JR covered Naples Cathedral with the faces of its inhabitants

After Kyoto, Miami, Kyoto, San Francisco, and Cuba, the project Chronicles by French artist JR has arrived in Naples. More precisely in the Duomo, the Cathedral of Santa Maria Assunta which houses the relic of the patron saint San Gennaro and now hosts black and white enlargements of 606 faces of contemporary Naples. It will be inaugurated this evening at 7 PM, and has already sparked controversy over how JR’s photographs would have “disfigured” the façade of one of the most significant monuments of the Neapolitan city. Municipal councilor Pino De Stasio criticized the work as shabby, a sign of “cultural as well as religious decay”. However, the main goal of this new chapter of Chronicles is the celebration of the Neapolitan community, a project which has been promoted and curated by Gallerie d’Italia, the museum of Intesa Sanpaolo, and with the patronage of the Municipality. 

In an Instagram post, JR shared the origins of the project, which came to life last September in the center of Naples. «We set up a green screen of seven different neighborhoods – the artist recounts – Anyone passing by was invited. We welcomed the mayor, pizzaiolos, firemen, musicians, and police officers. Then priests, merchants, grandmothers, famous writers, tourists, and residents zipping through the streets on Vespas wanted to join in. We photographed and recorded the stories of 606 Neapolitans, and created Le Cronache di Napoli, a mural representing the city and its people.» More than mocking Neapolitan identity or defacing the Duomo, JR’s work aims to break the stereotypes that surround the city and to shine a light on the real stories of its inhabitants. As one of the most visited tourist destinations in all of Naples, choosing to display the images on the façade of the Duomo was a conscious decision despite the criticism it would provoke. It becomes impossible for a passerby, whether skeptical or curious, not to take interest in the faces captured by JR. In addition to photographing the residents of Naples, the artist also collected their stories in an interactive page, so that each of the protagonists of *Le Cronache di Napoli* is not just a piece in JR’s work, but an active protagonist.