18th Century
Conservation Tours of St Bartholomew's Hospital
January 13 2025
Video: St Bartholomew's Hospital
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
St Bartholomew's Hospital in London are running a limited number of Conservation Tours during the end of January, showing visitors the current progress of work. The tour includes going up on a scaffold, including some insights into the conservation of Hogarth's famous paintings on the staircases. The tours cost £11.55 to attend.
According to the description of the tours:
Join us on this tour to explore the rich history, architecture and people involved in the craftsmanship of the James Gibbs' Great Hall. The tour will highlight the conservation work to rescue and rejuvenate the Grade 1 listed building, including the staircase decorated by William Hogarth.
Get an insider's look at the conservation and restoration work being done to protect this historically significant building.
Please note, this tour involves accessing a scaffolding viewing deck. There are 31 steps on the staircase to reach the deck. The paintings in the Hogarth staircase are partially obstructed by scaffolding as our Conservation Team work on them.
1,000 posts later... and Maria Verelst
January 10 2025
Picture: Carmarthenshire Museum via ArtUk
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
As I've just passed my 1,000 post since my return to AHN, I wanted to thank you all for sticking with the blog. It has been tremendously good fun to share enthusiasm for all of the interesting things going on in our small corner of the art world. I'm especially grateful to those of you who get in touch. Ultimately, we must all thank Bendor for supporting its continuation.
To mark this occasion, I thought I'd share a small accidental discovery of mine recently on ArtUK (whilst I was searching for something else, as is always the way). Although catalogued as Portrait of an Unknown Lady in Green by an 'Unknown Artist', it is clear to me that this must be a work by Maria Verelst (1680–1744). In particular, the face pattern and overall handling is so reminiscent of her painting of Anne Blackett formerly with Philip Mould & Co. The artwork is currently in the Carmarthenshire Museum in Wales and is the sort of picture that would really dazzle after a clean and new application of varnish! Maybe one day.
Wishing all readers a very good weekend ahead.
George Washington's pastel makes $317,500
January 9 2025
Picture: maineantiquedigest.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
I'm very late to this rather fascinating story (spotted via @MaryMWalsh) that a unattributed pastel of St John the Evangelist realised $317,500 at the The Potomack Company auctioneers in Alexandria, Virginia, last October. This enormous sum is explained by the fact that the artwork had documented provenance back to its original owners George and Martha Washington and had descended with members of the family. Even if we forget that the estimate was $250,000 - $500,000, this is still quite a price! Click on the link to read more.
Kauffman soars in Paris
December 21 2024
Picture: Theirry de Maigret
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Paris (via. Drouot) that the following Portrait of Elisabeth Vernon, Countess Harcourt by Angelika Kauffman soared to an impressive 244,720 EUR over its modest 12,000 - 15,000 EUR estimate earlier this week at Theirry de Maigret.
Zoffanys soar at Bonhams
December 4 2024
Picture: Bonhams
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The aforementioned pair of Johann Zoffanys soared past their £300k - £500k estimate at Bonhams today to realise £991,000 (including premium). They did look absolutely fantastic in the preview of the sale earlier this week and will undoubtedly clean beautifully once careful conservation reveals their original colours underneath that yellowed varnish. We shall wait and see if they turn up anywhere interesting!
Louvre buys Tiepolo from Christie's London Sale
December 4 2024
Picture: Christie's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Louvre in Paris has announced its acquisition of Giovanni Battista Tiepolo's Guilty Punchinello from last night's sale at Christie's London. The picture, which had been in France since c. 1934, made £2,460,000 over its £1m - £1.5m estimate.
New Release: Ange Laurent from La Live de Jully
December 4 2024
Picture: lienarteditions.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A new publication on the amateur artist, patron and collector Ange-Laurent de La Live de Jully (1725 –1779) has just been published in France (under the general direction of Marie-Laure de Rochebrune, curator at the Palace of Versailles). The volume, with vast amounts of contributions from scholars working in the sphere of 18th century France, examines many aspects relating to his aesthetic and intellectual pursuits.
