Sveva Caetani's Recapitulation Series

The daughter of Leone Caetani, Duke of Sermoneta and Prince of Teano, and his mistress Ofelia Fabiani, Sveva Caetani di Sermoneta was born in Rome, Italy in 1917. To legitimize her and evade Mussolini, Leone moved to Vernon in 1921. His death in 1935 left Sveva the "prisoner" of her mentally ill mother until her death freed her in 1960. She obtained teaching qualifications and, while teaching dominated her days, free time was dedicated to creating (using the dry brush watercolour medium) the 47-work Recapitulation Series and other works. These colourful and mostly large-scale paintings depict the family's journey through Dantean Hell, Paradise and Heaven with Leone acting as a "spirit guide." The narrative is enriched with elements of Tolkien mythopoeia, Jungian psychology, Star Wars imagery, relativity theory and Black Holes. Over 30 years after her death in 1994, it is time to place her compelling work in the context of international art.