Corto: “You’re wasting your time… outside of this labyrinth
you won’t find a thing!”
Corto Maltese is a “cult” character of the best of the European graphic novel genre, but also a veritable 20th century literary legend. He’s a traveler, an ironic sailor who combines Mediterranean looks and character traits with Anglo-Saxon culture.
Corto, which in Spanish means “fast”, was created in 1967 by the great Venetian illustrator Hugo Pratt.
Corto is an anti-hero who prefers freedom and imagination to wealth. He’s a modern-day Ulysses who takes us along on his travels to the most fascinating places in the world.
The heritage of Corto Maltese: sixth stop in Greece for the exhibition dedicated to Hugo Pratt, organised by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
“Hugo Pratt – Heritage, Works and Biography”: the exhibition by Patrizia Zanotti taking place from November 10 to December 5 at Papagos-Cholargos Municipal Art Gallery
Hugo Pratt Comics Awards: Senigallia hosts the first edition of the prize, featuring exhibitions and graphic literature
From the port to the Rocca Roveresca, Senigallia celebrates the Hugo Pratt Comics Awards dedicated to schools and academies of comics and young authors.
“The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.“The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.
“The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.
From July 9th, the Molo di Levante in Senigallia becomes an open-air homage to Hugo Pratt and Corto Maltese, through a permanent installation that blends art, memory, and the sea.
Corto Maltese – A world of adventures: the exhibition at the Saline Royale (France) from april 27th
Lyon, the exhibition ‘Hugo Pratt, the legacy, the work, the biography’ at the Université Catholique de Lyon from 28th January until 21st march 2025
“Hugo Pratt, the heritage, the artwork, the biography”: exhibition in April in Jordan for Comics Week
“Hugo Pratt – Heritage, Works and Biography,” an exhibition by Patrizia Zanotti, taking place from April 27 to May 2 at Sweifieh Village, Rooftop.
Extended! Hugo Pratt in Siena for the anthological exhibition ‘Imaginary Geographies’. From 11 April 2025.
At the Palazzo delle Papesse in Siena, a major exhibition dedicated to Hugo Pratt and the world of drawn literature. An unmissable appointment and a journey through the art of the master of comics.
The exhibition dedicated to Corto and Pratt in De Chirico’s house, from 5 February in Volos
Corto Maltese in Volos, with the project promoted by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation and Cong SA, taking Hugo Pratt's art around the world to promote Italian language and culture
Corto Maltese returns to Lyon, the exhibition at the Université Catholique de Lyon from 28th January
Lyon, the exhibition ‘Hugo Pratt, the legacy, the work, the biography’ at the Université Catholique de Lyon from 28th January until 21st march 2025
HIGHLIGHTS
Corto Maltese sets sail in English digital editions
Cong launches the first official English-language eBooks of Hugo Pratt’s stories
EBOOK
Beyond the windy isles
This Corto Maltese eBook is now available in English on all major online stores
Mushroom Heads begins and ends in Maracaibo, Venezuela, where the antiquarian Levi Colombia finances an expedition to the equatorial Amazon led by Corto Maltese and Professor Steiner, on the trail of the legendary Eldorado. Banana Conga is based on a story by American writer Art Buchwald, taken by Pratt and reworked to explore the idea of a foreign presence forced to leave Mosquito, a small town on the east coast of Honduras. In Voodoo for the president the action moves from Barbados to the fictional island of Port Ducal and a mock trial with a dead president who is believed alive.
The extremely intriguing theme of cowardice is developed in Sweet Dream Lagoon in an area on the delta of the Orinoco. Another jungle, located in the Peruvian Amazon, is the site of A Tale of Two Grandfathers where Corto and Steiner set off to find a missing white child who is presumed to be living with a tribe of Jivaro Indians.
