"Okay, it was Meloni, but along the lines of the painting that was there before."
"I covered the face because the Vatican told me to. The Curia [the administrative body of the Holy See] wanted it that way, and I erased it."
"presented features that did not conform to the original iconography and the sacred context"
"a tool for propaganda"
An angel's face resembling Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni was erased from a fresco in the chapel of the Basilica of St Lawrence in Lucina, Rome. The artist, Bruno Valentinetti, restored a fresco he originally painted in 2000 and acknowledged the likeness. The parish priest said the fresco required conservation after water damage. The removal followed complaints from Vatican officials and an inquiry launched by the Italian ministry of culture and the Diocese of Rome. The Vicariate of Rome said the depiction "presented features that did not conform to the original iconography and the sacred context." Political figures warned against using art as propaganda. The ministry cautioned that further restorations require formal authorisations.
Read at The Art Newspaper - International art news and events
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