Giotto’s St Francis frescoes return to view in Florence after four-year restoration

One of Giotto’s most important cycles of paintings is back on view in Florence after a four-year conservation and research project at the Basilica of Santa Croce.

The Stories of St Francis, painted by Giotto and his workshop in the Bardi Chapel in the early 14th century, can once again be seen without the scaffolding that has surrounded them during the restoration. The project was promoted by the Opera di Santa Croce and carried out by the Opificio delle Pietre Dure, Italy’s state conservation institute based in Florence.

The reopening comes in 2026, the year marking the 800th anniversary of the death of St Francis of Assisi.

A clearer view of Giotto’s use of space

The conservation work has made details and colours easier to read, but researchers say one of its most significant results is a clearer understanding of the way Giotto constructed space.

The individual episodes from the life of St Francis are connected by monumental painted architecture that interacts with the real architecture of the chapel. Many of the scenes take place inside buildings presented frontally, almost as open boxes through which viewers can observe the figures.

This relationship between real and painted architecture was one of the innovations that helped transform European painting in the early 14th century.

The restoration sought to recover the visual continuity of this architectural framework while respecting the complex history of the paintings and the losses they suffered over the centuries.

New evidence about Giotto’s workshop

The project has also provided researchers with more information about how Giotto and the artists working under his direction produced the cycle.

Giotto was not working alone in the Bardi Chapel. Technical and stylistic differences identified during the project have made it possible to distinguish more clearly between the work of different painters in his workshop.

Research also confirmed the variety of techniques used to create the paintings. Giotto worked on a fresco base but made extensive use of techniques applied to the dry surface, allowing a broader range of pigments and different colour and spatial effects.

The Bardi Chapel can therefore be read not only as the site of a major work by Giotto, but also as a workshop in which new artistic ideas were developed and passed on to other painters.

The paintings are generally dated to the period after 1317 and possibly before 1325. The chapel itself is associated with the Bardi, a powerful Florentine banking family that held the patronage of several chapels in Santa Croce.

Four years of conservation

During the first phase of the restoration, specialists stabilised fragile areas of the paintings, addressed deterioration and removed deposits and altered materials from the surfaces.

Older synthetic fillings dating from a previous restoration were also replaced in many areas with materials more compatible with the original plaster.

The second phase concentrated on the final appearance of the paintings, including careful treatment of missing areas to improve the overall legibility of the scenes without concealing the damage and alterations accumulated over their long history.

For the first time, the different elements of the cycle have also been digitally mapped. The information gathered during the project will provide a basis for future research and help conservators monitor the paintings for signs of deterioration.

The life of St Francis in Santa Croce

The cycle depicts major episodes from the life of St Francis, including his renunciation of worldly possessions, the approval of the Franciscan Rule, his appearance at the Chapter of Arles, his encounter with the Sultan and his death.

The chapel also contains figures of St Clare of Assisi, St Louis of Toulouse and St Elizabeth of Hungary, while the vault includes allegorical representations of Obedience, Poverty and Chastity.

The restoration was supported by the Italian Ministry of Culture, Fondazione CR Firenze, the Association for the Restoration of Italian Artistic Heritage (ARPAI) and private donors.

Practical information: Giotto’s Stories of St Francis in the Bardi Chapel are visible again from Saturday, 12 September 2026, as part of a visit to the Santa Croce monumental complex in Florence.

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