One thousand seven hundred years have passed since the Edict of Milan, issued in 313 AD by the Western Emperor Constantine and the Eastern Emperor Licinius to put an end to religious persecution and proclaim the neutrality of the Empire towards any faith. An important moment in history, which establishes freedom of religious expression for all and which will be remembered and celebrated with the exhibition Konstantin. LConstantine's edict 1700 years later, promoted by Roma Capitale, Department of Culture, Creativity and Artistic Promotion - Capitoline Superintendency for Cultural Heritage, by the Serbian Embassy in Rome and by the Serbian Embassy to the Holy See, and hosted in Trajan's Markets from 28 November 2013 to 12 January 2014, curated by Jelena Jovanovic and the Museum Services of Zètema Progetto Cultura.
Mihajlovic chooses the figure of the Christian Emperor par excellence associated, in the iconography of the cult, with his mother Elena, the one who, during a trip to Jerusalem, miraculously discovered the True Cross.
The artist represents Constantine the Great and his mother Elena inspired by the frescoes of the churches and monasteries he visited in Serbia, Italy, Greece, Albania, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania and Hungary. An image, that of mother and child, which appears unified in each work: protagonists and interpreters of an intimate vision of faith, they invite, one work after another, to a sort of private contemplation. Works that do not need to be interpreted but simply looked at, contemplated, exhausting all there is to see and understand in eye contact.
Each fresco is depicted in its original context, inside the church or hermitage of medieval Serbia, including, among others, the evocative complexes of Žica, Pecka Patrijaršija, Decani, Sopocani. The artist's pilgrimage has included shrines such as Hilandar in Mount Athos, Luštica in Montenegro, Semljug and Hodos in Romania, Staro Nagoricino and San Nicola in Macedonia, Ardenica and Berat in Albania, the church of Santi Quattro Coronati in Rome, the Basilica of San Francesco in Arezzo.
Added to this sacred cycle is the personal interpretation of the Arch of Constantine, transmitted by the Artist through shaded and velvety tones, closer to watercolor than to aquatint, and five prints dedicated to the most famous scenes of the Sala di Costantino delle Stanze by Raphael at the Vatican Museums, the result of an almost dreamlike perception.
An important appointment, this rich and complete collection of engravings by Mihajlovic, which allows the continuation of the intense dialogue already begun between Italy and Serbia and which has seen the latter, in recent years, very active in proposing its best contemporary artists. And yet another opportunity to learn about the history of Serbia which, in addition to Constantine, was the birthplace of 15 Roman emperors.
Serbia and Italy, two countries that continue to enrich their cultural exchanges each time discovering new points of contact and common growth.
