Renowned artwork of Sveva Caetani returned to its home in Vernon

Photo: Contributed

Some renowned artwork has been returned to its home in Vernon.

Sveva Caetani’s life work, Recapitulation, has returned to Vernon's Caetani Cultural Centre permanently.

The series includes more than 50 watercolour paintings documenting Caetani’s life story. They had been under the care of the Alberta Foundation for the Arts in Edmonton for close to 35 years.

The cultural centre is located in the late artist's childhood home on East Hill.

This summer, centre is offering tours of Caetani’s artwork along with family artifacts and memorabilia for the first time since the house was donated to the community in 1994.

“The Caetani Cultural Centre Society is very excited to have this iconic work back in Vernon where it belongs,” says society president Sherry Price. “The timing is perfect as we are finally ready to open the house to the public.”

More of Caetani's works were housed at the Greater Vernon Museum and Archives while the heritage building was brought up to current codes.

“The Caetani house was Sveva’s home for many years, where she created her work, entertained and mentored so many local artists, writers and creatives of all ages and abilities over the years. She wanted to leave her house as a legacy to the community, a place for inspiration and where the work of being an artist is celebrated,” says the centre's executive director, Susan Brandoli.

Descending from Italian royalty, the Caetanis immigrated to Canada in 1921.

Sveva’s father, Leone Caetani, Duke of Sermoneta, left Italy abruptly and under somewhat mysterious circumstances.

Following his death in 1935, Sveva was kept a prisoner in her own home for over 25 years by her mother, Ofelia.

It was not until her mother's death in 1960 that Sveva, then in her early 40s, began to paint, draw and write again, culminating in an explosion of creativity that has been the subject of books and films.

Tours are expected to begin by July and will be limited to small groups and/or bubbles following public health guidelines. To book a tour, visit Caetani.org or call the centre at 250-275-1525.