Previous Posts: articles 2023
Restoration of Poldi Pezzoli Museum's Mantegna
July 12 2021
Picture: Finestre sull'Arte
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Italian website Finestre sull'Arte have published an interesting article on the restoration of Andrea Mantegna's Madonna and Child in the Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan. In particular, the article explains the work undertaken by the 'restorer' Giuseppe Molteni at the end of the nineteenth century who undertook several highly suspicious 'improvements' to the picture. Fortunately, in 2019 the museum decided to begin the task of restoring the work and removing these later additions. The work undertaken by Opificio delle Pietre Dure in Florence has revealed the true colours of the painting as well as undertaken scientific analysis of Mantegna's pigments and processes. Furthermore, the restoration has allowed for a more precise dating to the artist's early period in Mantua, from around 1462 - 1470.
Scottish National Gallery Exhibition Labels used for Marriage Proposal
July 12 2021
Picture: edinburghlive.co.uk
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Scottish press have shared news that the curators of the Scottish National Gallery had conspired with Edinburgh resident Jose Cava last week propose to his partner Sophia Victoria Harrison in front of Diego Velázquez's Old Woman Frying Eggs. The gallery created this exhibition label (pictured) to be placed next to the painting on the day of the couple's visit. Most happily, Sophia accepted.
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Congratulations to the happy couple. However, I can't help think that Old Woman Frying Eggs was a rather unconventional choice for such a romantic gesture. Might any readers of AHN have any suggestions of slightly more romantic images from the SNG's collection that might suit?!
Ferdinand-Philippe d’Orléans - Images d’un prince idéal
July 12 2021
Picture: Musée Ingres Bourdelle à Montauban
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Musée Ingres in Montauban, France, have recently opened their latest exhibition dedicated to the patronage and collection of Ferdinand-Philippe d'Orléans (1810–1842). The exhibition, in collaboration with the Louvre, contains over 200 works of art including examples of his patronage of the likes of Ingres, Barye, Delacroix, Scheffer and Corot.
MET Appoints Stephan Wolohojian as new Curator of European Paintings
July 12 2021
Picture: artnews.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York have appointed Stephan Wolohojian as the new John Pope-Hennessy Curator in Charge of Department of European Paintings.
According to the museum's press release:
Since 2015, Wolohojian has served as a curator in the Department of European Paintings, becoming the Jayne Wrightsman Curator in 2019. He also currently guides The Met’s Curatorial Practice Program as the Coordinating Curator. Previously he spent almost a decade at the Harvard Art Museums, where he held roles as the Landon and Lavinia Clay Curator and then as Head of the Division of European and American Art. Wolohojian is a specialist in Italian Renaissance and Baroque painting, as well as 19th-century French painting, having curated important exhibitions in both areas, notably the award-winning A Private Passion, 19th-Century Paintings and Drawings from the Grenville L. Winthrop Collection, which was on view at The Met in 2003. He also played a leadership role in the complete renovation of the Harvard Art Museums, which reopened in 2014.
Stephan Wolohojian received his PhD from Harvard University and was a professor at the University of Delaware before returning to the Harvard Art Museums, where he headed the European and American Art divisions and played a key role in the recent renovation of the museum. He has continued his teaching while at The Met and has been involved in the interim installations of the European Paintings collection throughout the current skylights renovation project.
A new frame for Velázquez's The Spinners
July 12 2021
Video: Prado
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Prado in Madrid have published the following video giving an insider's view into a new frame made for Diego Velázquez's The Spinners. This new frame, which is incorporated into a wall of the gallery, hides the later eighteenth century additions without physically cutting them off from Velázquez's original canvas. A very interesting project indeed!
Portrait Exhibition in Galleria Sabauda Turin
July 9 2021
Picture: finestresullarte.info
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A new exhibition has opened yesterday at the Galleria Sabauda in Turin. The show will feature little known portraits from the Savoy Royal Collections and has been curated by History of Art Master's Degree Students in the city. Themes explored within the exhibition include the image of power, the women's court, family ties, childhood and international alliances.
The show will last until 7th November 2021.
Van Eyck Plea found in Vatican Archives
July 9 2021
Picture: The National Gallery, London
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Here's a curious story that appeared a few days ago. Historian Hendrik Callewier of the State Archives and KU Leuven has come across what he describes as a previously unknown application in the Vatican administration from painter Jan Van Eyck and his wife Margareta. The document, dated 26 March 1441, is a plea written to Pope Eugenius IV requesting a letter which would allow him to go to confession and absolve him from his sins.
According to the article linked above:
...according to Callewier “It is the first time that we see Van Eyck mentioned together with his wife Margareta in a document during his lifetime.”
The find may also help determine Van Eyck’s birthplace. “There is no document from his time that says where he comes from,” Callewier said. “Ten different places have been named in the past hundred years, with Maaseik as the most likely contender. Our discovery shows that he comes from the diocese of Liège, so we can now exclude a number of places.” In this way, the search is traced back to Maaseik, Bergeijk, Maastricht and Arendonk.
