An illustration to tell the story of the La Serena winery in Montalcino and wish happy holidays

Andrea and Marcello Mantengoli chose the tasting room for a visual account of their family history. Marcello invited artist Carlotta Parisi, who was experimenting with true-fresco technique, to undertake the work.

The painting is a fresco rather than a mural: pigments diluted with water were applied to fresh plaster so that carbonation of the lime fixed the colours into the surface. Parisi reconstructed the narrative by interviewing the family, including Andrea and Marcello’s mother, Iva, and worked with illustrator Marta Farina.

The composition begins with the great-grandparents, follows the twin brothers along initially different paths and reunites them at La Serena. Marcello returns with architectural knowledge and Andrea with his attachment to the land. The sequence continues towards the next generation, moving symbolically from earth and seed through vineyard rows to a butterfly that carries the strength of the family’s foundations into the future.