Thursday 9 Mayat 5.30pmat the church of San Martino in Astiwill be presented the “Art and Faith” catalogdedicated to the seventeenth-century paintings kept in the church, an artistic heritage of inestimable value that testifies to the profound relationship between art and spirituality.
The initiative, which falls within the scope of the “Days for the Valorization of Ecclesiastical Cultural Heritage 2024: Treasures of San Martino – Seventeenth-century Canvases, Barnabites, latest restorations”, is supported by the Asti-Alessandria Volunteer Service Center and began with the return of two important canvases to the exhibition space of the church. “Christ in Pietà Lamented by Saints Francis of Assisi and Charles Borromeo” Of Giovanni Battista Fariano and “The Annunciation” Of Carlo Alessandro Macagno.
The first work, created by Fariano in 1663represents a moment of great emotional intensity. Commissioned by a member of the Monte family, feudal lords of the castle of Vigliano d’Asti, it has a fascinating history that takes us back in time.
The Macagno paintingcommissioned by the Marini family in 1670, it is instead linked to the chapel of the Santa Casa di Loreto, built in 1668 in the ancient church of San Martino. Carlo Alessandro Macagno, active in Piedmont, left an indelible mark with this representation of the Annunciation.
Both works they were exhibited until the 1970s in the rooms of the Barnabite convent, in Piazza San Martino. However, in 1987, with the departure of the Fathers from Asti, they were transferred to Milanat the Zaccaria Institute, next to the church of San Barnaba.
During the meeting, it will also be presented the restoration of the pictorial decoration of the vault in front of the presbytery of the churchmade in 2023. Gionata Furnari, owner of the company “Furnari Restauri”, will share details and curiosities about this important intervention.
They will participate in the event – with free entry and to which all art and culture enthusiasts are invited to attend Father Luigi Testa (parish priest of San Martino), Father Paolo Rippa (Superior Province of Italy of the Barnabites), Stefano Zecchino (director of the Diocesan Museum), Andrea Rocco (Asti Museums Foundation), Matilde Picollo (Historical of Art) e Veronica Russo (author of a thesis on San Martino and the Barnabites in Piedmont)