Tate Britain sends 100+ works to Shanghai
July 9 2021
Video: shanghaieye
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A new exhibition entitled Light opened yesterday at the Museum of Art of Pudong in Shanghai, China. The show features over one hundred works from the collection of Tate Britain, including important works by the likes of Constable, Monet, John Martin and Millais. Their temporary home, a vast complex on the Huangpu River, was recently completed after an investment of 1.3 billion yuan (US$201 million).
Light will run until 14th November 2021.
Italy's New Export Laws for Art
July 9 2021
Picture: TAN
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Art Newspaper have published an interesting article on Italy's new export laws for art. To summarise briefly, export licenses will not be needed for paintings worth under €13,500. This has meant that more Italian auction houses are selling works via. the Drouot Online platform.
Antoine de Rochefort, the chief executive of Drouot Digital, is quoted saying:
Information about the decree was scarce outside Italy and, after nine months, we have seen no change in terms of the average price of lots auctioned to internet bidders. The average price per lot purchased in Italy is still around €1,300. I expect the market will catch up. But just now, there is quite an opportunity for bargain hunters.
However, some dealers have been sharing experiences that the Italian authorities have been looking at things more closely since the change.
Antoine de Lohny Exhibition in Susa
July 9 2021
Picture: settimanalelancora.it
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
An exhibition dedicated to the fifteenth century artist Antoine de Lonhy (active 1460 - 1490) opens in the Museo Diocesano in Susa, Piedmont, tomorrow. De Lonhy was both a painter, illuminator, designer of stained glass and a sculptor. The show will bring together fourty works by the artist from public and private collections, many of which have never been displayed before.
The second leg of the exhibition will open in Museo Civico d'Arte Antica in Turin on 23rd September 2021 and run until 9th January 2022.
Ashmolean Secure Van Dyck
July 9 2021
Picture: Ashmloean
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Good news that the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford has managed to secure a Portrait of a Lady possibly Gertrudis Wiegers by Sir Anthony Van Dyck dating to 1618-20. Last July this blog reported that the museum was trying to raise £150,000 for the acquisition.
According to the museum's press release:
Portrait of a Woman is a rare example of van Dyck’s early work, made when he was just 20 years old. Only one other full-length portrait from this period is known. The picture is enormously ambitious for such a young artist. It shows the influence of van Dyck’s master, Peter Paul Rubens and is clearly the work of Rubens’s most gifted pupil. Van Dyck went on to become one of the most celebrated artists in Europe and the leading portraitist at the Royal court in London.
The painting portrays a young woman adorned with fine jewellery including a gold headdress, pearl earrings and bracelets, diamond rings and an ornate gold chain. She is sumptuously dressed in a large ruff made of delicate lace, a black “vlieger” over-gown trimmed with lace cuffs, and an embroidered bodice over a black silk skirt. She is confidently smiling at the viewer while seated in an opulent armchair on a balcony with a column and a billowing red curtain behind her. At her feet sits a small pet dog with its white coat rapidly rendered in fluent brushstrokes. The dog is not only painted in the most spirited way but also acts as a symbol of fidelity. Taken together with the roses the woman holds, the portrait was likely made on the occasion of her marriage.
The companion picture of her husband is now at the Royal Museum of Fine Arts in Antwerp. The latter has been tentatively identified as Alexander Vinck (or Vincque), a member of a family of prosperous Antwerp merchants who traded in luxury goods. The woman is likely to be Alexander’s wife, Gertrudis Wiegers.
BELLUM ET ARTES in Dresden
July 8 2021
Video: SKD Dresden
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden have opened a new exhibition today focusing on the role of War and Art during the Thirty Years' War.
According to the exhibition's blurb:
The convulsing war between 1618 and 1648 is one of the great traumas of European history. Famine, death and disease brought immense suffering and economic hardship; yet even during this decades-long struggle for religious dominance and political hegemony in Europe, art production did not come to a standstill. Works of art continued to fulfil a variety of functions, serving as representations of power, being exchanged as diplomatic gifts, documenting military encounters, and urging peace.
The show will run until 4th October 2021.
Christie's Results
July 8 2021
Picture: Christie's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Tonight’s Old Master Paintings Evening sale at Christie’s brought in a total of £44,520,740 with 75% of lots sold.
The top lot of the sale was Bellotto’s View of Verona came in just under its estimate to realise £10,575,000 (all figures include fees) against its £12m - £18m estimate. Other highlights included Frans van Mieris's Music Lesson which made £3,502,500 over its £700k - £1m estimate; A head study by Rubens which realised £982,500 over its £250k - £350k estimate; a head study by Van Dyck which realised £225,000 over its £70k - £100k estimate; Artemisia Gentileschi’s Venus and Cupid made £2,442,500 over its £800k - £1.2m estimate; Ferdinand Bol’s portrait of a Lady made £1,198,500 over its £400k – £600k estimate; Michaelina Wautier’s head of a boy made £400,000 over its £60k - £80k estimate; and Romney’s group portrait of Dorothy Stables made £742,500 over its £300k - £500k estimate.
