In the small quadrangle below the entrance to the convent is the art gallery of Padre Diego Donati OFM. More than 200 graphic art works of this Franciscan master engraver are exhibited there.
The gallery was re-opened to the public on the 5th of December 2009. after major building and restoration works. It is situated on the ground floor in a wing of the convent with independent access. The atmosphere is at once restrained and orderly, well cared for. Spacious halls with vaulted ceilings house the permanent exhibition of the artist’s graphic work.
The study-workshop of the Friar-engraver is reproduced almost exactly as it was, with corners dedicated to information. The presses used for printing, and other tools used in preparing and etching the plates have been preserved.
More than 200 works are on exhibition: woodcuts, etchings and aquatints produced by Padre Diego from 1953 to the 1990s.
The arrangement of the works exhibited follows the creator’s artistic development, beginning with woodcuts, proceeding through sketches and drawings, onto etchings and ending with aquatints.
The opening and the running of the Gallery are entrusted to the Padre Diego Donati Association, mainly pupils and friends of Padre Diego. Padre Diego’s name is registered in the Albo d’Oro (Golden Album) of the city of Perugia. He spent his life “committed to mastering hard materials, waiting in faith for a revelation that only the printing press could bring about” (Piero Bargellini).
