A striking collaboration across centuries will take center stage at Lucca Comics & Games this year. The Uffizi Galleries in Florence are contributing three powerful, mid-16th-century drawings by Baccio Bandinelli and his workshop to a groundbreaking exhibition that marks Tetsuo Hara, the legendary creator of Ken Shiro (Ken the Warrior), appearing outside Japan for the first time in this form.
The show, curated by Alessandro Apreda and titled “Tetsuo Hara: Come un fulmine dal cielo” (Like a lightning bolt from the sky), will be housed at Lucca’s Chiesa dei Servi from October 25 through November 2, coinciding with the festival’s final days. It represents a historic dialogue between Renaissance mastery and modern manga iconography, underscoring a shared fascination with the muscular, heroic human figure across eras and cultures.
The centerpiece of the exhibit is a triptych of muscular, mythic warriors—ereded from Bandinelli’s studio and handed to Lucca Comics & Games through the Gallerie degli Uffizi. These Renaissance “ancestors” of contemporary action legends are presented alongside preparatory studies and three male figures. The works—labeled as “Figure maschile,” “Studi di braccia,” and “Tre figure maschili”—evoke Ercole (Hercules) in pose and musculature, illustrating Bandinelli’s renowned virtuosity in capturing the tension of the human body.
The Uffizi’s director, Simone Verde, frames the moment as a testament to art’s universal language: “The aesthetic exaltation of corporeal vitality and the virtuosity of reproducing muscular tension mark a constant that crosses centuries. Their reemergence in contemporary manga demonstrates a living dialogue between ancient canons and modern creativity.” In this exhibition, ancient sculpture and modern storytelling converge, highlighting a continuity of expressive power that transcends time.
Photo credits: Uffizi Gallery
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