Italian marble sculpture- Staglieno Cemetery, Genoa, Italy

Gargoyle

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Bentley-Whitehead-before-after.jpg
Before and after photos of the restoration of the Bentley and Whitehead memorials by Lorenzo Orengo

A few years ago I posted here about the sculptures at Staglieno Cemetery in Genoa, Italy. I'd like to give you an update.

For those of you who aren't familiar with Staglieno, it is the largest outdoor museum in Europe and houses the finest collection of late 19th and early 20th century Italian marble sculpture. You'll find thousands of incredible marble carvings within its walls.

Staglieno and the sculptures within suffer greatly from neglect and deterioration. Pollution, moss and mildew, bird droppings, and 100 years of accumulation of dust and dirt, along with disinterest on the part of the heirs of those interred, there all contribute to the problems. The city and province have some very good, dedicated officials who love and understand the treasures they oversee, but who lack the resources to properly preserve them.

I've established a non-profit supporting restoration of these sculptures. Thanks to our donors, we have been able to sponsor five of the sculptures; four have been restored, and the fifth should be finished in the next couple of weeks. The before to after changes are remarkable and heart warming. This work stopped the degradation, reversed some of the damage, and helps them survive into the future.

We're getting ready to launch a complete overhaul of our website, http://staglieno.com, so at the moment it doesn't show the very latest restorations. The new site should be up before July 4th, but in the meantime please visit our facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/StaglienoSculpture
I have quite a number of photos up there, and am adding more all the time, so if you "Like" the page you'll see the new ones in your news feed. And please share the photos with your friends and invite them to the page. While restoring five sculptures is a great start, it's only a drop in the bucket- the more people become aware of the cemetery and of our work, the more the momentum will increase to save these stunning sculptures.

Jannet_Croce_Duff2.jpg
 
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Roger Bleile

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Walter,

Thanks for the pictures and update. How is the grime removed from the marble without damaging the detail? Water pressure? Chemicals?

Roger
 

Gargoyle

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Roger, it's a complex multi step process, different each time. At each step small test areas are done. Then the restorer consults with the art history and restoration people from the provincial agency that oversees art work. Typical steps include dusting with a fine brush, then washing with deionized water and small brushes or cotton swabs, applying poultices that draw out the dirt, treatment with biocides to kill the biological growth and infestation... sometimes some of the black crust has to be carefully scraped off, making sure not to remove any of the marble surface itself. The most recent one also involved laser cleaning. A laser is calibrated to the exact wavelength that causes the dirt to come off without the device touching or harming the marble. (a very good, but slow and difficult technique, appropriate in specific cases. calibration entails taking micro photographs and analyzing them in the lab). When everything is done a protective coating is applied- that is an invisible breathable non permanent coating that only lasts about two years and needs to be repeated.

In this photo you see one section of a leg has been cleaned with the laser. This is the Fletcher memorial, dedicated to the U.S. Consul in Genoa from the late 1800's, his wife and his daughter, all of whom passed away in Genoa. Restoration work on this one should be complete in the next couple of weeks.

Fletcher-laser-cleaning-legs.jpg
 

Dave London

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Thanks Walter
Very interesting, I also enjoyed the too short video about you and your work.
 

monk

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a great museum. and a very great undertaking on your part. the world needs many more people like you !
 

Doc Mark

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Gargoyle. I am very pleased to see this type of restoration work being done. I still treasure and refer to your wonderful book about the Staglieno cemetery. My awe and inspiration is evidenced by the cameo I carved shortly after receiving your book.
 

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Gargoyle

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Beautiful! I love it. It's based on the Giulio Monteverde Angel for the Oneto family tomb.
Monteverde-FB.jpg
 

Gargoyle

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Two more photos, before and after restoration of a fantastic Art Nouveau/Symbolist sculpture by Leonardo Bistolfi.
Carved in 1902-1904.

