L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 8 THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2026 L'Italo-Americano T he old saying "The apple doesn't fall far from the tree" certainly seems to f i t a n u m b e r o f important families in Sicilian art. The most famous interna- tionally is perhaps the Piran- d e l l o f a m i l y , n o t l e a s t because of the Nobel Prize awarded to Luigi Pirandello, but also because two of his sons became artists in their own right: Fausto, an accom- plished painter, and Stefano, a writer. Another family, this time from Palermo, can claim three generations of artists and bears the name Catalano: Eustachio, the grandfather; Maurilio, his son – not forget- ting his brothers Eliodoro and V i t t o r i o , b o t h i n v o l v e d , although in different ways and with less public recogni- tion, in various artistic activi- ties – and Chiara, Maurilio's daughter. Each, naturally, was influenced by a different peri- od and developed a distinct personality and artistic sensi- bility. These important figures in the visual arts were recently brought together in an exhibi- tion just a short walk from Palermo Cathedral, in the heart of the historic center. The Regional Museum of Modern and Contempo- rary Art of Sicily, together with the soon-to-be-estab- lished Maurilio Catalano Foundation, organized I CATALANO 1893-2026. La macchina dell'arte, i n a u g u r a t e d l a s t M a y a n d spread across two venues: Palazzo Belmonte Riso, home of the museum, and nearby Palazzetto Agnello, where the historic Stamperia d'Arte al Borgo print workshop was recreated. The exhibition offered a journey through more than a century of artistic production. It included Eustachio's Post- Impressionist works; Mau- rilio's iconic boats, often mod- u l a r a n d i n s t a n t l y recognizable for their colors and shapes; and, representing the third generation, Chiara's contemporary design. Her artistic path does not follow t h e r o u t e s t r a c e d b y h e r father's distinctive boats. Instead, it moves beyond the frame, searching for different freedoms and different direc- tions. Creativity has therefore remained a constant within the Catalano family for more than a century, while each generation has approached art from a different perspec- tive. The result is a dialogue b e t w e e n p a s t a n d f u t u r e , between historical memory and contemporary language, linked by a clear continuity of talent. The recovery of the Stam- peria Arte al Borgo, named after the family's art gallery, also restores to Palermo a sig- nificant part of its cultural history. Thanks to Maurilio Catalano's generous dona- tion, presses, printing plates, tools and workshop materials h a v e b e e n p r e s e r v e d a n d made accessible to the public. These objects document the process through which fine-art printmaking became creative work, but they also tell the story of a place that played an important role in Palermo's cultural life during the second half of the 20th century. The Arte al Borgo Gallery became a meeting point for artists and intellec- tuals, among them Leonardo Sciascia, and helped create a space for discussion, experi- m e n t a t i o n a n d c u l t u r a l exchange. Inside the small rooms of Palazzetto Agnello, visitors therefore encounter more than a collection of original o b j e c t s . W h a t h a s b e e n reconstructed is an authentic printmaking workshop, and one with particular signifi- cance: it was Palermo's first art printing studio. The project was made pos- sible through cooperation between Sicily's Regional Department of Cultural H e r i t a g e a n d S i c i l i a n Identity, Museo Riso and the Catalano Foundation. A private collection, deeply connected to family memory and personal history, has thus become a permanent public cultural resource. The Regional Museum of Contemporary Art itself is housed in Palazzo Belmonte Riso, an 18th-century build- i n g o n C o r s o V i t t o r i o Emanuele, also known as the C a s s a r o , n o t f a r f r o m t h e Quattro Canti. It stands, in other words, in the very cen- ter of Palermo. Originally known as Palazzo Ventimiglia di Belmonte, the building took its current name after passing in the mid-19th cen- tury to Baron Giovanni Riso of Colobria, whose marble coat of arms still appears above the entrance. Complet- ed in 1784, the palace marked the transition from late Sicil- ian Baroque to Neoclassi- cism. Among the architects i n v o l v e d w a s G i u s e p p e Venanzio Marvuglia, one of the most important architects working in Sicily at the time and later responsible for the Palazzina Cinese, commis- sioned by King Ferdinand III of Bourbon in 1799. The building's history was severely disrupted during the Second World War, when it was used as a local Fascist Party headquarters and was hit by a bomb. Part of the palace collapsed and a num- b e r o f f r e s c o e s w e r e destroyed, including those in the large ballroom. The dam- age was followed by a long period of abandonment. The Sicilian Regional Government eventually acquired the prop- erty and began restoration work in the 1990s. Further work continued in the follow- ing decade, and in 2008 the b u i l d i n g w a s p r e p a r e d t o house the Regional Museum of Contemporary Art. Since then, Palazzo Riso has become one of Sicily's most important exhibition venues. It also supports con- t e m p o r a r y S i c i l i a n a r t through SACS, the Sportello per l'Arte Contemporanea della Sicilia, which maintains a n a r c h i v e a v a i l a b l e b o t h online and at the museum. The material from the his- toric Catalano print work- shop, meanwhile, is displayed at Palazzetto Agnello, behind Palermo Cathedral on Via dell'Incoronazione, next to t h e C a p p e l l a a n d L o g g i a dell'Incoronata. T h e c h a p e l i t s e l f h a s a complex history that reflects many of the transformations Palermo has undergone over the centuries. It served both as a place of worship and as a s i t e c o n n e c t e d w i t h r o y a l c o r o n a t i o n s , a n d l a t e r became an archive linked to t h e C a t h e d r a l a n d t o t h e Maramma, the institution responsible for supervising building works and mainte- nance. Its origins go back to a Roman basilica. Rebuilt dur- ing the Byzantine period and dedicated to the Virgin Mary, it was later converted for Muslim worship following the Arab conquest and remained so for around two centuries. U n d e r N o r m a n r u l e , i t returned to Christian wor- ship. Between 1184 and 1185, as P a l e r m o C a t h e d r a l t o o k shape under King William II a n d A r c h b i s h o p W a l t e r Ophamil, the chapel was con- nected to the Norman com- plex through porticoes and loggias. These routes allowed members of the royal court to move between buildings in greater comfort and security, p r o t e c t e d b o t h f r o m b a d weather and from the crowds. Historical accounts also refer to connections between the old Archbishop's Palace, the Pisan Tower of the Royal Palace and the Cathedral, suggesting a network of pro- tected routes that could be used in times of danger. The setting is therefore particularly appropriate for an exhibition about continu- i t y , m e m o r y a n d a r t i s t i c inheritance. In the space of a few streets, Palermo brings together the work of three generations of one family, the recovery of a historic print workshop and buildings that themselves carry layer upon layer of the city's history. TERESA DI FRESCO Art runs in the family: three generations of Catalano creativity LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE The historic Stamperia Arte al Borgo in Palermo; inset, the distinctive colors and modular forms of Maurilio Catalano's iconic boats, part of the Catalano family's three-generation artistic legacy (Original image created for L'Italo-Americano with the assistance of AI)

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