Panoram Italia – It is with deep sadness that we announce the death of Panoram Italia magazine’s co-founder, Prof. Filippo Salvatore, at his home in Montreal on March 28, 2023, following a valiant battle with cancer. Author, poet, professor, man of culture his contribution to Canada’s Italian community and cultural heritage will forever be remembered.
Born in Guglionesi (Molise, Italy) in 1948, he immigrated to Montreal in 1964. After his studies at McGill, he obtained a doctorate in Italian Studies from Harvard University in 1980. He then began a teaching career at the University of Montreal, at Champlain College and, until his retirement, as a professor of Italian Studies at Concordia University.
He left a body of work that includes 14 books and numerous articles in Italian, French and English, numerous conferences throughout the world and a teaching career that has reached thousands of students.
He was a passionate scholar of the Italian presence in Québec to which he devoted numerous essays (for Guernica Le fascisme et les Italiens de Montréal. Une histoire orale, 1995 and Ancient Memories, Modern Identities; Italian Roots in Contemporary Italian Authors, 1999; for Balzac Editions, Le Cinéma de Paul Tana, Parcours critiques, with Anna Gural-Migdal, 1997).
His poetic career, in Italian, which began in 1977 with the poetic collection Tufo e gramigna continued with the publication of Terre e infiniti (2012) and Nuovamente (2018); he is also the author of the play La Fresque de Mussolini (1992).
A champion of the Italian community in Canada, of which he was one of the most eloquent voices for half a century, he was named Cavaliere della Repubblica in 2003. A man of principle, he was also involved in municipal politics and, throughout his life, in various community organizations and learned societies. A journalist and editorial writer as prolific as he was rigorous, he left an indelible mark on the weekly Il Cittadino canadese and the magazine Panoram Italia, which he co-founded.
Filippo will be remembered for his lively discussions on art, politics and culture, and more recently for his contemplative walks among ‘his’ olive trees in Fonte Nuova (Guglionesi, Italy), where he drew inspiration for his award-winning poetry, which won prizes in Italy in 2013 and 2017, and which animated him from his youth to the very end of his life.
The family will receive condolences at the Urgel Bourgie Funeral Complex (1255 Beaumont Street, Town of Mount Royal) on Friday, April 14 from 7 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, April 15 from 9 to 11 a.m. A celebration of life will be held at the complex on Saturday, April 15 at 11 a.m.
Your sympathy can be expressed through a donation to the Canadian Cancer Society (Make a donation: 1 800 268-8874).
