Previous Posts: October 2023

An exceptional microsample from the ground layer of Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa was analyzed by high-angular resolution synchrotron X-ray diffraction and micro Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, revealing a singular mixture of strongly saponified oil with high lead content and a cerussite (PbCO3)-depleted lead white pigment. The most remarkable signature in the sample is the presence of plumbonacrite (Pb5(CO3)3O(OH)2), a rare compound that is stable only in an alkaline environment. Leonardo probably endeavored to prepare a thick paint suitable for covering the wooden panel of the Mona Lisa by treating the oil with a high load of lead II oxide, PbO. The review of Leonardo’s manuscripts (original and latter translation) to track the mention of PbO gives ambiguous information. Conversely, the analysis of fragments from the Last Supper confirms that not only PbO was part of Leonardo’s palette, through the detection of both litharge (α-PbO) and massicot (β-PbO) but also plumbonacrite and shannonite (Pb2OCO3), the latter phase being detected for the first time in a historical painting.

The exhibition, which boasts prestigious international loans, is an opportunity to present the work of the Cretan artist in the light of the latest research on his work: El Greco in fact proposes a profound and innovative historical-critical reflection, whose strengths are from the careful reconsideration of the impact of Italian models in the artist's training and from the proposal of an interpretation of the results of El Greco's activity in the last Toledan period in terms of conscious recovery of a compositional setting in the broader Byzantine sense.

The exhibition itinerary is divided into sections designed so as to keep constantly in focus the artist's relationship with the places where he lived in order to offer visitors a precise historical-biographical reconstruction with great clarity and immediacy of impact, at the same time establishing a series of stringent comparisons with the great Roman and Venetian painting, bringing out the powerful theme of the labyrinth to underline how El Greco's life was a sort of immense bildungsroman that took place among the cultural capitals of the Mediterranean.

At the dawn of the 18th century, Venice was a magnet for visitors from across Europe, drawn by its architecture, history, and cosmopolitan atmosphere. Many of the artists featured in this exhibition produced works for an international clientele, who avidly collected images of the city, its inhabitants, and its colourful traditions. Landmarks such as St Mark’s Square and the Grand Canal set the stage for Canaletto’s celebrated views of the city’s lively streets and waterways. Piazzetta’s evocative head studies and Giambattista Tiepolo’s playful caricatures depict an early modern metropolis populated by a myriad of characters of different social backgrounds, while Guardi’s panoramic Feast of Ascension Day records the formal splendour and ceremony of the city known as La Serenissima – the most serene.

Hans Holbein was one of the most talented artists of the 16th century.  From his arrival in England in search of work he rose to royal favour, chosen to paint the portraits of Henry VIII, his family and leading figures, among them Anne Boleyn and Sir Thomas More. By his death, Holbein’s work was as admired by his contemporaries as it is today. His portraits inspired the next generation of artists in their depictions of Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I.

This exhibition showcases one of the most important surviving collections of his work, and includes drawings, paintings, miniatures and book illustrations. Celebrating Holbein’s artistic skill, it explores the career of the artist and the lives of those who commissioned portraits from him, bringing us face-to-face with some of the most famous people of 16th-century England. 

The role holder will document and research our collection of export paintings from China, authoring catalogue records and research publications, and supporting wider public engagement with the collection. They will also seek to build collaborations with colleagues in the University and beyond.

The post-holder will be knowledgeable about, and have experience working with, 18th and 19th century Chinese paintings, particularly export arts, an understanding of the wider historical and cultural context, and be committed to developing new inclusive and diverse perspectives on these collections.

In portraits by John Singer Sargent (1856–1925), sitters assume elegant stances, the fabric of their dress richly depicted in broad, sensuous strokes of paint. Sargent brought his subjects to life, but he did much more than simply record what appeared before him. He often chose what his sitters wore and, even if they arrived in his studio dressed in the latest fashions, he frequently simplified and altered the details. Exploiting dress was an integral part of his artistry.

Organized with Tate Britain, “Fashioned by Sargent” explores the artist’s complex relationship with his often-affluent clients and their clothes. The exhibition reveals Sargent’s power over his sitters’ images by considering the liberties he took with sartorial choices to express distinctive personalities, social positions, professions, gender identities, and nationalities. Alongside about 50 paintings by Sargent, over a dozen period garments and accessories shed new light on the relationship between fashion and this beloved artist’s creative practice.

