Sicily: From Ancient Myths to Contemporary Stories

A photographic Grand Tour that reveals the art, architecture, and Italian way of life in the Mediterranean melting pot that is Sicily.

Sicily has been shaped by millennia of history, a place where Phoenicians, Greeks, Romans, Arabs, Normans, Swabians, Angevins, Aragonese, Austrians, and Bourbons all dominated at one time, creating an incredible mixture of peoples and cultures. The result is a cultural and artistic kaleidoscope unlike any other in the world. Visiting Sicily today means seamlessly traveling through time, but not just the past, because there is also a contemporary, lesser-known Sicily, characterized by the work of great architects, the redevelopment of archaeological-industrial areas, and bold land art experiments.

Sicilian photographer Giò Martorana traveled the island on an imaginary journey, lingering over its most significant places and monuments to showcase the architecture of the past and present. The images, many of which have never been published before, are paired with the words of Sicilian journalist Giuseppe Matarazzo, who in short texts recounts the “hundred Sicilies” through stories of yesterday and today, revealing lesser-known and surprising corners of this unexpectedly vibrant land.