Many Italian designers and illustrators who move away from Italy to give space to their talent.
Just like scientists and researchers who, after having trained in Italy, do not find the right professional opportunities and look abroad.
Often with success.
The "brush escape" is a significant phenomenon with us: an opportunity to talk about it was the XX Week of the Italian language in the world promoted by the Farnesina, which has just closed this year dedicated to comics and illustrations.
"By 'brush flight' - says Luigi Vignali, general manager for Italians abroad and MAECI migration policies to ANSA - I mean a phenomenon that involves many Italian designers and illustrators, but also painters and graphic designers, sculptors and photographers , visual artists in general, too often forced to go abroad to find the right opportunities that fully exploit their abilities, potential, in a word, talent. In the comics sector, more and more artists are moving abroad, especially in countries like Belgium and France, or in the United States, with the large catchment area represented by Studios, or in Germany, for example on the Berlin art scene, but also in the "emerging" comics markets, such as China, Korea, India and Brazil ".
Vignale's direct experiences, two comics financed by 'his' management: "In Brussels, for the tables of" An important story.
Seventy years of Italian immigration to Belgium and beyond ", I met Antonio Cossu, a well-known cartoonist of Sardinian origin. In Paris, on the other hand, for the comic" Gli Italiani del Père Lachaise "I met Virginio Vona, a Roman who moved to Paris. These two artists they were directly involved in our initiatives, but there are many other Italian cartoonists residing abroad ".
It is difficult to give figures or estimates how many Italian artists concern the phenomenon but - he underlines - "many designers trained in comic schools in Italy then have an experience abroad. They are good, they master digital technologies and are therefore able to easily fit into international productions. of excellence, also producing volumes sold in hundreds of thousands of copies ".
Among the cartoonists 'on the run', Vignale cites three Italian designers: Enrico Marini, who works mainly in France and collaborates with the American studio DC Comics;
Laura Zuccheri, a Bolognese who is very active on the French market, the first female designer to have created a Tex cover;
and then Angelo Libutti, moved to Canada for twenty years and cartoonist of Walt Disney Studios for over thirty films.
According to Vignali, "the 'brush flight' is part of the broader phenomenon of the departure of young generations from Italy: young people are forced to go abroad to give voice to their aspirations and make use of their many human resources and their skills ".
It concerns various professional categories including the artistic sector: "It is not so much a complaint - specifies the Director General of the MAECI - as to become aware of the problem and try, if possible, to reverse it".
In his opinion, it is necessary "a different attitude of the whole Italian society in the enhancement of the artistic professions and a greater awareness of the importance of retaining, in general, our human capital, which is formed in Italy and then chooses the path of emigration to seize better job opportunities and fulfillment abroad. We talk about escape, so we imagine a quick run, but often it is a difficult step towards foreign countries, they are young people who are forced to leave for professional achievement . Instead, it would be easier to move abroad with the prospect of returning, taking advantage of a wealth of experience to be used to make our country grow ".
For Vignali, "a first important measure already taken to encourage the so-called 'brain return' is found in the 2019 Growth Decree, with tax benefits and incentives for young workers, teachers and researchers who choose to return to Italy. I would extend these measures - concludes - also to the category of artists, not only cartoonists and designers, but also young people of fashion, painters and sculptors, just to give a few examples: it would be a very important signal to help Italian art, which for centuries has been admired all over the world ".