Joseph Parrocell acquired by Musée du Grand Siècle
November 26 2024
Picture: La Tribune de l'art
Monuments Men Largillierre Soars
November 22 2024
Picture: Christie's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
There were some rather strong and encouraging prices achieved in last night's Maîtres Anciens : Peintures - Dessins - Sculptures sale at Christie's Paris. Amongst them was this splendid Nicolas de Largillierre (pictured), which features within a famous photograph showing the Monuments Men with recaptured Nazi loot. In this case, the painting had been taken by the Nazis from one branch of the famous Rothschild family, and was eventually restituted to them in 1946. It was later subsequently sold at auction in 1978.
The painting realised 529,900 EUR over its 50k - 80k EUR estimate in last night's sale.
Council Approves sale of Bouchardon Bust
November 18 2024
Picture: ross-shirejournal.co.uk
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Regular readers of AHN will remember the ongoing story relating to the attempts by Highland Council to sell off a bust of Sir John Gordon by Bouchardon which was discovered in their collection back in 1998. It is the intention of the council that money resulting from its sale would be put forwards a 'Invergordon Common Good Fund', and a 'high quality replica' put in its place.
The most recent update, as reported in the Ross-shire Journal, are as follows:
Members of the Black Isle and Easter Ross area committee voted in May to pursue the sale, which was rubber stamped by a full council meeting a month later.
That vote followed public consultation over the plans which drew dozens of responses - with 48 of the 70 received being in favour of the sale despite strong criticism from some quarters.
And last Thursday [14th November 2024] the council applied to Tain Sheriff Court for formal approval to sell the bust under the terms of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973.
We'll wait and see how this story progresses.
The Enigma of Watteau's Pierrot
November 14 2024
Video: Louvre
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Louvre in Paris published this rather fascinating video a couple of weeks ago dedicated to the enigma of Jean-Antoine Watteau's famous Pierrot. The video also examines the recent conservation of the painting, which appears to have been rather visually transformative.
The museum's current exhibition on the work, entitled A New Look at Watteau, runs until 3rd February 2025.
Re-discovered portrait of Oliver Cromwell unveiled by Dickinson
November 12 2024
Picture: Dickinson
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The London dealers Simon Dickinson have unveiled a re-discovered portrait of Oliver Cromwell by Robert Walker. Interestingly, recent conservation has revealed the painting was never finished by the artist which raises some very intriguing questions as to its history.
According to their press release:
The restoration process brought a surprise to light: the painting was left unfinished by Walker, raising significant questions. Why would Cromwell’s preferred artist abandon such an important commission? Painted during a period when Cromwell was facing military challenges in Scotland and Ireland and unrest at home, the sudden abandonment of the project by Walker indicates that it fell victim to the changing fates of the period.
“Seeing this masterpiece come to life through restoration was a revelation,” says Simon Dickinson, Chairman of Dickinson Gallery. “This isn’t just a painting; it’s a statement of Cromwell’s character and ambitions. We are thrilled to invite the public to experience the power and enigma of this unfinished portrait and the historical era it represents.”
The portrait will be on display in Jermyn Street from 25th November until 10th December. Cromwell and his band did love Christmas, after all.
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As a side note, I've always wondered what happened to this version of Walker's Cromwell which was formerly in the collection of Warwick Castle (one of my unhealthy obsessions, I must confess). The painting is visible on the left-hand side of this old black & white photograph (see below). Do let me know if any reader of AHN spots it out in the wild one day!
Palazzo Ducale Mantua acquire Bazzani
November 12 2024
Picture: mantovaducale.beniculturali.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Italy (spotted via @Mweilc) that the Palazzo Ducale in Mantua have acquired Giuseppe Bazzani's (1690-1769) Christ and the pilgrims on the way to Emaus. It appears that the painting's companion piece, Christ in the House of Mary Magdalene and also dating to 1720-25, survives in the Harvard Art Museum in Cambridge.
Greuze at Galerie Eric Coatalem
November 8 2024
Picture: Galerie Eric Coatalem
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
For readers who might be travelling through Paris this month and next, the dealers Galerie Eric Coatalem have a special Greuze exhibition on display at present. Featuring 59 works, including drawings and paintings, the display will run until 20th December 2024.
