by Redazione 05/11/2026
Categories: News / Disclaimer
On November 12 and 13, the International Conference on European Cathedrals returns to Pisa for its 15th edition. From the Sagrada Família in Barcelona to St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, artists, curators, and scholars will discuss the relationship between new works, historical heritage, and conservation.
How can European cathedrals incorporate new works of art without compromising their historical and architectural identity? And what responsibilities come with commissioning a contemporary work intended to become part of a centuries-old heritage? These are some of the questions at the heart of the 15th International Conference of European Cathedrals, scheduled for November 12 and 13, 2026, at the G. Toniolo Auditorium in Piazza Arcivescovado, Pisa. Organized bythe Opera della Primaziale Pisana and curated by Donatella De Bonis and Manuel Rossi, the conference is dedicated to the theme “Sacred Matter: Cathedrals Between Commissioning and Preservation.”
This year’s edition explores the role of cathedrals not only as monuments to be preserved, but as places of worship that are still active, where new spaces are designed, works are commissioned, and contemporary artistic languages are experimented with. This perspective raises questions regarding the quality of interventions, the responsibilities of patrons, the relationship with existing historical elements, and the long-term maintenance of the works. Stained-glass windows, sculptures, and new liturgical arrangements, in fact, require assessments that concern both artistic exploration and heritage conservation.
Among the guests is the Italian artist Andrea Mastrovito, winner of the international competition to createthe Agnus Dei, a work situated within the cross that crowns the Tower of Jesus Christ at the Sagrada Família in Barcelona. His presentation will be in dialogue with that of Mauricio Cortés, who will present the tower’s design. This case provides an opportunity to discuss the integration of a new artistic commission into an architectural complex conceived over a century ago by Antoni Gaudí.
From the Czech Republic, Petr Chotěbor and Mario Barra will join us to discuss the new artistic acquisitions for St. Vitus Cathedral in Prague, while Ronalds Lüsis will present the experience of contemporary art in Riga Cathedral. The program will also examine heritage regeneration through the case of Coventry Cathedral and the experiences of revitalizing the cathedrals of Exeter, Córdoba, and Modena.
Part of the discussion will also be dedicated to the initiative launched by the Opera della Primaziale Pisana with the establishment of a Commission for Contemporary Art, created with the aim of enabling the organization to complement its conservation activities with a new role as a patron of the arts. Among the Commission’s members is Micol Forti, director of MART—the Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art of Trento and Rovereto. Also speaking in Pisa will be Chiara Parisi, director of the Centre Pompidou-Metz, who will discuss the experience of the Holy See’s Pavilion at the 2024 Venice Biennale; Flavio Fergonzi, full professor of Contemporary Art History at the Scuola Normale Superiore in Pisa, and Stefano Collicelli Cagol, of the Foundation for Contemporary Arts in Tuscany and the Luigi Pecci Center for Contemporary Art. A dialogue between artist Gianni Lucchesi and philosopher Alfonso Maurizio Iacono is also scheduled.
Among other presentations, Fabrizio Capanni, of the Dicastery for Culture and Education, will speak on the Holy See’s most recent initiatives in commissioning art.
The proceedings will be organized into three sessions, dedicated to the relationship between art and the sacred, the commissioning of new works, and issues related to management and conservation. Two roundtables and several discussions will bring together artists, curators, scholars, and representatives of the participating institutions. The overarching theme running through the various presentations concerns the relationship between design and preservation: can conservation—as one of the questions posed by the conference suggests—begin as early as the commissioning phase? The goal is to explore how contemporary artistic choices can be integrated into the history of buildings that continue to fulfill their religious and cultural functions.
This year marks the conference’s fifteenth edition, consolidating an international network of relationships among management bodies, architects, conservators, art historians, scholars, and ecclesiastical institutions. Over the years, these discussions have facilitated the sharing of experiences gained in different national contexts and addressed common issues, ranging from the conservation of historic materials to the transformation of liturgical spaces. For the Opera della Primaziale Pisana, which oversees the management and protection of the monuments in Piazza del Duomo, this initiative is part of its daily work in conservation and research.
“A cathedral is not a place where history has come to a standstill: it is a heritage that continues to live on, including through the works that today’s generations choose to pass on to future ones,” stated Andrea Maestrelli, president of the Opera della Primaziale Pisana. “Reaching the fifteenth edition of European Cathedrals means we have built an international community capable of discussing not only how to preserve what we have inherited, but also how to continue producing art, with the awareness that today’s choices will become part of tomorrow’s heritage.”
The conference will be held on November 12 and 13, 2026, at the G. Toniolo Auditorium in Piazza Arcivescovado in Pisa. The sessions can also be viewed via livestream on the GoToWebinar platform, following free registration at this link.
Professional development credits will be awarded to members of the Order of Architects and the Order of Engineers of the province of Pisa, in accordance with the procedures established by their respective professional associations. For architects, credits will be awarded for both in-person and online participation; for engineers, however, credits are contingent upon in-person attendance.
For nearly ten centuries—with the first documented mention dating back to 1063—the Opera della Primaziale Pisana has been responsible for the care, protection, conservation, and promotion of the monumental complex in Piazza dei Miracoli. The heritage sites include the Cathedral, the Baptistery, the Leaning Tower, the Camposanto, the Museo delle Sinopie, and the Museo dell’Opera del Duomo, to which a new Museum of Antiquities—currently under construction—will be added.
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| How Can Contemporary Art Be Brought Into Historic Cathedrals? A European Roundtable in Pisa |
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