Recent EVENTS | UPCOMING 2026

Institutional updates

The maquette of the sculpture by Elena Mutinelli, entitled “A Sun Was Born into the World”,

was presented as a gift to His Holiness Pope Leo XIV in the presence of the Government bodies.

The gift represents a gesture of particular symbolic and institutional value, confirming the importance of the project “Sculptures - New Signs” and its link to the celebratory programme promoted on the occasion of the Eighth Centenary of the death of the Patron Saint of Italy.

The monumental bronze work, born from the maquette, will be permanently installed in the city of Lampedusa in autumn, offering the community a work destined to endure over time as a living testimony to the universal meaning of the Franciscan message.

Assisi, 6 August 2026

Assisi, 6 August, 2026 - On the day of the Solemn Eucharistic Celebration at the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels in Assisi, presided over by His Holiness Pope Leo XIV, on the occasion of the meeting of Franciscan youth GoAssisi “The day of listening”, the Holy Father meets, in a private audience, the representatives of the National Committee.

The Undersecretary of State to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers Alfredo Mantovano and the poet Davide Rondoni, President of the National Committee for the Celebration of the Eighth Centenary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, in the presence of the authorities and the government bodies, personally presented to the Holy Father POPE LEO XIV the maquette of the sculpture by Elena Mutinelli, entitled "A Sun Was Born into the World" and a copy of codex 338 containing the “Canticle of the Creatures”.

A gesture that contains the deepest meaning of the initiative: a project that, as Davide Rondoni recalled, was born to leave a mark over time, in the name of the spiritual and cultural legacy of Saint Francis of Assisi.

The Project: The sculpture by Elena Mutinelli, “A sun was born into the world”, is part of the initiative “Sculptures – New signs”, promoted, supported and funded by the Italian Government through the National Committee for the Celebration of the Eighth Centenary of the death of Saint Francis of Assisi, chaired by Davide Rondoni and curated by gallerist Francesca Sacchi Tommasi of Etra Studio Tommasi, Florence.

During 2026, ten sculptures created by Italian and international artists, will be permanently installed in ten different Italian cities.

This unique initiative strongly aims to create an artistic itinerary dedicated to the legacy of Saint Francis through contemporary art.

The sculptures, permanent, will establish a special dialogue with the host sites, creating a "path" of art and spirituality accessible throughout Italy, leaving in significant places the lasting signs of the figure of Francis.