ALFAEDO – Wall Madonna of the day!

Posted byVirginia MerliniPosted inUncategorized
ALFAEDO – a modern Wall Madonna

ALFAEDO – this tiny, ancient frazione is reached from Selvetta and belongs to Forcola on the River Adda. At 803 meters above the valley floor, Alfaedo is considered a mid-mountain town. No one has lived here year-round since the 19th-century. I almost forwent a visit because I had already spent the day walking to and above Corna in Monte. Fate and fresco passion intervened, and here I found 12 Wall Madonna’s and a village that felt important and lived in. Like comfortable clothes and cozy slippers, Alfaedo welcomed me. I really liked it here. This is a modern Wall Madonna found on a home whose entry door spilled out a 20-something man who smiled at me photographing his Madonna. I think she is stunning! Have a great day!

ALFAEDO – view of the valley floor
ALFAEDO – the main road of the village
ALFAEDO – the renovated home of the Wall Madonna. She is a wire sculpture.

Published by Virginia Merlini

I am a retired academic - a sociologist, sociolinguist, ethnographer, and photo-ethnographer. I am building this website and blog to share my passion for the public and private art of Italy. My main focus is on the Wall Madonna. The concept ‘Wall Madonna’ is my own. It is the name I give to the art found on the external walls of many of the homes of the locals which depicts Mary – the woman called Theotokos – God-bearer. I use Wall Madonna to refer to those images frescoed on the outside of homes and public buildings, or the paintings, carvings and statuary attached to the same. My intent is to examine Wall Madonna’s as a type of visual language and gesture in order to come to an understanding of their function and purpose in Italian social life. In searching for Wall Madonna’s I try to present a broader harvest of my quest so that the towns and cities I visit are frescoed for the reader in my blogs. Therefore, I like to include streetscapes, doors – which have a language of their own, vistas, and the life of the people as reflected in the things one sees as one peruses a town. Because my family is from the Valtellina and because the valley is lush and beautiful and steeped in history - and an abundance of Wall Madonna’s – I have a small home here. I love the Valtellina. I hope my photos capture your attention. There is no greater joy than sharing this art with others.

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