Some of our readers may be aware of the history of the Benedictine monastery of Norcia, located in the birthplace of St. Benedict. That monastery, located over the house of Ss. Benedict and Scholastica, was tragically damaged by an earthquake a few years ago, but out of that tragedy new light comes to us. As part of the rebuilding of a new monastery, one located in a more cloistered setting conducive to the monastic life and rule of St. Benedict, a programme of decoration has been taking place for the last while in the monastery chapel, undertaken by Italian artist Fabrizio Diomedi of Corrindonia, Italy. (For those interested, you can also find him on social media.)
Knowing of our interest in the project, the artist contacted LAJ to inform us of the completion of the new Nativity painting in the church, just in time for the Christmas season. Mr. Diomedi sets some background for LAJ and its readership:
Now, without further ado, let us look to the scene itself which exudes a brightness of colour that brings to mind the works of Renaissance mannerism.
Of course, this is only one of the many pieces of sacred art that are being completed within the monastic church. In a future article we hope to take our readers more fully through some of the other pieces of liturgical art which now ornament this chapel and the community it serves.
The scene is inspired, like all the others, by the Renaissance style of the 15th century. I did not choose a particular reference or author, but I simply captured the characteristic elements of that art: the perspective, the lateral light that casts shadows, some classical elements, the landscape. The iconography of the Nativity is also taken from the same period, according to a version that includes some of the elements of the vision of Saint Bridget of Sweden. I wanted to put the Virgin at the center, not only because the pictorial cycle is dedicated to her, but also because she visually represents the channel through which the Word, from Heaven, became man. She places herself on the axis that from the star reaches the Child, lying below. Even the fact that the Child rests on Mary's cloak alludes to his generation. The red dress and the light that surrounds her make her the focal point of the scene. The star has 6 rays, this is because Jesus is the son of David, but also because the intersection of the I and the X, or the initials of Jesus Christ written in Greek, obtains a six-pointed shape. The scene takes place in a stable created inside classical-style ruins. A broken arch recalls the end of the ancient alliance as well as paganism, while a new arch, upside down, appears in the sky and is formed by the angels who adore Jesus. The New Alliance is a celestial alliance, of divine origin. The shepherds, Saint Joseph and also the ox and the donkey adore the incarnate Word in a convergent way so as to create a balanced scene although not rigidly symmetrical.
Here then are some images of the new Nativity scene, first shown here within its broader context. (You can find it to the epistle side of the altar, located above the entrance to the sacristy. Do take note of some of the other beautiful painted and other decorative work).
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| Detail of the Virgin |
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| The Christ Child |
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| Detail of St. Joseph |
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| Detail of the Shepherds |
Of course, this is only one of the many pieces of sacred art that are being completed within the monastic church. In a future article we hope to take our readers more fully through some of the other pieces of liturgical art which now ornament this chapel and the community it serves.
It is an impressive and ambitious decorative programme undertaken in the rich tradition of Catholic liturgical art.
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| The chapel, still seen here in progress, on Ash Wednesday, 2024. |
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