Ismaele Nones’s Palio Banner Sparks Controversy in Siena

Ismaele Nones (Trento, 1992) unveiled his painted drappellone (Cencio) for the Palio di Siena on July 2, 2026, sparking widespread criticism from locals on social media for his unconventional depiction of two horses sticking out their tongues. The artist, known for divisive work, retreated to the seaside to escape the backlash. Despite the negative online comments, Nones received hundreds of personal messages and even poems praising the banner. The banner features two horses—one black, one white—representing the Balzana, Siena’s coat of arms. The black horse is a citation from Nones’s 2024 work Incontro Veloce Lungofiume. The horses dance on a pattern taken from the floor of the Pellegrinaio hall in the Santa Maria della Scala museum. The banner commemorates the 800th anniversary of the death of Saint Francis, who is depicted in a frieze above the Madonna di Provenzano. Nones also included the outlines of contrada coats of arms, filling them with his own animal designs. The artwork references the mythical underground river Diana, mocked by Dante Alighieri in the Purgatorio. Previous Palio banners by Luigi Ontani (2002) and Francesco De Grandi (2025) also faced criticism for unconventional horse representations. The article argues that the quality of the artist justifies the controversy, as professional authorship adds value to the contrada museums’ collections.