One of the most dramatic moments of the evening was the withdrawal of the Duke of Grafton’s Van Dyck portrait of the Earl of Strafford. It is quite surprising if it didn’t generate enough interest, as this is a beautifully painted picture with an illustrious provenance.
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Comparing results, it seems that Christie’s managed to scoop the most commercially attractive pictures this season. Looking at the lots that didn’t sell at both auction houses, one might suggest that Netherlandish landscapes are having a rather tough time at the moment. This might have been a feature of these particular sales, as there were quite a few on offer at the same time.
One also wonders if and how the UK’s new relationship with the EU has affected results. I’m certain the business managers at both auction houses are making investigations into this question as we speak. However, the strong results we did witness shows that London’s leading position for Old Masters in Europe is by no means over.
Leonardo Bear makes £7.5m Hammer
July 8 2021
Picture: Christie's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Leonardo's drawing of a Bear came in just under its £8m - £12m estimate today and hammered down at £7.5m. The total including fees adds up to £8,857,500. This was a little less than expected, especially considering the enormous amount of media coverage the work generated. We'll wait and see if it ends up anywhere interesting...
Another Mona Lisa Copy Soars...
July 8 2021
Picture: Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Another copy of the Mona Lisa, probably barely one hundred years old, soared past its estimate in the Sotheby's day sale today. The picture, c.1900, realised £378,000 (inc. fees) over its £8k - £12k estimate.
This price seems like madness, especially compared to this genuinely beautiful seventeenth century copy of a Leonardo in the Louvre that made £94,500 (inc. fees) in the same sale.
As it happens, a reader has been in touch with a screen shot of the same copy of the Mona Lisa which was up for sale on Ebay in January 2021 which sold for over £2,000:
Update - Apologies for missing this, it seems that this copy that sold on Ebay was the very same one in the Sotheby's sale. A reader has pointed out the corresponding imperfections visible on the backs of both canvases.
Van Dyck Copy makes £862k
July 8 2021
Picture: Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Here's a result that has us stumped. This copy of Van Dyck's portrait of Charles I, a bust version of an original preserved in Arundel Castle, realised £862,000 (inc. fees) over its £6k - £8k estimate in the Sotheby's London Day Sale today. Nothing here suggests we're looking at an autograph work, it might be argued. Has someone been able to identify the copyist perhaps? Most curious indeed.
New Faces at the Mauritshuis
July 8 2021
Picture: Mauritshuis
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Mauritshuis in The Hague have announced that two new paintings will be gracing their galleries in the near future. Firstly, comes the acquisition of a rare self-portrait by Adriaen van de Venne (left) in absolutely stunning condition. Secondly, the museum have secured the long term loan of The Upbringing of Mary by the female Dutch Golden Age artist Michaelina Wautier signed and dated to 1653 (right).
High resolution of the images are available via the link above.
Sotheby's Results
July 7 2021
Picture: Sotheby’s
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Sotheby’s Old Master Paintings Evening sale in London seemed to have had a relatively tough night bringing in a total of £17,208,300 (inc. fees) with 57.1% of lots sold.
As usual, the lots that did sell achieved impressive prices. Some of the highlights (all including fees) included Van Dyck’s Family of Cornelis de Vos which realised £2,435,000 over its £1m - £1.5m estimate, a Follower of Cranach Venus made £201,600 over its £60k – £80k estimate; a painting of a Jester attributed to Massys made £523,200 over its £40k – £60k estimate; an Isenbrant Crucifixion made £644,200 over its £200k - £300k estimate. Turner's seascape of Purfleet helped save the day by hitting its low estimate (hammer) and bringing in £4,794,000 (with fees), which represented 27.8% of the total realised by the entire sale.
It was noticeable that many of the Northern landscapes and still lifes from the Schuybroek Collection, mostly purchased at auctions during the 1970s and 80s, failed to find buyers.
All eyes on Christie’s sale tomorrow.
The Royal Collections of the Netherlands are Hiring!
July 7 2021
Picture: CODART.nl
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Royal Collections of the Netherlands (Koninklijke Verzamelingen) in The Hague are looking for a Curator. This role will involve caring and presenting the fine and decorative arts collections of the care of the House of Orange-Nassau.
The position comes with a monthly salary of a maximum of €4,622 and applications must be in by 14th July 2021.
Good luck if you're applying!
Apologies...
July 7 2021
Picture: AB
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Apologies for the slow service this week. I decided to go and view the upcoming sales yesterday. The relatively empty and quiet galleries felt rather novel and allowed for some serious time spent in front of some of my favourites. I'm very much looking forward to seeing what prices are achieved over the next few days.
