Vincenzo Bonello (1891-1969) and his designs of architectural projects and ecclesiastical objets d'art

Abstract

Vincenzo Bonello is mainly known as an eminent art historian who pioneered a more scientific and modern approach to art historical studies in Malta, and for his role as the first curator of the Fine Arts Section of the National Museum from 1923 to 1937. However, he was also actively involved in undertaking commissions relating to architectural projects and sacred objets d'art. His design work was exclusively of an ecclesiastical nature and in response to commissions from several parishes in Malta and Goza, as well as the Curia. This paper will discuss a representative selection of the extensive corpus of drawings by Bonello's own hand that form part of the Wignacourt Museum Archives at Rabat. His in-depth knowledge and erudite scholarship of Italian art history spanning from Early Christian and Byzantine periods to the Renaissance, Baroque, and Neoclassicism informed and permeated his designs. Bonello was unapologetically conservative and traditionalist in his outlook, consistently pursuing design solutions that were based on sound classical principles and historical precedents. However, given his broad interests in different art historical periods, he was not straitjacketed to one style and he willingly experimented with various revival styles in response to the requirements of the specific commission.