The Conservator in Charge of the Department of Paintings Conservation, one of the museum’s five conservation departments (Objects, Paper, Photographs, Textile) has the academic and administrative responsibility for the conservation and preservation of paintings throughout the Museum in accordance with the highest standards of the profession and leads a team (currently) of twelve staff members.  You should have deep experience in the treatment and technical examination of paintings, and a distinguished record and reputation in the field.  You will work closely with all curatorial departments that house paintings (the American Wing, European Paintings and Modern and Contemporary are the principal departments, but numerous others house collections), to identify the conservation needs of their collections, to establish priorities for treatment, preservation, and the technical study of objects.  In addition, you will organize and oversee the examination of paintings that enter the museum through acquisition, gift, and loan, including loan exhibitions.  You will be involved in decisions relating to the Museum environment, installations, capital projects, exhibitions and storage that involve paintings. Importantly, they will supervise efforts regarding the movement, storage, and treatment of paintings as part of the capital plan to build the Tang Wing for Modern and Contemporary art over the next years.

The two works are believed to have been painted for an English patron for whom Joseph Smith, the merchant, collector and later consul in Venice, acted as agent.

Records survive of the payments John Russell, 4th Duke of Bedford, made between 1734-6 to Smith’s brother and London agent, John Smith, for the celebrated Canaletto series at Woburn.

It has been suggested by London dealer and Canaletto expert Charles Beddington that the current pictures were components of a set of four canvases commissioned in 1733 by the Duke of Bedford’s sister, Elizabeth Countess of Essex and dispatched by Smith the following year. Her husband, William Capel 3rd Earl of Essex, was appointed ambassador at Turin in 1732.

The choice of subjects suggests that Lady Essex may well have seen the two related works already ordered by her brother while these were still in Venice.

By 1939, the pictures were owned by Douglas Glass (1881-1944), the only son of James George Henry Glass (1843-1911), a distinguished engineer and a director of the Bengal Nagpur Railway Company, whose interest in Italy is reflected in the fact that he died in Naples rather than in his English residence.

The Three Philosophers by Giorgione (Italian, 1477–1510) in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna and St. Francis in the Desert by Giovanni Bellini (ca. 1424/35–1516) in The Frick Collection are two of the most celebrated paintings of the Venetian Renaissance. Documentation exists to suggest that, between at least 1525 and 1556, the two paintings were displayed together in the same house in Venice, the palazzo of Taddeo Contarini (ca. 1466–1540), a member of one of Venice’s wealthiest patrician families. For the first time in more than four hundred years these two masterpieces will be reunited. Accompanying their display at the Frick, this book explores the origins of the paintings and re-evaluates their histories in the collection of Taddeo Contarini.

In the summer of 1819, the landscape artist J.M.W. Turner set off on a journey to Italy that would have a profound impact on his life and work. Visitors to Turner’s House this summer will be able to enjoy an exhibition of evocative watercolours capturing some of Turner’s first impressions of the place he was to later call the ‘land of all bliss’, and which provided inspiration for the rest of his career.

Seeing the Light represents an exciting opportunity for the public to see some of Italy’s most well known and loved sites – Venice, Rome, Naples – through Turner’s eyes, in the unique setting of his then rural retreat in Twickenham.  Visitors to this tightly-focussed exhibition will also be able to appreciate Turner’s evolving use of colour and light before and after 1819,  thanks to generous loans from Tate, the Guildhall Art Gallery and a private collection.

The Collections & Engagement Team is particularly focused on using the collections to tell new and different stories about Leamington. You will contribute to the development, care and management of the council’s art collection, and work with colleagues to devise ways to engage our visitors and communities with them, through exhibitions, events and digital technologies.

You will have at least one year’s curatorial experience in a museum or art gallery, including mounting exhibitions and collections management. There is a strong public facing element to this role, and you will possess good verbal and written communication skills in order to liaise with a variety of stakeholders, visitors and external partners. The Art Curator will contribute to fundraising for the service and will have experience of managing budgets.

Its buyer [after the 2021 sale] subsequently contacted Sotheby’s and the auction house has spent 18 months researching the work, including detailed infrared imaging. The conclusion is that it is “not just by Rembrandt, but is a really significant Rembrandt”, says George Gordon, Sotheby’s co-chair of Old Master paintings and drawings. Leading scholars, including Volker Manuth, who co-wrote the 2019 catalogue raisonné of Rembrandt’s paintings, support the auction house’s views.

 The research has revealed changes that Rembrandt made while painting, including moving the protagonists’ heads towards the holy family, to create a more pronounced focal point. “We can see how his mind was working,” Gordon says. He also highlights the artist’s command of reflected light from two sources — a warm, interior one and the cooler Star of Bethlehem.