Caravaggio Expert Fr. Marius J. Zerafa Lectures

October 2007: Caravaggio is one of the most discussed and controversial figures in the world of the fine arts. Theories and analysis abound on who this mysterious artist really was and one could even describe him as a kind of mythological figure in the art world.

In his Distinguished Lecture “CARAVAGGIO ‘Pictor Egregius’ – ‘Mente Stravagantissima’ (The other Michelangelo)”, held at the Auriana Auditorium on October 23 2007, Fr. Marius J. Zerafa OP, Malta’s greatest expert on the life and work of this artist, talked about both the painter and the man, bringing Caravaggio into our own reality and time.

Caravaggio, born in 1571, the son of a mason in Lombardy, was the last great master of the Italian Renaissance and is most famous for the dramatic contrasts of light and shade in his paintings - or chiaroscuro - which has widely affected artists since. But the artist was also a bad, hotheaded boy and notorious brawler who fled from Rome after killing a rival in a duel.

Zerafa described Caravaggio’s “camera oscura” technique and gave a comprehensive analysis of the artist’s works of art. He also astounded the audience by recounting a more recent intrigue surrounding one of the artist’s less known works, the “St. Jerome”, which was cut from its frame and stolen from the Co-Cathedral of St. John in Malta in 1984. Two years later, a man approached Zerafa, at the time director of Malta's museums, with a letter including a photo of the Jerome spread on a table, a pot of coffee set on one corner of the canvas. The thieves were demanding a million dollars ransom for "St. Jerome." Zerafa started a long negotiation and after almost a year the Jerome, a bit worse for wear but not too damaged to restore, was finally rescued after a police helicopters chase near Valletta. Zerafa still keeps the canvas’shreds sent for proof by the thieves as an invaluable souvenir.

Marius J. Zerafa OP is a member of the Royal Society of London and a frequent lecturer at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas in Rome. He published ‘Caravaggio Diaries’ (Malta 2004).