A Brazilian artist painted a portrait of Pope Francis on Grafton Street on April 22, the day after the Holy Father died. João ‘Brutto’ Adnet is a painter from Rio based in Dublin and painted the Pope before. “I am not even Catholic, but Pope Francis was like Jesus. He was a revolutionary,” the artist said.
Mr Adnet’s art is temporary, as he uses cling film as the base for his paintings and takes it down when he leaves the site. He told The Irish Catholic his admiration for Pope Francis was a result of the Pope’s work with minorities.
“The fact that he wanted to do more for the people, challenging rules and norms. For example,” the artist said, “he advocated for Palestine, for the LGBTQI+ Community… For the position he held, I didn’t see him as a person exclusively for the Church but as someone who did a lot for those in need [despite their faith]. And the devotion so many people have in the Catholic Church can influence others.
“I’ve always found him an interesting figure because of that [the Pope’s work with minorities]. I’ve always avoided painting religious themes in general, but I never saw him as just a religious figure, he was much more humanitarian than religious.”
The artist said that many stopped, “especially elderly,” to talk to him while he was painting Pope Francis. “People usually stop, and regardless of what I’m painting, some people will always have complaints. There were people who stopped and gave me the finger, who didn’t like the painting.”
When Mr Adnet “painted Pope Francis in 2016/2017, there were paedophilia scandals in the news and many people were against the Pope, but this time people were more positive, more receptive” to his art. “Possibly due to his passing,” the artist concluded.
