Oil and metal leaf on canvas, 80 × 170 cm

“Preaching to the Birds” is an original sacred painting created in Bergamo in 2026 to commemorate the 800th anniversary of the death of St. Francis of Assisi.

“Let every thing that hath breath praise the LORD. Praise ye the LORD.” — Psalm 150:6

This call is the central message of St. Francis’s sermon to the birds and of my work. Birds are deeply symbolic to me. They represent not only the diversity of God’s gifts, generously bestowed upon humanity, but also the restlessness inherent in all living things. Today, as humanity through its progress increasingly reveals the potential placed within it by the Creator, the call to “praise the LORD” is more relevant than ever.

Visual language is another important aspect of this work. By bringing together the artistic traditions of the Christian East and West, I seek to draw the viewer’s attention to what unites Christians across ages and traditions: the truths of the Gospel and God’s love and mercy toward humanity.