Court Battle over Restituted Pissarro
November 5 2020
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The fate of a restituted painting by Camille Pissarro is back in court after the owner has changed their mind on a previous agreement reached with an American museum.
In 2012 the heir of the collector Lèone Mayer discovered the above painting of 'Shepherdess bringing in Sheep' by Camille Pissarro had in fact been looted from her family by the Nazis. The picture had since entered into the collection of Fred Jones Jr. Museum of Art at the University of Oklahoma. Later in 2016 an agreement was reached so that the picture would be displayed at a museum in France for five years, then would rotate every three years between the university and one or more French institutions of Ms. Meyer's choosing.
Two years later, and ever since, Ms. Meyer has been attempting to gift the work to the Musée D'Orsay in full. This would, the American University claims, break their previous agreement. Ms. Meyer is now bringing her case to court in France in January to break the 2016 settlement. It will be fascinating to see how this complicated case is resolved.
TEFAF NY Online Sales
November 5 2020
Picture: Artnews.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The inaugural online TEFAF NY fair ended yesterday. Artnews.com have published an interesting article giving some details of works which have been sold during this experimental online-only event. As I reported back in September, each dealer was represented by one single item to avoid 'online viewing room fatigue'.
Amongst the top items reported as being sold was the above painting of an interior by Vilhelm Hammershøi offered by Di Donna Galleries. The article claims that the work was sold for in the region of $5m during the VIP preview, which is quite remarkable considering the same picture sold for £388,800 (inc. premium) at Sotheby's in 2005.
The aforementioned classical bust of Hercules, dug out of a garden in 1984, is reported to have found a buyer willing to part with an undisclosed seven figure sum. The article doesn't seem to mention any old master paintings being sold, which is intriguing.
Lots of the quotes from various dealers suggest the experiment was a success, especially in terms of coming up with engaging digital content. Yet as a commercial success, it seems that we are left wondering for now.
Royal Collection Trust Acquires Honthorst Portrait
November 3 2020
Picture: RCT
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News on Twitter (via. @rfirbanksy) that The Royal Collection Trust have acquired a portrait of Princess Sophie, Electress of Hanover (1630-1714), by Gerrit Honthorst. The portrait was purchased at Christie's last year where it made £52,500 (hammer price). Notably, it was Sophie's family ties with the Stuarts that secured her son George I's succession in 1714.
Adolphus William Ward's vast 1909 biography on Sophie is freely available on Archive.org in case any readers might be interested to delve further into her life.
Update - Here is a write up by La Tribune de l'Art.
Video: How we Look at Art: Frames and Framing
November 3 2020
Video: London Art Week
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
I've spotted on Twitter (via. @TheFrameBlogMag) that London Art Week have posted a video recording of a recent online talk they hosted on the subject of How we Look at Art: Frames and Framing. The speakers for this discussion were Matthew Reeves, a Director at Sam Fogg, and Peter Schade, Head of the National Gallery's Framing Department.
William Hayley Conference
November 3 2020
Picture: Dulwich Picture Gallery
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge is hosting an online conference next week on the writer, scholar and amateur doctor William Hayley (1745-1820).
One talk which might interest readers of this blog is the Romney Scholar Alex Kidson's on 12th November 2020 at 15.00pm. Kidson will be discussing Hayley's relationship with the Georgian artist George Romney. This was a friendship which resulted in many fine portraits (as above) and a few subject pictures.
The conference is free to attend but donations are welcomed.
Rijksmuseum Fellowships
November 3 2020
Video: Rijksmuseum
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam are accepting applications for their fellowships programme. The museum has five available in total, the majority of which focus in on art historical research and conservation.
As the blurb on their website explains:
The purpose of the Fellowship Programme is to encourage and support scholarly investigation, and to contribute to academic discourses while strengthening bonds between the museum and universities. The programme enables highly talented candidates to base part of their research at the Rijksmuseum, and offers access to the museum’s expertise, collections, library and laboratories.
They've even made the snazzy video above to help drum up interest, which must be the first I've ever seen to promote a research programme.
New Bosch Display at the Prado
November 2 2020
Picture: Prado
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Prado in Madrid have recently opened a new display of their famous paintings by Hieronymus Bosch. New panel supports, lighting and displays have been introduced into Room 56a, improvements which were supported by the technology company Samsung.
Surprisingly, the room also now contains a Samsung TV screen (pictured on the left). Their website explains that the screen "shows an animated sequence of surprising details of the works on display, some shown up to 12 times their original size."
Artworks can be enjoyed in a whole variety of different ways. Personally speaking, I go to art galleries to escape screens. Such electronic displays are undoubtedly a wonderful way to blow up minute details. But will these electric light animations detract from the masterpiece hanging in such close proximity? Let's hope not.
UK Museums Set to Close Once More
November 2 2020
Picture: The National Gallery
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The UK has followed France and Germany in announcing a renewed national lock down beginning on the 5th November. Non-essential services including museums and galleries are being forced to close until at least the 2nd December 2020. The UK government's job retention scheme has also been extended, which will hopefully help these institutions with staffing costs. Yet, it seems inevitable now that more museums and galleries will be facing further difficult and uncertain months ahead.
