Artist Profile: Stefano Mura captures the terrifying beauty of Edgar Allan Poe’s Bon Bon
Edgar Allan Poe’s influence is everywhere. He’s not only inspired writers, but artists of all kinds. Many great artists have illustrated Poe’s works, from the French artists Gustave Dore and Edouard Manet, to the Irish stained-glass artist and book illustrator, Henry Patrick Clarke.
The directors of MCCT’s “Oc-Poe-ber Fest,” Jason Lopez and Bill Goveia, have included several artists’ illustrations in their presentation to help tell Poe’s stories. While researching artists who have sought to capture the terrifying beauty of Poe’s works, they also came across the work of the Italian artist Stefano Mura and his drawings for Bon Bon.
Mura says, “My first comic story, published in ‘il Morto’ on November 30, 2017, dealt with drawing and inking. Bon Bon is a satirical tale by Edgar Allan Poe, which I personally chose. The philosopher and chef Bon Bon lives in 18th century Rouen, where he runs a small café. One night he receives a visit from the devil. After a discussion about the nature of the soul and the best way to cook it, Bon Bon (enticed by Voltaire’s example, and heavily drunk) proposes his own for a stew. But the devil, struck by the philosopher’s bad conduct, politely refuses …”
MCCT would like to thank Stefano Mura and his publisher, Menhir Edizioni, for allowing us to include his artwork for Bon Bon in our “Oc-Poe-ber Fest” presentation.
Be sure to check out Mura’s website that features more of his works.
Here’s the link…
https://stefanomura.myportfolio.com
Here’s the link to his Bon Bon illustrations…
https://stefanomura.myportfolio.com/bon-bon
Here’s a link to the episode featuring the story Bon Bon with Mura’s artwork…
https://youtu.be/NDQWMtjmLJE
Here’s more about Stefano Mura…
“Born in 1971, I graduated from art high school in 1989, and went to college and studied architectural design at the Politecnico di Milano in 1997.
I did a year of civil service at the Caritas of Milan in Quarto Oggiaro
and in 1998 I started working as an architect. In 2008 I married Elena, and in the same year, Gabriele was born.
Drawing is the common denominator in my artistic activities, be they naturalistic or comic drawings. I have portrayed many animals, even on commission.
In 2016 and 2017, I exhibited these works as part of the “Living with animals” event organized in Casteggio by the Bussolera Branca Foundation.
In 2017, I participated in the art collection of the “RAINBOWie festival” organized by the Milanese artist and gallery owner Valentina Carrera and centered on the figure of David Bowie one year after his death.
In 2017 I started publishing comic stories as a screenwriter and illustrator on the newspapers “The Dead” and “Inkstory” by Menhir editions.
In 2018, the preparation of the graphic novel “The wrong island” began, based on the film of the same name by independent director Giorgio Magarò and published in November 2019.
In September 2018 I illustrated the leporelli “La fanciulla Tartaruga” (poem by Maria Grazia Insinga) and “Il ponte di Genova” on the tragedy of the Morandi bridge for Fiorina Edizioni.”
