Friday 12 November 2010

Camposanto di Staglieno, Genova: The work of Santo Varni (from my point of view)


The famous sculptor Santo Varni (1807-1885) was famous especially for two sculptures he did in Genoa:

The huge statue "Allegory of Faith" which is in the center of the cemetery and the "Monument to Christopher Columbus" in Genoa. I made a picture of the Allegory myself so i don't need to link somwhere else. It's a huge one (about 9 Meters high) and though it is an impressing work of art i would't consider it the best of him. Take a look for yourself....





His best work as far as i'm concerned is his own tomb. His wife passed away before him and he made a sculpture of her which is astonishingly beautiful.








Especially her back, her feet and the draped clothing around her.... It's an amazingly and stunningly beautiful piece of art.





Don't ask me why he put that dog beside her but as you can see it was easy for me to take some pictures that ignore that dog.

5 comments:

  1. The dog was an important part, because it meant a lot to the owner. You need to understand people, and include all of the art, because that is how many things can get lost in translation. Great job on the picture though, they are stuning, you capture her beauty and elegance well.

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  2. Thanks for the information. Since i'm mainly interested in the beauty of the sculptures i'm often lazy about the background. It is not important to understand the artist as long you appreciate the beauty he made.

    Anyway, thank you for your kind words regarding the pictures. That really makes me happy!

    I take it that you are living in Genoa? That makes me envy you!

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  3. I'm related (by marriage, several generations ago) to Saverio de Pinto who - to the best of my knowledge - was interred at Genoa in 1920. So John Arthur's photo carried me here where I found this fabulous sculpture of Santo Varni.

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  4. The dog is a symbol for unending devotion and loyalty. The artist Albrecht Dürer places a trotting beside his horseback master (who symbolizes the Christian whose way is far from easy, yet he persists steadfastly). Those viewing the woodcut in the time period it was composed didn't assume the Christian had a dog. They understood it was placed there to emphasize its master's complete devotion.

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  5. The dog IS her connection to the divine. It isn't just a symbol, if the dog wasn't there, there is no connection to anything.

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