Things That Go Away

Hailed as one of the greatest Italian authors and illustrators of our time, Beatrice Alemagna publishes books and puts on exhibitions around the world. Her drawings are delicate and yet powerful, for her colours and shapes create strong contrasts and yet are perfectly balanced, leading us into a world that smells of hot coffee, piano concerts, little adventures on bicycles and bubbles of soap that vanish into thin air. In her latest, now very topical, book, she reminds us of those moments when life appears to be more taxing and arduous, but she does so with an amusing play of transparencies that show how things change, conveying a very positive message to us. We all need to bear clearly in mind the fact that the leaves that made a plant lush and strong will eventually fall, the sky will clear and reveal the sun’s rays after a violent storm, and our own fears will suddenly disappear – everything can be overcome. Because many things in our life will come and go, and will change, but only one special bond will always be with us. Le cose che passano, Beatrice Alemagna, Topipittori, 2019