KUCHING, June 19 — The stained-glass windows stand as a significant feature being brought in by Italian artisans Roberto Fasoli and Ernesto Raducci to inject an aura of magnificence into the new St Peter’s Church building in Padungan area here.

Hailing from Milan and jointly running FR Vetreria Artistica Pte Ltd, the two have been commissioned to undertake the stained-glass works on the new structure, which incorporates semi-gothic styles into its architecture.

It is reported that the works progress is now at 70 per cent and full project completion is expected by October 2024.

Fasoli, 57, says it is taking quite some time for him and business partner Raducci, 48, to finish the job in that each aspect requires sharp precision.

"Ernesto and I have the capability to cover each aspect of the job, from the beginning to the end. This means we can sketch, paint, make the stained-glass pieces up until the end, which is installing the stained-glasses onto the building.

"That’s why we need a bit longer (time) to complete a project, but we prefer to do that because this allows us to personally oversee every stage of the process, and give the customers our quality assurance of the job produced,” Fasoli told The Borneo Post when met recently at the construction of site for the new Catholic church here.

He also said their involvement in the church project ‘began with a fortuitous connection’.

"A Singaporean woman with ties to the new St Peter’s Church project in Malaysia, contacted us, asking to share my contact with some interested parties in Malaysia.

"Then, (St Peter’s Church Padungan rector) Father Vincent Chin contacted me directly.

"I was straightforward with him, telling him that if you want to eat Italian, go to an Italian restaurant; if you want to eat Chinese, go to a Chinese restaurant,” said Fasoli, stating his metaphorical expressions in describing the quality of work.

FR Vetreria Artistica accepted the job, said Fasoli, but he stressed that the deal was beyond mere business interest.

He disclosed that the gothic style of the new St Peter’s Church ‘spoke’ to his artistic sensibilities.

He said he had always admired the captivating ambiance that stained-glass windows could create within a church, ‘underscoring its profound impact on spiritual experiences’.

"Stained glasses hugely impact the ambiance of experience that you have in a church, 100 per cent. This is what I feel when I go inside a church with stained-glass windows. The colours that build the most (captivating) atmosphere are blue, red, gold and dark purple.

"The only spiritual thing that can touch your soul is the colour; the atmosphere is done by the colour. It doesn’t matter whether it is a nice or ugly stained glass, as a colour is still a colour.

"For me, any stained glass fixture is the most important thing that you can put in your church.”

Fasoli underlined his point by saying that should one go to ‘Duomo di Milano’, a cathedral in Milan, once could see the statues, the marble and the stained glasses, but the first thing that would draw one’s your attention, would be the colours.

On the process, Fasoli and Raducci still employ the traditional methods, dating back to the medieval times.

"Nothing has changed — perhaps, the only thing different is the (usage of modern) electricity for the oven and the soldering process. The materials are still the same: the glass and the powder to colour the stained-glass,” said Fasoli.

Adding on, he said apart from having the skills, experience and a strong sense to the fine details, the maker must also have high level of patience as a single window could contain either three stained-glass pieces, or up to 300 pieces to be joined together.

"Ernesto, who is our technician, can join 150 pieces in one day; another man with less experience than him may need three days to do the job.

"With that, I dare to say that our quality is the best — you can compare with other companies,” said Fasoli.

"If you could find someone better than us, let me know because I would employ them,” he quipped.

The St Peter’s Church here is not the first major project undertaken by Fasoli and Raducci.

Their portfolio boasts numerous international accomplishments attained across Europe.

Closer to home, the duo was also involved in a project commissioned by Novena Church, also known as the ‘Church of St Alphonsus’, in Singapore.

On the project timeline for the new St Peter’s Church, Fasoli estimated that it would take around five years to finish the works on all 500 square metres of stained-glass structures.

This said, the Milanese also expressed his hope that upon completion of the works, more people would be intrigued by stained-glass windows and want to implement their own projects; thus, keeping this artistic element of architecture alive. — Borneo Post Online