By Alice Rainis
An important exhibition is currently on at the Wallace Collection, dedicated to the not very well-known art of painting on maiolica. If the majority spontaneously associate the term “Renaissance” with names such as Michelangelo and Raffaello thanks to their immense works, surely less famous is the name of “Francesco Xanto Avelli da Rovigo”, one of the greatest Italian exponents of this art, wrongly considered secondary.
Though unknown to the non-experts, this versatile artist – like a very Renaissance’s intellectual – did not limit himself to the study of a single art only, but ranged over many other fields among which writing is the most important. The exhibition boasts, therefore, more than sixty plates realised with the technique of “lustro” and 44 sonnets collected in a manuscript granted for the occasion from the Apostolic Library of the Vatican.
The show is then a precious occasion for the specialists of the field, who have the possibility to examine a high-quality selection of works. At the same time, it is a great opportunity for non-experts to approach this particular subject. What impresses indeed, regardless of the personal artistic background or knowledge, is the power of the colours proper to each piece. Although half a millennium from their realisation has passed, the pieces maintain the same blues, the infinite shades of greens, the gaudy yellows, the luminous gold: result of the particular technique that has permitted to preserve the intensity of the colours. Each single plate draws the viewer’s attention making him wish to discover its details and to understand its history: behind the painting, in fact, a complex vicissitude is hidden, allegorically narrated by the artist.
John Mallet, the greatest connoisseur in the world of the work of Xanto – who has nicely talked about his approach to the Italian culture which combines art to the culture of the good food – has explained to us that every single composition is actually the result of a continuous superimposition of figures extracted from other images; an immense collage of symbolic characters resulting in one great story held in a single maiolica. By describing especially the contemporary political facts – like the Sacking of Rome, to cite one of the most symbolic examples – Xanto can be considered a narrator of his age, a witness of a history continuously changing.
The visit has been led by John Mallet and Jeremy Warren, Head of Collections at the Wallace Collection, who have rendered it even more pleasant thanks to their kindness and the appreciable sense of humour, along with their authoritative artistic knowledge.
Of secondary importance from the cultural point of view, but undoubtedly a positive element to point out, is the wonderful inner space of the palace dedicated to the refreshments: the tea break is inevitable.
The video interview, in Italian, and the photographs of the exhibition are available on our website.
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