St James, Mattia Preti
The altar-painting representing St James by Mattia Preti was restored in 2010 under the initiative of The St John’s Co-Cathedral Foundation with the generous sponsorship of the National Student Travel Foundation. Works were entrusted to Giuseppe Mantella Restauri.
The St James painting had for many years suffered from a weak state of preservation. Apart from oxidized varnish the pictorial layer also bore distinct ‘cupping’ which is usually due to movement of the canvas caused by changes in temperature and humidity. The central vertical seam of the canvas also showed irregular tensions and had begun to tear. The restoration initiative therefore consisted of consolidating the pictorial layer and filling the tears in the canvas which were then restored in order to obtain aesthetic unity. The pictorial layer was also cleaned. The canvas was then stretched on an aluminium stretcher frame with springs. This method will allow the canvas to adjust to environmental changes.
The St James is a powerful image of the type of monumental Baroque art produced in the late 17th century. The use of earth colours and exquisite draughtsmanship are typical of Mattia Preti’s mature style.
The altar painting was commissioned for the chapel of the Langue of Castille, Leon and Portugal in c.1660 by the Spanish knights of the Order of St John. St James is the patron saint of Spain, having travelled there as a missionary during his lifetime.