The Church is joyfully bustling with preparations for the upcoming 2025 Jubilee. In preparation for it, it has already created The Council Notebooks, a collection - commissioned by Pope Francis - that explores the four conciliar constitutions to give all Christians the opportunity to reclaim the precious treasure produced by the Second Vatican Council. But the Church, which is a mother, did not want to stop there and has planned numerous events that will open the doors of spirituality, faith, and art to everyone. The exhibition The Open Heavens. El Greco in Rome. is part of the events being prepared for the Holy Year. Let’s discover it together!
El Greco’s masterpieces in Rome for the first time
In the heart of Rome, in the church of Sant’Agnese in Agone (Piazza Navona), the exhibition The Open Heavens. El Greco in Rome. was inaugurated by Monsignor Fisichella.
For the first time, three works by Domínikos Theotokópoulos, known as El Greco, are leaving Spain to be admired in the capital. An exceptional exhibition that opens the pilgrimage of beauty and art toward the next Holy Year.
Until October 5, 2023, three masterpieces by the Spanish Renaissance artist who lived between 1541 and 1614 will be on display. Two of these works come from Toledo: Holy Family with Saint Anne and Baptism of Christ, from the Hospital de Tavera, and the third, Christ Embracing the Cross, from El Bonillo, Museo Paroquial.
An artist who opens the way to contemplation
El Greco was a painter, sculptor, and architect; he was born in 1541 in Crete and died in Toledo on April 7, 1614. In Toledo, he created some of his most important works, and today he is considered one of the most significant artists of the late Spanish Renaissance. El Greco also lived in Italy for a long time, first in Venice and then in Rome. During his time in Italy, he modified his style, enriching it with elements drawn from the Venetian Renaissance.
The artist’s Greek name, Theotokópoulos, means “man touched by God.” In this sense, the choice of El Greco to open the series of events leading up to Jubilee 2025 is highly significant. Indeed, he expresses the beauty of God together with its mystery; before his works, viewers are captivated by the transcendence conveyed by the vertical figures and enter into contemplation of an invisible reality that surpasses the works themselves.
A “pilgrimage” of beauty
Open Heavens. El Greco in Rome is one of the first major art events intended to open a “pilgrimage” of beauty toward the next Holy Year, whose motto is Pilgrims of Hope. Monsignor Rino Fisichella, appointed by the Pope to organize it, announced that exhibitions of artworks and events will also be held in hospitals and prisons, precisely to bring the universal language of beauty and a message of hope to places where they are most needed.
We remind everyone that the exhibition can be visited free of charge until October 5, 2023, at Sant’Agnese in Agone (Piazza Navona), every day from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.