The Art Newspaper has published news that 40 Museum Directors in Germany have signed a letter calling on the government there to reconsider the measures over November. Their letter contains the following argument:
Because of the safety standards already in place, museums are among the safest public places. If museums have to close again, this seems like a symbolic gesture. But it will have massive consequences—not just for museums, which will be weakened still further, but also for the public.
It is incomprehensible to us why DIY shops, car showrooms and other shops can remain open, while museums—which have the same or even more space to make adequate provision for visitors to circulate safely—should have to close.
As ever, an eagerly awaited vaccine might be the only sure route out of this dreadful situation.
Horror Film: Schalken the Painter
November 2 2020
Picture: BBC
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
As this is the season for spooky films, I thought I'd quickly share this eerie film that I watched at the weekend. Schalken the Painter is a 1979 horror film produced by the BBC. It is based on the 1839 story Strange Event in the Life of Schalken the Painter by Sheridan le Fanu. The artist Gerrit Dou also makes several appearances in the picture.
Someone has uploaded the film to YouTube, which you can access here. Enjoy!
Sell the Rare Books, says the Royal College of Physicians
November 1 2020
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Royal College of Physicians in London is the latest UK institution that has mooted selling off parts of its historic collections. In this case the college's leadership has defended the proposed sale of its rich collection of rare books. Press reports have suggested that £10m will be raised from the sale to plug a £3m shortfall.
The college are custodians of a large selection of important books spanning an enormous scope of subjects. Many were gifted in the seventeenth century. Amongst their most prized volumes are editions that were once in the collection of Elizabeth I's astrologer Dr John Dee.
In defence of the proposals president of the Royal College Andrew Goddard has said that the books are "non medical" and thus outside of its core remit. An online petition has begun in order to encourage the college to change its mind.
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It seems the Royal College are not the only ones selling rare books at the moment. I recently spotted that Rugby School are selling a selection of historic volumes at auction next month. The school made £15m in 2018 after selling off their old master drawings collection at Christie's.
The school's headmaster has explained that proceeds from the upcoming sale of its rare books:
will go towards extending the benefit of a Rugby education, an education where boys and girls are encouraged to keep asking questions and challenging the answers.
I wonder if some the school's pupils past and present might be challenging this decision.
Downman's Portraits of Nelson and Emma Hamilton Re-emerge
October 31 2020
Picture: Charles Miller Ltd.
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
A pair of recently rediscovered portraits of Lord Nelson and Lady Emma Hamilton are coming up for sale next month.
These two sketches were made by the artist John Downman (1750-1824) and are signed and dated with the year 1802. The drawings bear an inscription that indicates that their likenesses were captured at the couple's house in Merton. The catalogue note also suggests that the elaborate frames, which may have been carved by a sailor, were added when the drawings were in the collection of Admiral WH Symth (d.1865).
The pair are coming up for sale at Charles Miller Ltd. on 24th November 2020 and carry a tempting estimate of £8,000 - £12,000.
MET Acquires Clara Peeters Bouquet
October 31 2020
Picture: MET
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York have announced the recent acquisition of a Bouquet of Flowers by Clara Peeters (ca. 1587-1636). Roughly forty or so works by the artist have been recorded by scholars.
As a post on the museum's Instagram account explains:
At the time of this acquisition, the Museum had only one other work by an early modern Dutch or Flemish woman artist, also a flower painting (71.6). Painted more than a century after Peeters’s still life, this bouquet by Margareta Haverman, with its dewdrops, butterfly, and hints of decay, provides a fitting bookend to the tradition of which we now recognize Clara Peeters as a founding figure.
As ever, an outstanding high resolution image has been made available on their website via. the link above. It really is worth zooming in on some of the details, where you'll even be able to find her signature lurking in the shadows.
Book Release: The Woman Who Stole Vermeer
October 30 2020
Picture: Simon & Schuster
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Here's a non-fiction book release that might interest some readers of AHN. Anthony M Amore's The Woman Who Stole Vermeer charts the life of the Irish Republican Rose Dugdale (b.1941). Dugdale was implicated in several terrorist acts including the theft of major art works from Russborough House in 1974.
As the publisher's blurb explains:
Dugdale ran head-first towards the action, spearheading the first aerial terrorist attack in British history and pulling off the biggest art theft of her time. In 1974, she led a gang into the opulent Russborough House in Ireland and made off with millions in prized paintings, including works by Goya, Gainsborough, and Rubens, as well as Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid by the mysterious master Johannes Vermeer. Dugdale thus became—to this day—the only woman to pull off a major art heist. And as Anthony Amore explores in The Woman Who Stole Vermeer, it’s likely that this was not her only such heist.
The book will be released next month by publishers Simon & Schuster.
Sleeper Alert!
October 30 2020
Picture: Rennes Enchères
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
News on Twitter (via. @MWeilc) that the above bronze catalogued as '18th century' realised €164,800 over its €500 estimate at Rennes Enchères auctions last week.
