From his workshop in the heart of Vanchiglia a neighborhood in Turin, Gianluca Di Matteo creates puppets that travel the world — from Japan and France to South Korea and Turkey.

Di Matteo trained at the Scuola di Guarattelle in Naples, founded by puppeteer Bruno Leone. In 2004, he moved to Turin, a city he says was a natural home for his art.

“It’s a multicultural city where Pulcinella and my other puppets from the Neapolitan tradition feel at home,” Di Matteo says. “Turin is a crossroads of cultures, from the immigrants who arrived from southern Italy decades ago to the newer communities. Especially in the neighborhood where I live, Porta Palazzo.”