The film was amazing—beautiful cinematography and a story within a story very thoughtfully put together.Thanks so much for the introduction !!!
I was so impressed that the primary restorers were women – that it was a story about women on every level, and as such,
mysterious and human
and of course, nuanced.
It’s beautiful, and moving, and an ode to something incredible in Florence’s past. It’s both delicate and strong in its presentation – bravissimo.
We loved it. I was so impressed that the primary restorers were women — that it was a story about women on every level, and as such, mysterious and human and of course, nuanced. i am thrilled that we had the opportunity to see it.
beautiful cinematography and a story within a story…
very thoughtfully put together
We loved being there..
The movie was stunning! The restoration of the painting very interesting, and the history of all those babies, their lives and the really extraordinary collection of tales of each child.
The film was amazing—beautiful cinematography and a story within a story very thoughtfully put together.Thanks so much for the introduction !!!
We restore things to learn, and what I believe The Innocents of Florence teaches us is that there are no excuses. The Institute’s beginnings make up what we would now call a grassroots social movement.
THE POPE’S GIFT
DOCUMENTARY 72 minutes
EVANGELARIO
scritto da David Battistella
EXT. CATTEDRALE
Immagine esterna di Firenze dal piazzale. Poi un rapido sguardo verso piazza del Duomo. Dettaglio della facciata di Santa Maria del Fiore.
NARRATORE
Firenze, una città cattolica nel cuore dell’Italia. Il capoluogo della Toscana, la città in cui nacque il Rinascimento, occupa un posto speciale nella storia. I suoi cittadini continuano ad essere giustamente orgogliosi della loro cultura e della loro tradizione che vive anche oggi.
La Cupola di Brunelleschi.
NARRATORE
La chiesa cattedrale della città, Santa Maria del Fiore, è il fulcro della vita religiosa toscana e simboleggia la fede di tutta la regione.
Interno della Cattedrale.
CAST
ALESSANDRO BICCHI PAOLO PENKO GABRIELE MASSELLI
In this previously unreleased work David Battistella docouments the process of a new Evangelarium being created by Florentine craftsmen for use the in the Florence Cathedral and also a second copy made as a gift for Pope Francis.
The film features two Florentine Craftsmen and the Deacon of the Cathedral who explains the theologial significance of the process of creating Sacred Art.
ARTICLES
It’s 1410 and there is a huge social problem in Florence. Babies are abandoned and dying at an alarming rate. To solve the problem Florentine Humanists organize and build a hospice for newborns and to assist young mothers. To celebrate the completion of the new building in 1446, they commission a painting to act as their poster, logo and symbol for the new Institute. Flash forward 600 years to 2013, the very same painting sits in a museum within the original building. Two women, an American and an Italian, are tasked with the restoration of the work due to be displayed after the renovation and reopening of the museum.
The conservation of ‘Madonna of the Innocents’ was commissioned after Jane Fortune and Elizabeth Wicks became curious about the young Madonna figure depicted in the work at Florence’s Museum of the Innocents. They were particularly intrigued by her facial expression. It seemed she was hiding a secret. The ‘hunch’ these women had that day in the museum led to what turned out to be the “greatest discovery of my career,” says Wicks, who, with fellow conservator Nicoletta Fontani, spent close to 30 months preparing the work for display in the Innocenti, which boasts one of the rarest collections of children’s history in the world.
The film took a full five years to complete. David Battistella will be present at the premiere screening in Florence (May 17) at the Teatro della Compagnia and screenings are scheduled throughout the following week and in other cinemas this year. In this 90’ minute feature-length documentary film, Battistella explores the themes of art, motherhood, Florentine humanism and how a progressive-thinking Renaissance society created one of the first Children’s hospitals in the world. He tells this story through the restoration of a painting that was created as the banner for the Innocenti Institute in 1446.
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