An acrylic on paper by contemporary Italian painter Sergio Favotto, inspired by Raffaello Sanzio’s Studies of Two Apostles at Oxford’s Ashmolean Museum, is the latest addition to artworks at Il-Ħaġar museum in Victoria.
The 99cm by 69cm drawing created in 2009 was donated by Fr Charles Cini, SDB, co-founder of Fondazzjoni Belt Victoria that runs the cultural centre. It now hangs in Il-Ħaġar museum’s reception hall.
Favotto is a well-established artist in Italy and abroad, exhibiting in numerous countries on many occasions. His works can be admired in various churches, including Montecassino, the Basilica di S. Andrea della Valle in Rome and the Lateran sacristy.
A painting of Pope Benedict XVI by Favotto is found at the Presidential Palace in Valletta, while the five ‘Pilgrims’ niches’ on the road to Ta’ Pinu sanctuary are further examples of his inventiveness.
In the painting by Raffaello (1483-1520) he was preparing for what was to be his final work, The Transfiguration, commissioned by Cardinal Giulio de Medici, now housed at the Pinacoteca Vaticana, along with many other masterpieces.