EBOOK
Under the sign of Capricorn
This Corto Maltese eBook is now available in English on all major online stores
Corto Maltese: Under the Sign of Capricorn collects the first six inter-connected short stories created by Hugo Pratt after the success of A Ballad of the Salty Sea: “The Secret of Tristan Bantam” “Rendez-vous in Bahia” “Sureshot Samba” “The Brazilian Eagle” “So Much for Gentlemen of Fortune” and “The Seagull’s Fault“
A boy in search of a submerged continent, a drunken professor; a voodoo priestess and her young apprentice; a rebel who forces Corto Maltese to choose sides, and an injury that will cause him to look at reality in a new way.
While Corto is doing all he can to escape from the world, destiny keeps putting in his path people willing to do anything in pursuit of something: a lost land, a ship with a cargo of gold, the promise of freedom… A journey to discover South America, its mysteries and its intoxicating beauty.
eBook: Wheeling
The complete series of Wheeling by Hugo Pratt has been published in English for the first time:
a series of 3 books released exclusively in eBook format.
WHEELING
Complete
This is Hugo Pratt’s first great masterpiece, both for its graphic design and for the subject matter; that is, the 18th century War of Independence in North America involving the settlers and French and English interests in the northeastern part of the country.
WHEELING
Vol. 1
1774. Criss Kenton, a 17 year old who fled from Virginia following the massacre of his family by the Indians, and Patrick Fitzgerald, an English aristocrat who has immigrated to America, get to know each other while participating in a series of organized raids on Indian tribes.
WHEELING
Vol. 2
In the second volume we find Criss and Mohena, the two heroes of the first story, making their way back to Wheeling. But the bloody War of Independence is still raging, and Criss will soon have to depart once more on a mission, leaving the girl Mohena alone again.
eBook: The Scorpions of the Desert
The complete series of The Scorpions of the Desert by Hugo Pratt has been published in English for the first time.
A series of 5 books released exclusively in eBook format.
THE SCORPIONS OF THE DESERT
The Hugo Pratt series is being published for the first time in English by CongeEditions, the new publishing house of CONG SA – Hugo Pratt Art Properties, the firm that manages all of Hugo Pratt’s work. The 5 titles in the series have been published in English in eBook format.
Autumn 1940, the border between Libya and Egypt. The protagonists are a group of men who are part of the British Army: the Long Range Desert Group.
January 1941, Anglo-Egyptian Sudan. The war, the desert, and the regular English and Italian armies set the scene for this story of three solitary men.
Lieutenant Koïnsky, on board an airplane, must reach the British military summits for an important meeting with the Ethiopian Emperor Haile Selassie.
Captain Koïnsky continues on his mission to Djibouti and Harar. This time the trip starts out in a jeep with the French lieutenant De La Motte.
An adventure in the yellow sands of North Africa, following the coast of the blue sea toward Djibouti and Dire Dawa, Captain Koïnsky’s final destination.
Events
From all over the world, the latest events relating to Corto.
The heritage of Corto Maltese: sixth stop in Greece for the exhibition dedicated to Hugo Pratt, organised by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs
“Hugo Pratt – Heritage, Works and Biography”: the exhibition by Patrizia Zanotti taking place from November 10 to December 5 at Papagos-Cholargos Municipal Art Gallery
Hugo Pratt Comics Awards: Senigallia hosts the first edition of the prize, featuring exhibitions and graphic literature
From the port to the Rocca Roveresca, Senigallia celebrates the Hugo Pratt Comics Awards dedicated to schools and academies of comics and young authors.
- “The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.
“The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.
“The Port Recounts Corto in 100 Blocks” Starting July 9th, Senigallia pays tribute to Hugo Pratt with a permanent installation along the Molo di Levante.
From July 9th, the Molo di Levante in Senigallia becomes an open-air homage to Hugo Pratt and Corto Maltese, through a permanent installation that blends art, memory, and the sea.
Corto Maltese – A world of adventures: the exhibition at the Saline Royale (France) from april 27th
Lyon, the exhibition ‘Hugo Pratt, the legacy, the work, the biography’ at the Université Catholique de Lyon from 28th January until 21st march 2025
Reviews from all over the world
People everywhere love Corto Maltese and Hugo Pratt. We have selected a number of articles dedicated to them, just for you.
