Oscar Piattella

One of Oscar Piattella’s (1932–2023) most monumental and least-known works unfolds within the Sanctuary of Our Lady of Health in Turin. It is the large polychrome stained-glass apse, inaugurated in October 1992 and created using the traditional leaded stained-glass technique.

Conceived and drawn at full scale by Piattella over two years of work, the apse was produced at the Gibo workshops in Verona, where three-dimensional models were made in sections at a 1:1 scale. It consists of approximately 13,000 pieces of mouth-blown glass in various shades. Standing 17 metres high, with a semicircular span of 10 metres, it covers a total area of 170 square metres and is divided into 172 panels of various shapes. These are secured to a supporting structure made up of 13 iron girders extending vertically from the base to the centre of the dome.

The commission for the apse stemmed from the wishes of Cardinal Giovanni Saldarini, Archbishop of Turin. The sanctuary is, in fact, owned by the Archdiocese and managed by the Josephite Fathers of Saint Leonard Murialdo.

Through its extraordinary dimensions and unusual form, this work shapes light, transforming it into matter and vibrating energy.