The altarpiece of the Holy Trinity with Saints is an 18th-century baroque painting by Maltese artist Enrico Regnaud (1692-1764). It is located at the archpresbyterial and archmatrix church of the Assumption of Mary in Gudja, and is more than three metres high.

Painted in an oil-on-canvas technique, this monumental work depicts the Holy Trinity with St John the Evangelist, Pope Lucius and St Francis of Paola. The scene is split into two registers: the heavenly realm and the human realm – a typically somewhat rigid compositional format by the artist.

In the upper part, the eternal Father, represented with white hair and beard and a celestial garment, sits on a throne of clouds, and looks at the spectators with open hands. The head of the dead Christ rests on the palm of his right hand.

This is a somewhat rare representation for this subject of the Trinity: usually, in Trinity iconography, Jesus is awake or on the Cross, but not yet dead. The Holy Spirit appears in the form of a white dove, just above God the Son.

This is a somewhat rare representation for this subject of the Trinity

Around the Trinity there is a choir of putti emerging from behind the clouds, and two angels flying around the throne. The first of the two putti on either side of the throne has a red cloth fluttering around him, brown locks over a childish face, small white wings, and is holding a crown of thorns. The angel on the right is holding up the throne, and also has a youthful face and golden locks, with a pink and yellow cloth draped from his shoulders, but is larger in comparison. Despite the anatomical discrepancy, the disembodied legs coming out from the clouds likely belong to him.

In the bottom tier, Regnaud places three saints, sitting on the clouds against the blue ground, gazing at the divine scene above. On the left is the youthful St John, dressed in green and red robes, his hands holding a feather and a book, on which are written the first verses from the Book of St John in Latin. At his feet is his other attribute, the black eagle.

St Francis of Paola is depicted next to him, also in accordance with tradition: a bearded old man with white hair, wearing a brown habit and holding a staff with a sunburst at the end with the word ‘Charitas’.

The final figure is Pope Lucius, placed on the right and also depicted as a bearded white-haired old man, dressed in a white alb and a matching red maniple and a decorated cope. At his feet is a cream-coloured triregnum, with three-jewel encrusted golden crowns with four-petalled flowers and a small cross at the top.

The artist uses a typically colourful palette throughout the painting, highlighting each significant attribute of every character depicted. To a certain extent, the discrepancy within the anatomy of the angel on the right may reveal Regnaud’s difficulty in modelling the human form, especially in the nude, as is also evident in the figure of Christ. Yet, the Holy Trinity with Saints remains one of Regnaud’s best pictures on the island.

Although somewhat enigmatic, since not much is known about his early years and training, Regnaud was a prolific artist. He was not a remarkable painter; however, he possessed enough talent to earn several ecclesiastical commissions over the years, including two at the Gudja parish church: the Holy Trinity with Saints and the Adoration of the Magi. His restrained late baroque manner emerges in the Trinity; as does his tendency to take on from various sources. In fact, it is quite evident that he is referencing Giovanni Lanfranco (1582-1647) in this work, most likely through the circulation of prints.

The Holy Trinity with Saints is an integral part of the collection at St Mary church in Gudja, and is also testimony to the artistic capabilities of Regnaud. Through the recent restoration carried out on it, this painting may be viewed in all its glory and appreciated, as well as further studied for its artistic merits.

Conservation and restoration

Upon its arrival at the conservation centre operated by Amy Sciberras Conservators, it became immediately evident that the canvas painting had undergone significant past restoration interventions, which were mainly aimed at concealing localised damage caused by shrapnel during World War II.

The conservators could observe that this shrapnel damage and past repairs were similar in nature to the situation encountered a few years earlier when restoring the altarpiece of the Crucifixion, which is, in fact, located just next to the Trinity painting in the same transept.

