Gonippo Raggi (May 6, 1875October 22, 1959) was an Italian artist who provided murals for many churches and church institutions in the United States.

Early childhood and education

He was born in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

, in 1875. He was a prize graduate of St. Luke's Royal Academy in Rome and his artistic talent brought him membership in the Pontifical Academy of Virtuosi al Pantheon.

Artistic practice

He came to the United States in 1904 at the invitation of Papal Marquis Martin Maloney to supervise the decoration of St. Catharine Church in

Spring Lake, New Jersey Spring Lake, is a Borough (New Jersey), borough situated on the Jersey Shore in Monmouth County, New Jersey, Monmouth County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 2,789, a decrease of ...

. Maloney had erected the church as a memorial to his daughter, Catherine. Raggi drew the attention of Rev. Thomas J. Walsh, then Bishop of Trenton. When Walsh became Bishop of Newark, he encouraged Raggi to continue his work in the Newark diocese. Raggi was internationally acclaimed as a portraitist and ecclesiastical artist. and supervised the decoration of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart in Newark. He died in 1959. Several of the buildings containing Raggi's murals have been placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government's official United States National Register of Historic Places listings, list of sites, buildings, structures, Hist ...

. All of Raggi's paintings done before 1915 were cataloged by the

Smithsonian Institution The Smithsonian Institution ( ), or simply the Smithsonian, is a group of museums, Education center, education and Research institute, research centers, created by the Federal government of the United States, U.S. government "for the increase a ...

. Other work by Raggi is cataloged by the Boston Public Library, Department of Fine Arts.

Raggi works

Basilica of St. Josaphat The Basilica of St. Josaphat is a Catholic minor basilica in the Lincoln Village neighborhood of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. It was built in 1901 in the Polish cathedral style by Milwaukee's Polish immigrant community. The basilica ...

Milwaukee Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

* St. Patrick Pro Cathedral,

Newark, New Jersey Newark ( , ) is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, most populous City (New Jersey), city in the U.S. state of New Jersey, the county seat of Essex County, New Jersey, Essex County, and a principal city of the New York metropolitan area. ...

* St. Catharine Church, Spring Lake, New Jersey * Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart, Newark, New Jersey * St. Lucy's Church, Newark, New Jersey * Immaculate Conception Seminary Chapel, Darlington, New Jersey * Our Lady of Good Counsel Church, Newark, New Jersey * St. Mary of Mount Virgin Church,

New Brunswick, New Jersey New Brunswick is a city (New Jersey), city in and the county seat of Middlesex County, New Jersey, Middlesex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.Morristown, New Jersey Morristown () is a Town (New Jersey), town in and the county seat of Morris County, New Jersey, Morris County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey.

* Notre Dame Church,

Southbridge, Massachusetts Southbridge is a city in Worcester County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,740 at the 2020 census. Although Southbridge has a city form of government, it is legally known as the Town of Southbridge. History The area was i ...

* Liberal Arts Building and Rotunda at Marywood College,

Scranton, Pennsylvania Scranton is a city in and the county seat of Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, United States. With a population of 76,328 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, Scranton is the most populous city in Northeastern Pennsylvania and the ...

* St. John The Baptist Catholic Church,

Beloit, Kansas Beloit is a city in and the county seat of Mitchell County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,404. History On permanent organization of the county in 1870, Beloit was selected as the county sea ...

http://skyways.lib.ks.us/towns/Beloit/sjtbcc.html Description of St. John The Baptist Catholic Church, Beloit, KS * Chapel, St. John Seminary,

Brighton, Boston Brighton is a Municipal annexation in the United States, former town and current Neighborhoods in Boston, neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States, located in the northwestern corner of the city. It is named after the English city of ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

* Our Lady of Victory Basilica,

Lackawanna, New York Lackawanna is a city in Erie County, New York, United States, just south of the city of Buffalo in western New York State. The population was 19,949 at the 2020 census. It is one of the fastest-growing cities in New York, growing in populati ...

* Mary Immaculate of Lourdes Church (Newton, Massachusetts) * Shrine of the Little Flower Catholic Church,

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

* St. John the Evangelist Church, Pittston, PA

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Raggi, Gonippo 1875 births 1959 deaths Artists from Rome Italian emigrants to the United States