When Italian artist Mauro Pallotta secretly pasted a mural depicting Pope Francis as a caped superhero on a wall near the Vatican a decade ago, Rome police removed it within hours.
Now the Vatican has given Pallotta, who signs his work “Maupal,” a seal of approval, allowing him to illustrate Francis’ message for the season of Lent this year.
On Thursday, Pallotta sat alongside a cardinal at a news conference, crowning his transition from a surreptitious nocturnal street artist to one now basking in a blessing from the Holy See’s number one man.
“It’s been quite a journey,” Pallotta, 51, said. Continue reading