The rebirth of a portrait: a journey through time and the art of restoration

Thanks to the expertise of Lisa Trigila, an alumna of the restoration course, the portrait of Angelina Gelpi in Giobbi (1893 - 1989), great-grandmother of Lorenzo Spallino, has been restored to its original splendor.

The painting, by renowned Spanish portraitist Pedro Antonio Martinez Exposito (1886 - 1965), was made in 1939 in São Paulo, the city to which Angelina Giobbi emigrated from Italy in the early 1920s with her husband, the owner of a construction company. In the painting, the light rests gently on Angelina's face, illuminating her clear gaze and closed-lipped smile. The freshness of her complexion is enhanced by a firm touch of lipstick, while the black of her dress and the light lace of her décolleté give the portrait an understated elegance. The sleeves, with their puffs, add a touch of sensuality to the tapered hands, glazed a deep red.

The restoration of this work has brought a piece of family history back to life, reawakening memories and meanings lost to time. The work, once kept in Brazil and later moved to the family chapel in Schignano, has become the centerpiece of an exhibition celebrating the beauty and strength of women through a series of photographic portraits.

The exhibition, which will be held June 9 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. in Como at Studio Spallino, stands as an opportunity to explore female portraiture through the eyes of artists from different eras and cultures and as an invitation to look beyond the su