Previous Posts: articles 2023
Uffizi Gallery and Pitti Palace Digitise 6 Gigapixel Raphaels
February 25 2021
Picture: haltadefinizione.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Florence's Uffizi Gallery and Pitti Palace have digitised six of their Raphaels to gigapixel quality onto the website haltadefinizione.com. This includes the following pictures, Ritratto di giovane con pomo (1504 circa), Madonna del Granduca (1506 - 1507 circa), Ritratto di Tommaso Inghirami detto Fedra (1510 - 1511 circa, Velata (1512 - 1515 circa) (pictured), Ritratto del Cardinale Bibbiena (1516 circa) and San Giovanni Battista nel deserto (1517 - 1518 circa).
The results are quite remarkable, and will allow you to zoom right into the most minute details. The website is free to use, although you'll have to make do with a watermark following you around. Still impressive though, I think!
The Frick Collection Relocates to Modern Setting
February 25 2021
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The New York Times has published an interesting article on the Frick Collection's relocation to Breur Building on Madison Avenue. The two year move is due to the expansion of their existing building on 1 East 70th Street. Not only have 104 of the museum's masterpieces shed their usual plush surroundings but they have also gone without any 'descriptive texts' too.
The newspaper has described the new setting as:
Frick Madison is European art history distilled, and it’s a swaggering wager on the collection’s sufficiency and an audience’s attention span. You can study up via print, app or video, but your primordial task here is to look, look, look.
National Gallery of Ireland Upload 1,000 Images for Open Access
February 24 2021
Picture: The National Gallery of Ireland
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin have uploaded 1,000 high-res images from their collection for Open Access. The move is a part of their 'Open Data Initiative', which will hopefully see more artworks available and free to use. Their website promises that more images will uploaded each month, which is brilliant news!
Van Gogh not seen for a Century Up for Sale
February 24 2021
Picture: The Guardian
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A painting by Vincent Van Gogh of Montmartre which has been in a family collection for a century is coming up for sale next month at Sotheby's. The work, painted in 1887, shows one of the old windmills that used to decorate this once rural part of Paris. It has not been seen in public since it was acquired in 1920.
The painting will be sold next month with an estimate of €5m - €8m.
French State Confiscate Medieval Stained Glass Before Auction
February 24 2021
Picture: La Gazette Drouot
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
La Gazette Drouot have drawn attention to an intervention from the French State to confiscate a pair of medieval stained glass from the auction house Pierre Bergé & Associés days before they were due to go on sale.
The glass windows, dating from the twelfth century, are believed to have come from the basilica of Saint-Denis. Several selections of windows were removed from the Church in 1799 and were placed into storage. Although the windows don't appear in any of the inventories that were made of the stored glass, the French state have stated that its up to the seller to 'provide proof of their lawful provenance'.
The windows had carried estimates of €200k - €300k and €300k - €400k respectively.
Journalist Claims 'Negligence' and 'Charm' Drove Forgers Success
February 24 2021
Picture: TAN
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The journalist Vincent Noce, who has penned a new book entitled L'Affaire Ruffini, has claimed that the 'negligence' of art work experts and the personal 'charm' of Giuliano Ruffini helped the success of his forgery network. Noce has spent five years researching the various forgery links to Ruffini, including the fake Cranach that was seized by French authorities from the Prince of Lichtenstein's collection in 2016 (pictured).
The journalist is quoted saying:
The most surprising thing is the manner in which museums, gallerists, dealers didn't try to discover the history of the canvases, allowing themselves to be seduced by the finesse of the copies.
There has been a great negligence among experts and conservators who didn't question the lack of provenance of the artworks and were happy to rely on a visual examination - sometimes just a photograph - without any laboratory tests.
The Italian authorities are currently pursuing Ruffini in the courts on tax evasion charges which will have to be settled before a French extradition request will be heard.
Kress Collection Digital Archive
February 24 2021
Picture: kress.nga.gov
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Gallery of Art in Washington DC (NGA) have launched a new website to host the digital archive of the Kress Collection. The collection features materials relating to the collection of Samuel Henry Kress (d.1955), who gifted a great deal of art to US institutions. His entire collection consisted of over 3,000 works of art and was dispersed across 90 art galleries and museums. The NGA alone received 376 Paintings, 94 Sculptures, 1,307 Bronzes and 38 Drawings.