Click here to view their catalogue for the exhibition, which has been published for free online!
James Cumberlidge Reidentified
October 1 2024
Picture: @edward.town
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Yale Center for British Art's curator Edward Town has shared a fascinating piece of research on his Instagram account. The project relates to the reidentification of a household servant which features in Chatsworth's 'Portrait of Lord Burlington with family' by Baptist van Loo. James Cumberlidge, whose descendants worked for the family into the nineteenth century, was rediscovered after research into payments was conducted (see the link for more details). The painting features in Chatsworth's Picturing Childhood exhibition which closes on 6th October 2024.
Update - Here's the full article which you can read on Chatsworth's website regarding Town's research on the painting.
Torcuato Ruiz del Peral Exhibition in Granada
October 1 2024
Picture: museosdeandalucia.es
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A new exhibition has recently opened at the Museo de Bellas Artes de Granada celebrating the career of the sculptor Torcuato Ruiz del Peral (1708-1773). Considered one of the last great sculptors in the grand Baroque manner, the show draws on works from private and public institutions in order to mark the 250th anniversary of his death.
The display will run until 5th January 2025.
Winterthur sends Graff Self-Portrait back to Poland
September 24 2024
Picture: swissinfo.ch
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The city of Winterthur in Switzerland have sent Anton Graff's Self-Portrait at the Age of 72 back to Poland after a provenance probe. The painting had been hanging in a museum in Wrocław in 1937 but later disappeared from a depot a few years later in 1939. Graff's picture was eventually purchased by the Swiss city from a Basel art dealer for 16,800 CHF in 1986. Click on the link to read more.
Monumental Desportes Coming Up
September 20 2024
Video: ARTCENTO
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The French auction house Pousse-Cornet will be offering a monumental still life by Alexandre-François Desportes in a few days' time. The painting, which cataloguing suggests hasn't been offered for sale since 1961, carrys an estimate of 100,000 - 150,000 euros.
Revolution at the Musée Carnavalet
September 18 2024
Picture: Musée Carnavalet
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Musée Carnavalet in Paris will be opening an exhibition dedicated to 'Year II' of the French Revolution.
According the museum's website:
1789, the year of the Storming of the Bastille and the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, is often considered to be the glorious year of the Revolution and even to embody the French Revolution in its entirety. It is the year during which Paris established itself as the capital of the Enlightenment and Revolutions.
But compared to the clarity of “89”, “93” appears much darker and thornier. As it was just coming to an end, this long political year spanning from the spring of 1793 to the summer of 1794 had already found a name: the “Terror”. Fabricated for political reasons, the word points to the authoritarian transition that the republican regime had undergone. And yet, the years 1793-1794 are also the years that some, confident in their ability to reinvent history, called “Year II”: a year defined by its breaking with the past and its revitalising of revolutionary utopias.
The exhibition is a collection of more than 250 works of all kinds: paintings, sculptures, objects of decorative arts, historical and memorial objects, wallpaper, posters, pieces of furniture… And all translate collective histories and incredible individual fates.
These varied objects reveal a context imbued with collective fears and state violence, but also with extraordinary daily activities, feasts, and celebrations.
The display will run from 16th October 2024 until 16th February 2025.
AIL Gainsboroughs on Display at No.1 Royal Crescent
September 16 2024
Picture: No.1 Royal Crescent
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
No.1 Royal Crescent in Bath, run by the Bath Preservation Trust, have just displayed four recently acquired paintings by Thomas Gainsborough. The portraits of the Tugwell family, who were middle-class manufacturers from a small West Country town, were painted by the artist around the year 1760. The works were acquired through the Acceptance in Lieu Scheme (AIL), via the auctioneers Duke's, and settled £88,125 worth of tax.
According to the article linked above:
Senior curator for Bath Preservation Trust Dr Amy Frost said: "The portraits are remarkable for capturing two generations of a manufacturing family." [...]
"When I opened the email saying 'Do you want four Gainsborough portraits?' my first reaction was to ask: 'Is this real?' especially as it then said 'as a gift'.
"We're a small museum, and a gift like this can be revolutionary in terms of the quality of what we display," said Ms Frost.
