(map) 
It seems that every era is festooned with its own version of our modern day “writer”, intent on tagging some monument with graffiti.
Sure enough… while wandering through the austere expanses of Verona’s church of San Zeno, I began to notice some rather unexpected additions to the church’s superb frescoes. Moving in for a closer look I was shocked to see that various fools from ages long gone had actually carved their names into the frescoes.
I may not be the world’s most responsible citizen, but even I draw the line at marring a work of art for some narcissistic trip.
Despite the depravity of it, seeing this graffiti renewed my faith in modern society. We may have other weaknesses, but at least we don’t carve our names on frescoes in churches anymore…
Fools’ names and fools’ faces oft appear…
Basilica San Zeno, Piazza San Zeno, Verona. Open Mon-Sat 9:30am-6pm; Sun 1-6pm. Admission €2.
– Contributed by Douglas E. Morris is the author of Open Road’s Best of Italy and has lived in Italy for over ten years, currently residing in Viterbo. You can contact the author through his website: www.TheItalyGuide.com.
Good points but would these fresco images have made it onto your blog posting had it not been for the curious graffito additions?
The very presence of the graffiti (however destructive it is to the imagery) has ultimately rendered it more noticeable and arguably more interesting. I’ve seen these images written about several times in recent years (travel blogs etc.) and the graffiti always upstages the frescoes which though beautiful, are, lets face it ‘ten a penny’ in Italy.
I like to take a more open minded approach to graffiti, based upon the fact that art itself (particularly fresco painting) has most likely evolved from graffiti-ish scrawls on cave walls.
Just a thought
mmm, at fist you do not notice that it’s graffiti, it matches quite well with the frescoes, the color of the writing fits in well (how did they do it?), the handwriting is beautiful. Like with buildings, sometimes later additions become part of the artwork.
The writings are etched through the sinopia, the final painted plaster, into the coat below.
The color of the plaster goes with the fresco because it is the substrate of the painting.
The artist wouldn’t consider the addition of scrawl a part of the art. … that subsequent viewers
would, speaks to the additive orchestration of what things are to become. Art with many authors, interpreters and adulterators.