Luca Raffaelli has provided an original approach to the structure of the museum visit, rooted in the different formats in which comic art, over more than 100 years of history, has been read, experienced and loved all around the globe, based on the cultures, economic conditions and social habits of readers. Thus we encounter first the birth of the Sunday pages in colour supplements of American newspapers, and later strips and comic books. Meanwhile, in Italy we find the newspaper format (like that used for Corriere dei Piccoli) and the strips of Tex, which then led to the success of the eponymous format; and in France volumes called albùm, and Japan Tankōbon, small books used to publish popular manga.
PAFF! is therefore the only museum in the world dedicated to comics with a primary focus on comparing original pages with reproductions, newspapers, albums and books in which comics live.
This emphasises the surprising formats adopted for the publication of some works, and demonstrates interaction between comics and other disciplines (cinema, painting, fashion, design, the avant-garde, theatre and literature) and fields (education and entertainment). It also clarifies better than ever before the relationship between comics and the communications industry, enabling audiences of different cultures, ages and origins to explore new themes and languages.
The majority of comics are created for a specific publishing context, which dictates the space and time available to tell a story. But events and success can change everything. A good example of this is the Sunday comic Flash Gordon, in a large and eye-catching colour version, then reduced to a black-and-white pocket format. Another is L’eternauta, a science-fiction comic first created in horizontal “Argentine format” in the fifties (renowned for having foretold the tragedy of Los Desaparecidos), which became a success in Italy in the vertical Lanciostory format twenty years later. And then there is Maus by Spiegelman, which began life as a supplement in an underground magazine and a distribution of just a few thousand copies, before becoming one of the most famous graphic novels globally, winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1992.
The permanent collection presents original pages in all the different stages of the publishing process, clarifying better than ever before the relationship between comics and the communications industry, thus opening up a new perspective on this art form for audiences of different cultures, ages and origins, also in terms of the relationship with other artistic disciplines and their languages. The multimedia component of the Museum is also particularly rich and skilfully curated, including 56 touch screens, Wi-Fi connection with a dedicated server for interactive monitors, neckbands and latest-generation tablets offering visitors a truly unique interactive experience of comic art.