As the website explains:
The Kress Collection Digital Archive virtually unites objects in the Kress Collection and illustrates their history, acquisition, condition and care, and distribution. Gallery Archives staff compiled data about objects, related archival materials, object history (acquisitions and distributions), and associated people and organizations (artists, institutions, dealers and collectors, and historians and conservators). High-quality digital images of objects were obtained, and over 10,000 historical and conservation documents and images from the holdings of the Gallery Archives, the National Gallery of Art painting conservation department, and the Samuel H. Kress Foundation Archive have been digitized so far. The significant scope of this resource will support new, complex art historical studies benefiting researchers from various disciplines.
Sixteenth Century Statue Repainted by Parishioner
February 24 2021
Picture: actu.fr
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Europe's latest botched amateur restoration story comes from Caen in France. A recently repainted sixteenth century statue from the Church of Saint Pierre has been sent off by administrators after a parishioner decided to repaint the statue 'with colours like on statues that can be seen in Martinique'. The 'well-meaning' parishioner is said to have undertaken the work after experiencing a 'revelation'. Fortunately, the would-be restorer had used water based paints. Professional conservators are hopeful that the work is entirely reversible.
Bastianino Crucifix Conserved and Reattributed in Berlin
February 23 2021
Video: Gemäldegalerie Berlin
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Gemäldegalerie in Berlin have made the following video providing details of their recently restored The Living Cross by Sebastiano Filippi (called Bastianino) (1536-1602).
The work had not been on display since it was acquired in 1912 by the Friedrich Wilhelm University. Indeed, it had been kept in the partly destroyed Berliner Dom during the war. In 2015 the large altarpiece was transfered to the Gemäldegalerie where the painting was examined and conserved. Although the picture had been described as by the 'School of Garofalo', closer examination by curator Dr. Roberto Contini made it possible to reattribute the work to Bastianino.
The painting features in a mini exhibition at the gallery until 14th March 2021.
Spanish Baroque Altarpiece Conserved
February 23 2021
Picture: @AdepaSevillaHca
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Interesting news on Twitter today that the Church of San Vicente in Seville, Spain, is having a grand altarpiece by Francisco Herrera the Elder (1576-1656) conserved. The Adoration of the Eucharist, signed and dated 1641, has had its left side cleaned thus far (pictured). The revelation of the bright colours under all of that dirt and grime is remarkable. Previous reports had suggested that the work had never been treated by conservators in its 379 year history, which seems plausible judging by the transformative clean.
Nineteenth Century Cockfight Painting Found in Castle Cellar
February 23 2021
Picture: vrt.be
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News from Belgium that a nineteenth century painting of a cockfight has been rediscovered in a basement of Portegem Castle in Waregem. The painting by Emile Claus had been presumed to have been lost during the war until researcher Hans Bourlon decided to look into the fate of this 1882 work. It transpires that the canvas was taken off of its stretcher, rolled up and hidden in the castle's cellars in an attempt to hide it from the Nazis. Fortunately, the painting has been restored and will be on display once more.
Banksy vs. Banksy / Christie's vs. Sotheby's
February 23 2021
Picture: Christie's and Sotheby's
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
At first I put it down to lockdown fever, but no.
I've been rather stumped by this very curious happening on the Christie's and Sotheby's auction calendars. Both auction houses will be organising Banksy auctions on exactly the same day, in the same city and seemingly selling the exact same works.
It seems that both auction houses will be selling print versions of Love is in the Air and have picked them as the thumbnail for their sales. The Sotheby's version is estimated at £80k - £120k.
How can this make any commercial sense? Or is this the latest publicity stunt which is set to unfold in spectacular fashion?
Women Painters at the Musée du Luxembourg
February 23 2021
Picture: Musée du Luxembourg
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Musée du Luxembourg in Paris are set to open their new exhibition Women Painters 1780-1830 on 3rd March 2021.
As the museum's website explains:
A half-century journey from the pre-Revolutionary years to the Restoration, the exhibition Women Painters, 1780-1830. The Birth of a Battle features some 70 works on display from public and private French and international collections. The exhibition aims to bring the public’s attention to an issue about which little or nothing is known: how the then-unprecedented phenomenon of increasing numbers of women in the fine arts was linked to the changing organisation in the sphere of artistic production (administration, training, exhibition, criticism) and the transforming tastes and social practices relating to art.
