Walls that come to life | The Press

Hubert Sacy is a real turbo. After thirty years at the head of Éduc’alcool, the man now puts his legendary energy at the service of a multitude of boards of directors and community organizations. He listed them for me and I was dazed.

But he needed more. A project that would combine his love of heritage and his creative impulses. He found all of this within the walls of the Sainte-Madeleine church in Outremont.

This place, which suffers from the flamboyance of its sisters Saint-Viateur and Saint-Germain, hides real treasures. Do the faithful who attend masses know that under the insignificant painting of the walls and ceilings slumber splendid paintings and murals by the Italian-born painter Guido Nincheri?

Nicknamed the “Michelangelo of Montreal”, this artist, who landed in Montreal in 1914, decorated several churches in Quebec, including Saint-Léon de Westmount, Saint-Viateur, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Saint-Jean-Baptiste , Saint-Rédempteur, but also other places like the Château Dufresne.

He is also the author of the mural works of the Notre-Dame-de-la-Défense church, in Little Italy. One of the paintings in the apse is unique in that it offers the presence of Mussolini. The artist, who studied painting in Florence, illustrated the treaty between the Holy See and Italy signed by the founder of fascism and the pope in 1929.

Accused of fascism at the start of World War II, Nincheri was interned like other compatriots in Petawawa. His wife succeeded in having him released after three months by proving, with sketches, that her husband had been forced to add the figure of Mussolini to his mural work.

In 1924-1925, when building Sainte-Madeleine d’Outremont, we obviously thought of him to decorate the premises. “Sainte-Madeleine was in a way the parish of the proletarians of Outremont,” explains Hubert Sacy. It was mostly frequented by workers, especially the workers who built the railroad from the marshalling yard. »

From 1932 to 1934, Nincheri painted the walls and ceilings of Sainte-Madeleine. In the north transept, he created a series of paintings installed using the marouflage technique (canvas glued to the wall). He also designed a series of breathtakingly beautiful stained glass windows which, fortunately, have stood the test of time.

“It must be said, the result was magnificent, but rather busy,” adds Hubert Sacy.

Thirty years after the realization of the work of Nincheri, the Catholic Church experienced a real revolution with the holding of an ecumenical council in the Vatican commonly called Vatican II. From 1962 to 1965, hundreds of influential members thought of ways to bring this religion closer to its followers who were then experiencing enormous social progress.

Several changes have been made and a cleaner vision closer to the faithful has emanated from this. The churches that were built later then had a much less ostentatious style than those of the 19th century.^e century and the beginning of the XX^e century.

This search for simplicity struck the church of Sainte-Madeleine when it was decided to cover all the walls and ceilings with a layer of white paint which at the same time erased the work of Guido Nincheri. Only the table Magdalene at the foot of the crosswhich is behind the high altar, was spared.

Interesting fact: it was Nincheri’s wife, Giulia, who served as the model for the depiction of Madeleine. The painter also used his children and his nephews to imagine certain angels. He even offered his own face to Judas in one of his paintings.

After having been concealed for six decades under a lamentable paint that hesitates between white and beige, certain paintings by Guido Nincheri will breathe again. And that should be done within three months. Scaffolding was erected. A first team has been working for two weeks to clean the surfaces. Restoration experts will take over in 15 days.

It is through meticulous scratching work that Nincheri’s works (protected by a varnish) will be brought back to life.

For the moment, three works located in the northwest transept have been targeted: The Raising of Lazarus, Jesus with Martha and Mary in the Jordan regionin the same way Saint Anthony Daniel and Saint Noel Chabanel.

Restoration work is valued at approximately $175,000. Thanks to the generosity of many donors, nearly $135,000 was raised. About $40,000 is missing to complete the budget.

To achieve this objective, Hubert Sacy had the idea of ​​creating a series of events which have in common to highlight Italian culture. From February 25 to March 26, five benefit events will take place with the collaboration of several partners, including the Consulate General of Italy and the Italian Cultural Institute of Monbtréal.

Thus, we take advantage of the presence of countertenor Luigi Schifano, who will be part of the distribution ofAinadamar at the Opéra de Montréal, to organize a recital he will give on March 24 with organist Andrea Cohen. Another audience might prefer the performance of the Florentine group Tempo Reale Electroacoustic Ensemble on March 14.

As we know, the fate of our heritage sometimes takes on the appearance of a horror film. The protection of these traces of our past needs warriors like Hubert Sacy. It is thanks to them that we are able to say “I remember”.

It only remains to hope that the walls on which the works of Guido Nincheri will soon come to life will remain standing for a long time to come. That’s another story.