Bartolo Cattafi: The legacy of a forgotten 20th-century Italian poet

Bartolo Cattafi (1922–1979) was a significant Italian poet of the second half of the 20th century whose legacy has largely faded from public memory. Born in Barcellona Pozzo di Gotto, Sicily, Cattafi was raised in a bourgeois environment by his mother, Matilde Ortoleva, following the death of his father. His early exposure to the arts was facilitated by his uncle, Enrico Barresi, who introduced him to the home of futurist painter Guglielmo Jannelli, where he encountered avant-garde figures such as Giacomo Balla and Fortunato Depero.

Though he initially studied law in Messina in 1940, Cattafi was more deeply influenced by literature, reading authors ranging from Melville and Faulkner to Pavese and Pirandello. His poetic journey began during World War II; after being called to the front in 1943, he suffered a nervous breakdown due to military discipline and returned to Sicily. It was during this period of intense sensory experience and the backdrop of wartime conflict that he began writing poetry. Despite being esteemed by literary figures like Giorgio Bassani, Cattafi remains a relatively obscure figure to the general public.