The exhibition is due to run till 4th July 2021.
Stolen Art in Franco's Spain
February 23 2021
Picture: LaSexta
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Spanish media outlet LaSexta have run a short video piece detailing stories of artworks looted after Franco's victory during the Spanish Civil War. The article and video (available in Spanish only) details the tales of several families whose artworks have yet to be returned to them. Several heirs have been pursuing their claims in the Spanish courts, including after works by the likes of Goya, Morales and El Greco.
UK Museums & Galleries to Reopen on 17th May
February 22 2021
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The UK Government has revealed its 'roadmap' for the lifting of the most recent lockdown. Their plans reveal that museums and libraries will be allowed to reopen from 17th May 2021. In contrast, commercial galleries will be able to open from 12th April as part of the second phase.
This means that many art galleries and museums across the country will have been closed for six months during this most recent lockdown. On the face of it, it seems rather ridiculous that gyms and swimming pools will be allowed to reopen before the vast galleries of the V&A and National Gallery will be hosting visitors.
In contrast to the increasingly loud noises made by the cultural institutions of France and Italy, it's rather striking that museum directors here don't seem to have made much of a fuss at all. Will this continue, I wonder?
Update - Thomas Marks has written an opinion piece for the Apollo Magazine on the UK government's curious rationale that museums are less safe than gyms.
Update 2 - Here's a link summarising the study made into the safety of visiting museums by the Hermann-Rietschel-Instituts of the Technische Universität Berlin. It claims that the R-rate concerning visitors to museums at 30% occupancy whilst wearing a mask is 0.5. In comparison, shopping with a mask at 10sqm / person is at 1.1, whilst gyms at 30% occupancy without masks is at 1.4.
Williamson Art Gallery Saved from Closure
February 22 2021
Picture: @WilliamsonArt_
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Last week Bendor had highlighted the worrying news of threats to close the Williamson Art Gallery in Birkenhead, Merseyside. This council run museum seemed to have been under threat in order to save £212,000. Fortunately, news has reached us that the councillors have reversed this decision and the museum will stay open. Plans are afoot to help the gallery make savings of £91,000 in order to secure its survival. The group involved in campaigning for it to stay open managed to secure a petition with 13,000 signatures to support their cause.
Gray Collection at the Morgan Library & Museum
February 22 2021
Picture: The Morgan Library & Museum
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Morgan Library & Museum in New York have recently opened their latest drawings exhibition entitled Gray Collection - Pure Drawing. The show features works collected by the dealers and art historians Richard and Mary L. Gray. Visitors will have a chance to see prized works on paper by the likes of Rubens, Boucher, Degas, Van Gogh and Picasso.
The exhibition will run through till the 6th June 2021.
Scream Scans shows Inscription was made by Munch
February 22 2021
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Museum of Norway have concluded that an inscription made on Edvard Munch's The Scream was made by the artist's own hand. In the top left hand corner resides a sentence which reads 'Can only have been painted by a madman', a piece of text which has long baffled art historians. Recent scans of the work have helped to reveal more details of the writing. It's been suggested that Munch might have added the sentence after the work received a critical reception in an 1895 exhibition.
Masterpieces from Buckingham Palace Tour
February 22 2021
Video: Royal Collection Trust
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
I seem to have missed this video which was posted by the Royal Collection Trust last month. It provides a very interesting tour by exhibition curators Desmond Shawe-Taylor and Isabella Manning.
Twombly Foundation Threatens to sue Louvre over Renovation
February 19 2021
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Here's an interesting story that's been developing over the past week. The Twombly foundation, the self-appointed guardians of the work of the late Cy Twombly, have threatened to sue the Louvre after a slight alteration to a monumental ceiling painting by the artist "was made without any consultation with, much less permission from, the foundation." The work was unveiled in 2010.
A recent renovation of the Salle des Bronzes by the museum included the changing of the floor, lighting and colour of the walls to red. The museum have defended their decision as their right to change displays over the centuries, but the Twombly foundation think otherwise. The foundation has claimed “The deep red that has been introduced violates these harmonies and entirely destroys the balance of Twombly’s sensitive and memorable installation" which has caused “serious damage” and a “violation of the artist’s moral rights.”
The Louvre have rebuffed these claims, stating that there was nothing in their agreement with the late artist that demanded that the room stay frozen in time.
