian organizers.
At the october 19th event, Juergen Boos, president and CEO of the trade show, said, “Italy continues the history that started at the Frankfurt Book Fair in 1988 when it was the guest of honor” the first time. On its return visit as an honored market, “The book fair wants to celebrate the culture of Italy and I’m looking forward to many new editions of Italian books that will be presented to German and Italian readers,” Boos said.
Mauro Mazza, the Guest of Honor Italy special commissioner, said that 36 years after the market first held that role, Italian book industry representatives hope they can contribute strengthening the platform for dialogue with other cultures.
Talking about the motto that Italy has chosen for its 2024 presence at the Frankfurter Buchmesse, Mazza said that it reflects a three-dimensional view of time and Italy’s history.
“We want to look back at the past as memory,” he said. “We want to look at present times. And we want to look at the best of our history, traditions, and to look at the future, hopefully a better future.”
Also speaking at the event, Paola Passarelli, the director general of the directorate of libraries and copyright at the Italian ministry of culture, said that, with next year’s book fair in mind, her ministry is advancing programs to support translations of Italian literary works into other languages.
“Translation is the simplest way to enter a culture, so that that culture becomes known in other countries,” Passarelli said. “We will do anything possible so that the international interest in Italian culture can grow.”
Armando Varricchio, Italy’s Ambassador to Germany, said “there will be cultural events all year long” and Italy’s “all 20 regions will be presented here in Frankfurt.”
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