En route Project – Vatican Apostolic Library

The Beatrice of the Northern Europe

Once “invited on the journey,” it was necessary for someone to tell the story of Consul Cesare Poma, Lucien Leroy and Henri Papillaud’s world tour “without a penny in their pocket” and the exploits of many women who courageously chose to travel alone. A sort of Dantean Beatrice who would guide visitors through the heart of the Victorian age, which in Italy corresponds to the first fifty years of the newly unified kingdom under the Savoia, and in France to the early decades of the Third Republic: the two Parisian journalists set off a year after the Dreyfus Affair broke out and precisely during the days of President Jean Casimir-Perier’s resignation.

What we needed was a guide, on the one hand, who was experienced, so to speak, in the last decades of the 19th century. Someone capable of illustrating that world in its figures and places, in its emblematic elements and the objectivity of historical data, but also in its symbols and atmospheres, in the air du temps. Objective and poetic, didactic and evocative, so as to take the visitor along, re-presenting the biographies of the Italian Consul and the two French journalists, and unfolding before them the itineraries of their travels, the stages, the encounters, the glimpses and sunsets. With a sort of precise and dreamy cartography, because travel is both measurement and discovery.

Kristjana S Williams is a visual artist from distant Iceland who works in London, where in an all-female studio, vibrant with colors, yet with the most fragile and familiar material to us—paper—she creates highly evocative poetic landscapes. She is a regular visitor to maps and geographic charts, and a passionate admirer of the artistic expressions and iconographic motifs of the period in which Poma, the French journalists, and the traveling women lived, blending them together with unexpected results. In her work, the descriptive objectivity of detail coexists with the incongruous juxtaposition suggested by fantasy, the givenness of diurnal and historical elements meets the appearance or the faded aura of a dream, in a dialogue that leads to an image truer than the truth, capable of telling both the visible and the invisible—that is, the material and the immaterial, illustrating and evoking at the same time.

No one better than her, we said, would have known how to convey to the visitor the biographies that had never been written before and the trajectories of travels that had never been told, without them being reduced to a list of facts, certainly well-checked and correct, but cold and lifeless. Or at least devoid of the emotional and ideal elements, the dream and the challenge, the sense of the space traveled, the boundaries crossed, the emotion of the return. A map, when well-made, cannot disregard these factors.

Interview with Kristjana S Williams

by Chiara Agnoli and Cleo Meacci

Could you tell us about your artistic production? What is your creative process and what are the main influences and sources of inspiration for you?

My creative approach is like a vibrant tapestry, woven with threads that evoke Victorian engravings, natural history, and my Icelandic roots. Growing up in Iceland, I had the opportunity to be inspired by the example of a female president, who instilled in me a profound sense of possibility and strength. My work begins with thorough research, often through the pages of old books and rarities I find in antique shops, discovering ideal elements for my collages.
For this exhibition, the rich heritage of the Vatican Library and the intricate details of its manuscripts, printed books, and drawings were a precious source of inspiration for me, guiding every step of my creative process. Additionally, I find great stimulus in the lives of explorers like Isabella Bird and Marian North, women who, with their courage and curiosity, broke social conventions and opened new horizons.

You tell stories through images and colors. How has your passion for this form of storytelling and your artistic technique developed over time?

My passion for visual storytelling started from a childhood fascination with nature and history. Over time, I honed my technique by combining traditional methods, like collage, with digital tools, creating complex, layered visual stories that invite viewers to explore and dream.
Growing up in Iceland, I was surrounded by a unique landscape: black volcanic sand beaches starkly contrasting with snow-capped peaks and shimmering seas. In this setting, imagination was always essential to cope with the long, cold winters when snow and storms isolated mountain farms for months at a time. During those endless nights, stories of elves were told—a deeply rooted tradition in Icelandic culture, which seemed to have literally saved the population from isolation.
The biographies of pioneering female explorers have also left a deep mark on my work, inspiring me to create narratives that celebrate the spirit of discovery and adventure.

You collaborate with various brands such as Harrods, Penhaligons, and the Victoria & Albert Museum. What did it mean for you to collaborate with the Vatican Library?

Collaborating with the Vatican Library was a unique and deeply enriching experience. Its extraordinary historical wealth and aura of sanctity provided an irreplaceable context that stimulated and challenged my creative process. Coming into contact with this institution was like diving into a universe of hidden stories, each waiting to be discovered and told.
This collaboration held a special meaning for me as it allowed me to connect my personal artistic journey with the Library’s heritage, which documents, through engravings and stories of epic journeys by explorers, the nature, science, and history.

Travel, both physical and metaphorical, plays an important role in this exhibition. You create enchanting and imaginative worlds that transport us to other realities, but what does travel mean to you?

For me, it is both a physical experience and an inner journey. It is an opportunity to discover new perspectives by immersing myself in different cultures and environments. Each journey adds a new dimension to my work, infusing it with the colors, textures, and stories of the places I visit. The spirit of female explorers, who ventured into the unknown with courage, inspires me to live travel as a means of personal and artistic growth.

Continue reading the interview in the exhibition catalogue, available for purchase at our Bookshop or on the Antiga Edizioni website.