Bistolfi-feet-before-restoration.jpg

Bistolfi-feet-restored.jpg

(The base of the sculpture is shaped like a cross, three sisters kneeling together. These are actually the feet of two different sisters, I need to get a photo next time I'm there of the other feet.)
 
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Chujybear

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The cleaning job is amazing. Sort of like them dirty tho. When we carve a pole, I say we are never done until it's stood in the weather for a few years.
 

Crazy Horse

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Those are fantastic works. I recall watching a PBS show about the Italian stone carvers who came over to the U.S. to work on the Catholic Cathedral in Washington D.C. I seem to recall they took on some inner-city kids to teach them the trade. I often wonder if any of those kids stayed in the trade.
 

Gargoyle

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Those are fantastic works. I recall watching a PBS show about the Italian stone carvers who came over to the U.S. to work on the Catholic Cathedral in Washington D.C. I seem to recall they took on some inner-city kids to teach them the trade. I often wonder if any of those kids stayed in the trade.
Sounds like you're mixing three things. Not much carving going on the past 50 years at the Catholic Basilica in D.C.; They did have some Italian carvers doing lettering in the 70's, then there was a very large carving done in Italy (although one Italian in the U.S. bid on it) in the late 80's or early 90's.

The National Cathedral in Washington, which is Episcopalian, did have Italian carvers, along with English, Americans, and a few others. I worked there for 5 years. There was a documentary on the Italian carvers there, it won an Oscar around '83 or '84. They mostly hired experienced people, occasionally took on young apprentices with art or trades backgrounds, but not too many.

St. John the Divine in NYC (also Episcopal) brought in English carvers to train Americans, some of whom were inner city kids. They hired a mix of people from different backgrounds. A few people from there are still in the trade, but mainly the ones with more of a stone or art background.
 

Crazy Horse

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You see what happens to your brain as you age??? ;~) If only I could mix a cocktail as well as I mix documentaries. ;~)

Still, I recall the master relating a story about when he was an apprentice and he broke off a lily from the statue he was working on. I wish they would show those documentaries again.

Also, I recall someone from England coming over to Philadelphia's Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts and teaching students the fine art of carving Roman lettering on various buildings in the downtown area of Philly. I wonder if there is still such a program?
 

Gargoyle

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Photos of the restored Fletcher memorial. He was U.S. Consul in Genoa in the late 1800's, and lost his wife and daughter during his service there. He commissioned a young sculptor, Luigi Brizzolara, helping launch Brizzolara's career. The sculptor went on to create many public and memorial sculptures in Italy and South America.

Fletcher-dediation-flags.jpg

We're trying to spread the word about Staglieno and the restoration work. Please visit, like and share our FB page.
https://www.facebook.com/StaglienoSculpture/
 

Gargoyle

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Before and after photos of the Fletcher memorial.

fletcher-angel-before.jpg

Fletcher-angel-restored.jpg
 

RDP

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That's amazing work restoring all the sculptures, one thing that fascinates me more are the eyes, so life like, as in the second photo of the lady and more so the sculpture of Father Damen you posted awhile ago, if you don't mind, could you explain the process of sculpting the eyes, thanks,

Richard.
 

Gargoyle

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That's amazing work restoring all the sculptures, one thing that fascinates me more are the eyes, so life like, as in the second photo of the lady and more so the sculpture of Father Damen you posted awhile ago, if you don't mind, could you explain the process of sculpting the eyes, thanks,

Richard.
I like carving eyes early in the morning. I'll start with three cups of coffee to steady my hands and clear my vision, then pencil them in and carve them.

I go for light and shadow, not shape and form. When you look at a stone sculpture you're really looking at the light and shadow, so I try to shape those. Slightly exaggerate the upper lid to cast a shadow, play down the lower lid so it gets a highlight but very little shadow... the highlight in the pupil is very important, and needs to contrast with a dark pupil and dark shadow under the lid...

Eyes-begin.jpg

Here's another shot of the Monteverde angel from Staglieno, with her incredible eyes.
monteverde-angel.jpg
 

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