Two Veronese paintings in NYC for 5 mths

(by Alessandra Baldini) (ANSA) - New York, October 27 - A Saint Jerome and a Saint Agatha by Paolo Veronese have since Thursday been sharing a New York City roof with two other monumental paintings by the Italian Renaissance artist.
    Recently restored, the two large paintings with elaborate gilded frames had never before left Italy and will be exhibited at the Frick Collection on Fifth Avenue.
    "Veronese in Murano: Two Venetian Renaissance Masterpieces Restored" focuses on two recently conserved and rarely seen paintings by the celebrated artist Paolo Veronese (1528-1588), 'Saint Jerome in the Wilderness' and 'Saint Peter Visiting Saint Agatha in Prison'.
    The paintings are part of a five-painting commission - three of which have been lost - ordered in the mid-sixteenth century by an obscure Murano chaplain, Francesco Degli Arbori, to decorate a small private church annexed to the St Mary of the Angels monastery. 'Saint Jerome in the Wilderness' and 'Saint Peter Visiting Saint Agatha in Prison' - with blood shown flowing from the Catania saint's chest after being tortured - underwent a year-long restoration by Claudia Vittori on behalf of Venetian Heritage, sponsored by Bulgari. In 1810, when St Mary of the Angels ceased to be used as a place of worship due to Neapolitan repression, the two paintings were transferred to the nearby San Pietro Martire church.
    "They remained there, basically forgotten, both due to their location outside of normal Venetian itineraries and because time and poor restoration efforts darkened the bright colors," Frick director Ian Wardropper said.
    The New York exhibition, preceded by a similar one last year at the Galleria dell'Accademia and followed in the spring by a stop in New Orleans, is thus a unique chance for the international public to come into contact with little-known masterpieces.
    "Everything began with a chance meeting at the Accademia with Toto Bergamo Rossi from Venetian Heritage, a non-profit organization created to raise awareness about Venetian artistic heritage. He was the one to suggest bringing the paintings to New York after their restoration," noted Xavier Solomon, the Veronese specialist who curated the Frick exhibition. The two paintings will later go back to their Murano home in the San Pietro Martire church.
    photo: Veronese's Penitent St Jerome