The last Byzantine. Santo Spartà

Opening: 18 October at 2,30 p.m.
Curated by Felice Nittolo and Giovanni Gardini. With this exhibition dedicated to Spartà, The Last Byzantine, niArt adds an important piece to the research on the mosaic masters of the 20th century, on those artists who, in various ways, were not only the custodians but also the skilled interpreters of the ancient technique of Ravenna mosaics. During major restoration projects, these masters were able to observe the mosaic surfaces of Ravenna’s 5th and 6th-century monuments up close, scrutinising their “secrets” and caressing the tiles, looking face to face at the great biblical figures, and saints of the early Christian era, thus gaining unparalleled familiarity with the austere and marvellous art of mosaic.
Santo Spartà, whose memory lives on in the hearts and minds of those who knew, loved and respected him, belongs rightfully to the ranks of those who had the privilege of developing an extraordinary intimacy with these mosaics, recognising the unparalleled wisdom of the great artists of antiquity. Looking at Spartà’s self-portraits on display, it is clear that he trained at the school of the ancients, fully grasped their teachings and reinterpreted them in the light of contemporary times: the stern and serene gaze imprinted in stone and enamel, while retaining the solemnity of the faces of martyrs with deep, impenetrable eyes, is also fully in keeping with 20th-century art. This mastery of mosaic tiles, which emerges from the testimonies of those who knew him and had him as a teacher, also emerges in his paintings, where the brushstrokes have the texture and beauty of marble and smalti.