Design and Creation of the Work

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Paola Artoni - Director - Madonnari Museum
How did this project come about?
It is a project that was born from a collective inspiration. An idea reached several people, and as they began to talk about it, it became clear that we were speaking the same language, that perhaps the same idea had been given to everyone.
We know that this sanctuary is a place where people come to ask for a grace, to seek forgiveness, to implore a miracle, but also to ask for peace—inner peace.
The absence of the Madonnari’s colors was experienced as a moment of lack, and it became clear that only through art could that moment become historic. The pain will pass, this moment will pass, but we cannot let what has happened be forgotten. We had to record and seal this historic moment, to remember what has been experienced, and to remind ourselves that art is a way for humans to tell their own story, but also to go beyond themselves and reach toward the infinite.
Paolo Bertelli - Art Historian
The work proposed by twelve Madonnari—which is a rather symbolic number—and created here in the sanctuary has many meanings. First of all, it is a collective ex voto, not just from individual Madonnari, but from the entire community of Madonnari, the people of Mantua, and indeed all of us. Many concepts underlie the works: obviously the Assunta, the patron of the sanctuary; the icon of the Blessed Virgin of Grazie on the main altar; and certain stories and figures.
Of course, there is Straccetto, a Madonnaro, who was one of the most extraordinary Madonnari to have worked in the piazza, symbolizing humanity itself. There is Saint Pius X, who was Bishop of Mantua and certainly lived here at Palazzo Sarto, possibly visiting his brother’s home. The figures of Saint Roch and Saint Sebastian represent devotions present in the sanctuary. Then there is John Paul II, whose centenary is celebrated this year, and who visited the sanctuary in 1991. Finally, Saint Bernardino of Siena, who, 600 years ago during these very months, was present in Grazie with his preaching throughout the Mantuan territory. This structure, in truth, mirrors part of the wooden scaffold.
Mariano Bottoli - Master Madonnaro
For the Madonnari, moving from the forecourt into the sanctuary means entering a closed space, much like during the Covid lockdown, where we remained confined. When we did something similar in 1991 for the Pope, we all worked on a single design conceived by Kurt Wenner for all of us; in the end, there were about thirty of us. When I was asked to create a collective design, I could not say, “I will have 30 people work on my design.” Instead, I said that each Madonnaro has a personality that must emerge. So, I thought of them in niches, much like a curator would, allowing each this possibility.
The fascinating aspect was seeing the results once we unrolled the works here, where each artist truly put all their energy into the center of their image. I believe that when observed together, they will appear as many small pearls reflecting the subjects assigned to each individual.
The Madonnari approached this with joy, fundamentally, accepting to do something as a votive offering to the Madonna, without other implications beyond faith or their personal participation with the Saint they were asked to represent.

The Madonnari project at the Sanctuary of Grazie was born from a collective inspiration: a shared idea that allowed several artists to speak the same language, transforming a moment of absence of colors on the forecourt into a historic and meaningful occasion. Art thus becomes a means to tell the story of humanity, the community, and devotion, to capture emotions and hopes in time, and to offer a collective ex voto dedicated to the Virgin Mary.

Twelve Madonnari, each with their own personality and style, created individual works that come together in a collective mosaic, symbolically recreating the wooden scaffold of the sanctuary. The figures depicted evoke significant moments and characters from local history and faith: the Assunta, the icon of the Blessed Virgin of Grazie, Saint Pius X, Saint Roch, Saint Sebastian, John Paul II, and Saint Bernardino of Siena, celebrating centuries of devotion and Mantuan culture.

The transition from the forecourt to the sanctuary represented both a creative and spiritual challenge: the artists worked in niches, each focusing on their own subject, putting all their energy and passion into their contribution. The final work thus becomes a collection of small artistic pearls, telling the story of faith, memory, and hope of a community, transforming the ephemeral art of the Madonnari into a universal message of devotion and participation.