Past interventions, which were found on the back of the Trinity canvas painting and which were concealing tears and related shrapnel damage, were unfortunately also causing irregularities and deformations in the overlying gesso and paint layers. The irregularities and deformations on the front indicated that such repairs were causing stresses in the various strata and thus needed to be addressed during the latest treatments.

Past retouchings on the front, corresponding to the aforementioned repairs, had also significantly altered in colour, and were not only concealing losses but were also covering areas of the original paint. Moreover, the oxidised, non-original and yellowed varnish was contributing to obscuring the overall tonalities and hues applied by Regnaud. Retouchings were found both over this aged varnish layer and also beneath it, that is, between the original paint and the varnish, hence hinting at possibly more than one retouching intervention over the years.

During this initial phase of analysis and reconnaissance, it also became evident that the painting was once significantly larger, since the painted surface continued on the broad tacking margins folded around the wooden strainer frame. Painted margins and the continuation of the composition around the edges is often encountered during such investigations, and one inevitably questions whether the artwork would have been relocated. Further archival research is required in this respect.

Additional information on the execution and physical history of this artwork was also gained through multispectral imaging and micro-photography carried out in collaboration with photographers Manuel Ciantar and Suzanne Ciantar Ferrito. All examinations, observations, studies, and treatments carried out by Amy Sciberras Conservators were documented and recorded.

The foremost hands-on treatment carried out involved the application of a specific consolidant that was injected under tented areas of the paint and ground layers, thus temporarily stabilising such areas and allowing cleaning treatments to start.

Cleaning of the aged varnish of past retouchings and overpaint involved the use of cleaning agents applied both in liquid state and gel form. The cleaning methodology was varied according to whether varnish or overpaint was being removed, and also according to the sensitivity of the area being treated. Thus, prior to the initiation of cleaning treatments, thorough testing to attain the desired methodologies per area was carried out.

The removal of overpaint recovered areas of the original paint layer, whereas the removal of past retouchings uncovered some old stucco infills. These infills had been applied directly on cut threads and canvas damage, and needed to be removed to free the original cut threads for eventual tear-mending. It was also necessary to continue such treatments from the verso since organic glues and textile patches were blocking the non-aligned cut threads from the back as well.

Thus, all past interventions were removed, canvas deformations treated and cut threads were aligned, as well as re-woven/repaired, according to current conservation practices. Adhesion between all the layers comprising the painting was ensured through overall consolidation treatments carried out from the back of the canvas.

While the painting was unmounted on a flat surface, it was also possible to clean and consolidate its painted tacking margins that were previously folded around the old strainer frame. Even though the margins were wide enough for re-stretching, due to being painted, a decision was taken to carry out a strip lining procedure to further reinforce and strengthen the painted margins.

This involved the attachment of new canvas strips to the perimeter of the painting, thus allowing its subsequent re-stretching without damaging the painted, cleaned and consolidated tacking margins. Moreover, due to the old strainer frame not being stable enough to support the painting, a new stretcher frame that allows retensioning of the painting without the need to unmount it, was also manufactured.

The final phase involved the integration of losses in the ground and paint layers, reinstating full legibility of the painting. The conservation and restoration project was eventually inaugurated by Gudja archpriest Can. Norman Zammit on May 18.

 

Acknowledgments

This conservation and restoration project was entrusted to Amy Sciberras Conservators by Parish Archpriest Can. Fr Norman Zammit in association with NGO, Skali Gudja led by Simon Manicolo, and made possible by Arts Council Malta. Special thanks to the Curia’s administrative secretary Michael Pace Ross and all involved in making this project possible, in particular church volunteer and coordinator Martin Gravina.

 

Amy Sciberras directs a team of conservators and has been entrusted with restoration projects of national and international importance. She may be contacted via www.amysciberras.com or e-mail info@amysciberras.com.

Nadette Xuereb is an art historian who specialises on the role of women in the arts during the Baroque period. She works in the cultural heritage sector and teaches history of art at A-level at the University of Malta Junior College. E-mail: nadette.xuereb @um.edu.mt.