The event, promoted by the Don Bosco Study Centre and the Faculty of Social Communication Sciences, will open a new window on the way in which the figure of Don Bosco has been recounted, interpreted, and imagined by biographers, illustrators, and comic book authors. The exhibition was created with a clear objective: not to address exclusively scholars of Salesian history, but to open its doors to a wide and varied audience.
The exhibition is designed, in particular, for:
– university students who want to discover how biographical narrative originated and how it has evolved over time;
– reading enthusiasts who are intrigued by the process that transforms real life into storytelling;
– comic book readers and enthusiasts, who will be able to explore a little-known field of research, where the figure of Don Bosco is transformed into a graphic protagonist, almost a “superhero of goodness”;
– researchers and scholars of communication, history, anthropology, and narrative languages.
Through texts, images, illustrations, early examples of 19th-century biographies, hagiographic volumes, comics, and multimedia contributions, visitors will discover how each era has reinterpreted Don Bosco, shaping an ever-new and recognisable face.
The exhibition will be open to the public from January 13 to February 20, 2026, and will be entirely bilingual (Italian and English). Audio guides will also be available in four languages – Italian, French, English, and Spanish – accompanying visitors on a narrative journey designed to bring together different sources, styles, and languages.
The opening afternoon will begin with an open lecture dedicated to the “construction of the icon” of the saint in modern and contemporary history. It will be an opportunity for in-depth analysis, shedding light on the complexity of the biographical genre, its evolution, and its implications for understanding Don Bosco’s identity.
The complete program of the event is available in the PDF at the bottom of the page.
Source: unisal.it
