At the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana, the work (Searching for) Raphael in Prison was inaugurated, conceived by artist Mattia Cavanna and created with inmates from 6 Italian penitentiary institutions.
The initiative is supported by Mediobanca and took place in the presence of institutions and project partners.
(Milan, March 19) – The Fondazione Francesca Rava – NPH Italia inaugurated, on Thursday, March 19, at the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana in Milan, the work ‘(Searching for) Raphael in Prison. 100 inmates redraw the School of Athens in search of their references.’ Created within the Orizzonti project, supported by Mediobanca, and through an artistic workshop conceived and realized by artist Mattia Cavanna together with female inmates and young inmates from 6 Italian penitentiary institutions.
The initiative highlights the importance of the educational and social function of art, offering participants concrete opportunities for expression, growth, and inclusion, and is part of the Foundation’s broader commitment to young people in vulnerable conditions.
The inauguration was preceded by a roundtable dedicated to the role of art in the educational pathways of young people and adults who have committed offenses, with the participation of the Foundation, Mediobanca, representatives of institutions, the penitentiary administration, and a delegation of young male and female inmates from the juvenile penal institutions of Milan and Bologna, the San Vittore prison in Milan, and the women’s detention facility of Giudecca in Venice.
Moderated by journalist Paolo Foschini from Corriere della Sera – Buone Notizie, the meeting opened with greetings from Monsignor Marco Navoni, Prefect of the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana, Andrea Canova, President of the Congregation of Conservators of the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana, and Lamberto Bertolé, Councilor for Welfare and Health of the City of Milan.
Speakers included Monsignor Alberto Rocca, Director of the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, Mariavittoria Rava, President of the Fondazione Francesca Rava, Giovanna Giusti del Giardino, Head of Sustainability at Mediobanca, Delfina Boni, Project Manager of the Orizzonti project, Antonio Sangermano, Head of the Department for Juvenile and Community Justice, Maria Pitaniello, Director of the San Vittore Prison in Milan, Mattia Cavanna, creator and producer of the work, and Gianfranco Zinzilli, Director of Specialized Digital Radio and Podcasts at RaiPlay Sound.
The closing remarks were entrusted to Luigi Pagano, Guarantor of the Rights of Persons Deprived of Personal Liberty of the City of Milan, who stated: “An original and interesting initiative by the Fondazione Francesca Rava. An escape from the themes that traditionally pervade prison, allowing the liberation of capacity and imagination. Not by chance ‘in search of Raphael,’ one of the most revolutionary figures in pictorial art. I supported the project with great pleasure and thank the Fondazione Rava for the great work undertaken.”
“We thank the institutions for always standing alongside the Fondazione Francesca Rava, Mediobanca for their concrete and continuous support, all the partners involved, and Mattia Cavanna for the vision and sensitivity with which he conceived the work,” declares President Mariavittoria Rava. “With the Orizzonti project, we aim to offer young inmates effective tools to develop skills, regain confidence, and build a different future.”
“By supporting the Orizzonti project of the Fondazione Francesca Rava, Mediobanca renews its commitment to promoting initiatives of high educational and social value, capable of generating real opportunities for growth and inclusion. Art confirms itself as a powerful language for fostering expression, awareness, and new visions of the future, especially for young people experiencing vulnerable situations,” states Giovanna Giusti del Giardino, Head of Sustainability at Mediobanca.
The Orizzonti Project
The initiative is part of the Orizzonti project of the Fondazione Francesca Rava, active at 8 juvenile penal institutions nationwide, the San Vittore prison in Milan, and the women’s detention facility of Giudecca in Venice.
The project, created within Palla al Centro, initially active exclusively at the IPM Cesare Beccaria in Milan, offers young inmates concrete opportunities for inclusion through educational and training activities, artistic workshops, and social and professional reintegration pathways, with the aim of raising community awareness about youth distress and building a bridge between the “inside” and “outside” of prison.
The collaboration with Mediobanca made the development of the artistic workshop possible, allowing participants to engage with Raphael’s original work and reinterpret it through a personal and contemporary language.
The Work
The work, unique in its kind, is a tapestry measuring 8 x 3 meters, inspired by Raphael’s preparatory cartoon for the School of Athens, of which it reproduces the same dimensions.
Created over twelve months of work, from March 2025 to March 2026, it represents the result of a shared journey of artistic and human growth. Participants studied the Renaissance masterpiece and reinterpreted it by replacing the philosophers of antiquity with their own role models: artists, musicians, athletes, scientists, activists, and symbolic figures of our time, alongside numerous self-portraits.
Among the protagonists depicted are Bob Marley, Nina Simone, Amy Winehouse, Diego Armando Maradona, Nelson Mandela, Rosa Parks, Rita Levi-Montalcini, and Alda Merini, along with figures from contemporary culture.
The drawings, created with wax crayons on hand-sewn fabric scraps, give life to a collective work of strong symbolic and social value.
Production
The canvas was created at the juvenile penal institutions of Milan, Bologna, Rome, and Naples, in collaboration with the Liberi Dentro association, at the women’s detention facility of Giudecca in Venice, and, with the same association and Federica Berlucchi, at the San Vittore prison in Milan.
The Exhibition
The work will be on display from March 20 to 30, from 10 AM to 6 PM (excluding Wednesdays) at the Foro Romano hall of the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana (from Piazza San Sepolcro) with free admission. Last entry at 5:30 PM.
Acknowledgments
Special thanks to Mediobanca for supporting the project, to the Ministry of Justice, the National Union of Juvenile Courts, and the Milan Bar Association for sponsoring the exhibition, to the Veneranda Biblioteca Ambrosiana for their hospitality, to the management, officers, and staff of the penitentiary institutions for their collaboration, and to the partners who contributed to the creation, assembly, installation of the work, and creation of multimedia content: Liberi Dentro, Federica Berlucchi, IED, Accademia Aldo Galli of Como, Tiziana Benzi, Opera Pia Alberoni for collaboration in assembly, design, and installation of the work, IED for the development of digital content, and VSL Media for the creation of multimedia content, Accademia di Como Aldo Galli, Tiziana Benzi, Opera Pia Alberoni, and VSL Media, in addition to artist Mattia Cavanna and the 100 inmates involved in the project.
Some Photographs from the Evening
