Italians S01 E04 The Art Restorer

Leonetto Tintori has dedicated 50 years of his life to restoring Italy's early Renaissance masterpieces. Frescoes by Giotto and paintings from the palaces of Florence and Sienna and from small wayside chapels owe their survival to him. He finds it agonising to see a deteriorating painting 'It's like watching a corpse rotting away'. Like a visiting doctor he tends damaged works of art throughout Tuscany. Leonetto is also an artist and sculptor and his favourite model is his wife and companion, Elena. Their relationship is based on humour, warmth and the occasional huge row. Their love of art brought them together and it sustains them now.