World-renowned artists to participate in first Vatican ‘Vitae Summit’

Singer Andrea Bocelli meets with Pope Francis 

By Vatican News staff reporter

Sep 1 2022

Internationally-recognized artists from around the world, including Denzel Washington, Andrea Bocelli, and Patricia Heaton will join Pope Francis for the first-ever “Vitae Summit” at the Vatican on August 31 – September 1 to begin a conversation on how to use the arts to foster a culture of hope and unity.

A two-day summit will be held from August 31 – September 1 by the Vitae Global Foundation at the Casina Pio IV inside the walls of Vatican City.

Participants include arts, media, and entertainment personalities who will join Pope Francis to discuss how to “leverage the arts, media, and entertainment to trigger a cultural transformation that promotes the common good, universal values, and an encounter between people.”

Two days of encounter

On Tuesday, the VITAE Global organization announced the guest list of summit participants (found below), including American-born actor Denzel Washington and Italian-born singer Andrea Boccelli.

World famous artists, actors, actresses, and musicians will hold meetings to share their thoughts on strategies and creative proposals and initiate a conversation on how to turn people toward more meaningful and inspiring content.

Hope, unity, and the common good are the main themes of the summit framed amongst the overall goal of inspiring a change in the world through art.

The Pope has often spoken about the role of artist in improving society, saying they act as “guardians of beauty, ambassadors of a culture of encounter, and witnesses of hope for all humanity.”

Following the meeting, summit organizers will host various international events and initiatives in cities around the world to continue the work begun at the meeting at the Vatican.

Role of artists in the world

The summit is the culmination of several years of meetings with Pope Francis in his Vatican residence, the Casa Santa Marta, with the VITAE Global founder and president Luis Quinelli and his executive team.

Mr. Quinelli says he hopes the summit will counter the messages of negativity and hate spread by social media, stating that artists have a large responsibility to share beauty and positivity in their work.

“Our intention is to create an opportunity where the participants, with the presence and inspiration of the Holy Father, will be able to share experiences, opinions and to collaboratively find messages that spark inspiration,” he said, “provoke thought and turn people toward content that is deeply meaningful.”

Beauty, continues Mr. Quinelli, is an incredibly powerful force that can help elevate people’s spirits, “bring healing to the soul, reconciliation to relationships and renewed hope in the face of challenges.”