A special fresco for the last FMR-Art’è book dedicated to Saint Francis of Assisi

30 Aug A special fresco for the last FMR-Art’è book dedicated to Saint Francis of Assisi

Mariani Affreschi has been commissioned to create a very special project, and its master artists are proud to commit themselves to the task. It is a fresco made especially for the cover of a very precious book dedicated to Saint Francis created by FMR-Art’è, which contains the regulatory and spiritual texts of the early years of the fraternity from 1209 to 1221.

Production of the fresco by the Mariani artists for the FMR-Art’è book dedicated to St Francis

The subject is a cherished reproduction of Saint Francis of Assisi holding up the Lateran Basilica, a symbol of the salvation and renewal that the poor man brought to the church.  The fresco of the book is an aspect of Pope Innocent III’s dream, created by Giotto in the Upper Church of the Basilica of St Francis of Assisi.

A detail of the work performed in the Mariani atelier

“We are very proud to have been part of this special work,” commented the Mariani team. “It was a remarkable and emotional experience for us and our artists, especially because the cover nr. 1 has been donated to Pope Francesco”.

Using the traditional “strappo” technique the artists have transferred the image of the fresco to the book

The master craftsmen of Mariani created, one by one, the one hundred and fifty numbered copies using the same ancient techniques of Giotto. With natural pigments and earths mixed with water and laid on a layer of wet plaster the fresco acquires beauty and endures over time. Using the traditional “strappo” technique – which involves gluing the fresco on a canvas support – the artists transferred the image of the fresco to the book.

The book by FMR-Art’è with the cover of St Francis custom made by the Mariani artists

This technique allows transferring the materiality, vibrations and brightness of the colours of the original. “True to our unwavering commitment to revive the essential values of humanity through the beauty that art has evoked over the centuries,” declares Fabio Lazzari Vice President of FMR-Art’è in the book’s introduction, “we have created a work in which words and images directly correspond. Why art? Because we believe the artist is the closest person to the sacred work of the Divine. The quality of our work aims at documenting a beauty that redeems matter and makes it luminous”.

A detail of the fresco, inspired by the work of Giotto, on the book cover

Details of the book, Mariani has created 150 covers for this very special project. Cover nr. 1 has been donated to Pope Francesco