Hercules Bust VR Experience at TEFAF Online
October 30 2020
Picture: AncientArt
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
This must rank amongst some of the most sensational rediscoveries of classical art in Britain.
The above bust made headlines in February after it achieved £320,000 over its £600 - £1,000 estimate at Adam Partridge Auctioneers in Cheshire. The antique marble of Hercules, catalogued as 'French 18th-19th century', was in fact a piece of Hellenistic sculpture dating to the 1st century BC. It also transpires that it was once in the collections of the Dukes of Sutherland. By some bizarre twist of fate the ancient sculpture ended up in the garden of Sutton Place, Surrey, before being discovered by a gardener there in 1984.
The bust is now being offered by dealers Ancient Art at TEFAF (The European Fine Art Fair). As this year's New York edition of the fair will mostly be online, the art dealers have had the bust scanned in VR for all to access online at home (if you have a special headset). Whilst the original will be on display in New York, a gallery has been hired in London offering a full VR experience for any interested buyers.
$22,000 Sistine Chapel Book
October 29 2020
Picture: Callaway Arts and Entertainment
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
Art lovers are quite used to paying eyewatering sums of money for beautiful books. But this particular example is quite staggering indeed. A publisher has just released a special three volume book entitled The Sistine Chapel. New photography of Michelangelo's frescos has enabled the publishers to reproduce 1:1 scale images of the wall paintings. They also claim that the images are '99.4% accurate in terms of colour'.* The entire set will cost no less than $22,000.
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I don't about you, but I'd rather spend that sort of money on a reasonable old master in a day sale auction.
* - Where did the other 0.6% of colour disappear to, I wonder?
National Museum Wales Acquires Thomas Jones Sketches
October 29 2020
Picture: National Museum Wales
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The National Museum Wales have purchased two rare sketches by the painter Thomas Jones (1742-1803). Dating to the mid-1770s, these pictures depict a Welsh Landscape with Lead Mines and a View of the River Wye respectively. They were purchased from the Miles Wynn Cato Gallery with the help of a legacy gift made before the lockdown.
Stephanie Roberts, Senior Curator of Historic Art, is quoted saying:
These are wonderful paintings by an artist whose personal vision was ahead of his time. Many of his early oil sketches of Wales are lost to us, after they were stored in a damp cellar when he moved to Italy. These two new discoveries are an exciting new addition to our Welsh landscapes collection, by one of Wales' best-loved historic artists.
Baltimore Museum of Art Withdraws Works from Sale
October 29 2020
Picture: Sotheby's via. artsjournal.com
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
In a shocking 11th hour move the Baltimore Museum of Arts withdrew several works of art from Sotheby's Contemporary Art sale in New York last night. The museum has also announced that it has paused the sale of Andy Warhol's The Last Supper. The museum had been hoping to raise $65m from the sales for what they had described as an 'endowment for the future'.
The museum seem to have been responding to the outcry of donors and a public petition from several members of the Association of Museum Directors. The association's president had two days ago written the following lines in a letter clarifying its stance to all members:
I recognize that many of our institutions have long-term needs—or ambitious goals—that could be supported, in part, by taking advantage of these resolutions to sell art... But however serious those long-term needs or meritorious those goals, the current position of AAMD is that the funds for those must not come from the sale of deaccessioned art.
The museum have also issued the following statements regarding the withdrawal:
Our vision and our goals have not changed. It will take us longer to achieve them, but we will do so through all means at our disposal. That is our mission and we stand behind it.
Here is the museum's statement in full.
Hermitage's 'School of Raphael' Frescos to be Conserved
October 29 2020
Picture: Hermitage
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
The Art Newspaper has published news that the US Embassy in Moscow has donated $100,000 towards the conservation of a series of sixteenth century frescos kept in the State Hermitage Museum in Saint Petersburg. The gesture is being hailed as a major step forward in diplomatic relations between the countries. The three frescos, given to the School of Raphael, used to adorn the walls of a small villa in Rome before being acquired by the museum in 1861.
The work will be in anticipation of a exhibition at the Hermitage entitled After Raphael. 1520 - 2020 (due to open in December 2020).
Lecture: Anne Seymour Damer (1748-1828)
October 19 2020
Picture: MET
Posted by Adam Busiakiewicz:
London Art Week are hosting a rather interesting lecture and panel discussion on the female sculptor Anne Seymour Damer (1748-1828). Damer exhibited at the Royal Academy and was admired by notable patrons. The above bust of the sculptor's mother, on loan to the MET, is remarkable.
The expert panel will include Silvia Davoli (Curator, Strawberry Hill House, and Research Associate, University of Oxford), Elyse Nelson (Assistant Curator, European Sculpture and Decorative Arts, The Metropolitan Museum of Art), and Emanuela Tarizzo (Gallery Director, Tomasso Brothers Fine Art).
The lecture will be broadcast on 20th October 2020 at 4.30pm (London Time).
