PALERMO -- “The Broken Dream” is the title of current exhibition at Villa Zito in the Sicilian capital about Piersanti Mattarella: DC (Christian Democracy) counter-current exponent and president of the Sicilian Region in the late 1970s,who was a central figure in Sicily's path to liberation from the Mafiaandwas killed by a hit man on Jan. 6 1980. The initiative is by the Fondazione Sicilia to celebrate 90 years since the Sicilian politician was born (May 24, 1935). The exhibition, curated by Sergio Intorre and journalist Elvira Terranova, consists of 200 photos selected from more than 1,000 kept in family albums by his wife Irma and sons Bernardo, who collaborated on the exhibition, Antonino and Sergio, the current Italian head of state. 

 The photos trace over time Piersanti Mattarella's education, his entry into politics, his rise to the top of the regional government, his relationship with Aldo Moro, whose reforming design he interpreted in Sicily; but also his human and family dimension, through the pictures that portray him with his father, mother, siblings, wife, children, and friends, contributing to outline a well-rounded portrait of him.

 “It is an exhibition designed especially for the youngest who have not had the opportunity to get to know him, young people who will find in him those ethical and moral ideals that are increasingly difficult to find today,” says Foundation President Maria Concetta Di Natale. Many schools have already booked a visit.

 Piersanti Mattarella's political career began on the benches of the Palermo City Council, during the years of Vito Ciancimino and the Sack of Palermo. At the Region, first as regional deputy an then as Councillor for the Budget and President, he launched processes for administrative transparency and against Mafia infiltration in contracts. Images of him alongside Moro, Pertini, Pope Pius XII and Pope John XXIII follow one another.

 The mostly unpublished photos become the beginning of a 360-degree narration that also includes many objects that belonged to Piersanti Mattarella: from the books of his personal library (among others: ‘Political Speeches’ by Alcide De Gasperi, ‘The Sense of History in Christian Thought’ by Jacques Leclercq),the glasses he used to read, and the diary where he wrote down everything and thanks to which it was possible to give each of the shots on display a precise and accurate caption.

 ‘A long but exciting job,’ emphasise curators Intorre and Terranova.

 The didactic apparatuses complete the narrative with texts by Giovanni Grasso, biographer of Piersanti Mattarella. In what has been nicknamed ‘The Mourning Room’, some display cases hold the original newspapers reporting on the assassination. The newspaper L’Ora went on newsstands with an extraordinary edition and the headline ‘Sgomento’.

 Some 45 years after the murder, the perpetrators are still unknown. In 1995, some of the Mafia bosses of the time were sentenced to life imprisonment as instigators. Among them were: Salvatore Riina, Michele Greco, Bernardo Brusca and Bernardo Provenzano. In2018, the Palermo Public Prosecutor's Office reopened the investigation.

 The exhibition can be visited until the end of June from Thursday to Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm, with an extraordinary opening on 20 and 21 April, Easter Sunday and Easter Monday. Admission is free.

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