On the centenary of his birth, Rovigo celebrates Antonio Cibotto
Writer, journalist, man of cinema and culture
He interpreted the Polesine like no one else.

He left in time to not see a Veneto transformed by modernity: that land he loved so much because he felt radically and totally its son. In memory of Gian Antonio Cibotto, simply Toni (even though he jokingly introduced himself in his own way as "count of Lendinara, duke of Vallier and patron of Vangadizza"), the Cassa di Risparmio di Padova e Rovigo Foundation dedicates an exhibition on the centenary of his birth (which will fall on May 8, 2025) at Palazzo Roncale in Rovigo. With a title that sets the tone: "Gian Antonio Cibotto (1925-2017) - The taste of storytelling".
The exhibition is promoted by the Cassa di Risparmio di Padova e Rovigo Foundation with the Municipality of Rovigo and the Accademia dei Concordi, curated by Francesco Jori. The exhibition, born from an idea of Sergio Campagnolo, is curated by Francesco Jori, a journalist who had a long and intense relationship with Toni Cibotto, and directed by Alessia Vedova.

At the Roncale from December 5, 2025 to June 29, 2026.
A decidedly multifaceted character: from journalism to writing, from theater to cinema to cultural events, Cibotto crossed the second half of the twentieth century and the early glimpse of the third millennium with a relentless presence, between the erudite and the popular, both accompanied by a vein of biting irony but at the same time of great attachment to his land and his people. Of whom he noted: "The Venetians, these transplanted English between the Alpine arch and the Po Valley, like their relatives from beyond the Channel, possess a magical virtue, a substantial vein of humor".

The exhibition in Rovigo aims to offer visitors an itinerary that revisits his long journey, starting from the beginnings that saw him as a very young volunteer involved in assisting the populations affected by the devastating Po flood of 1951: an experience from which his first masterpiece, "Chronicles of the Flood", would later emerge. From there, a sequence that saw him engaged in journalism, literary and theatrical criticism, a rich literary production, and the promotion of nationally significant events such as the Campiello Prize. All against the backdrop of his Rovigo (including the high-profile family context in the city at that time), to which he was tied by a love-hate relationship, and his home where he kept the legendary library of 37,000 volumes, including works with dedications from prestigious authors.

It is an opportunity to savor again that "fil rouge" of minimal stories that represented his true literary hallmark: the result of a meticulous and passionate reconnaissance in the field, aboard his legendary Mini Minor; "driven by the urgency to testify to render justice, without explicit literary ambitions, but rich in a vivid moral sense," as Cesare De Michelis wrote about him.