Leonardo's two 'Virgin of the Rocks' to be displayed together
July 27 2011
Picture: Louvre, Paris (left), National Gallery, London (right)
They are rightly calling it a 'historic collaboration': later this year, both versions of Leonardo's Virgin of the Rocks will be displayed together in the National Gallery's Leonardo exhibition. This will be the first time this has happened. In return, London's Leonardo 'cartoon' for Virgin and Child with Saint Anne and John the Baptist will be sent to Paris to hang alongside the Louvre's Virgin and Child with Saint Anne.
What a great coup the National has pulled off - many congratulations to the staff there. If you haven't booked your tickets yet, you can do so here.
New acquisitions for the National Trust
July 27 2011
Picture: Sotheby's
Colin Gleadell in the Telegraph has news of two enticing acquisitions by the National Trust. The first is for Montacute House, a fine portrait of James I by John de Critz, bought in the recent Old Master sale at Sotheby's for £199.250.
In the same sale, the Trust also bought the above full-length, for £157,250. Sotheby's had identified her as 'possibly Lady Anne Cecil' (c.1603-1676), and attributed it to Robert Peake. The Trust, however, believe she is Vere Egerton, the grand-daughter of Lord Chancellor Egerton, Lord Brackley, and they have an early inventory reference to prove it. This painting will now be hung at Dunham Massey. (I don't personally see that it is by Peake - it's a little too sophisticated for him. Is it by someone nearer to van Somer?)
It's great news that the Trust is able to buy quality pictures like this.
Oddly enough, this is the second newly identified portrait of Vere Egerton to surface recently. In 2008 we (Philip Mould Ltd) bought the below portrait of three unidentified girls at Christie's. Subsequent research proved that the girls were three grandaughters of Lord Chancellor Egerton, thanks to the discovery of an early 19th Century sale reference. The ages insribed above the sitters' heads also matched the dates of the three Egerton sisters, Elizabeth, Vere and Mary. Vere is on the left.
Jewish Polish painting restituted
July 27 2011
Picture: Auktionshaus Aldag
Here's a rare survival: Jewish Woman Selling Oranges was painted in Warsaw in 1880/1 by the Polish artist Aleksander Gierymski. The picture belonged to the Polish National Museum, but went missing during the war. It surfaced last year at a German auction, and has now been restituted. Old Warsaw can be seen in the background.
Adrian Searle on Freud
July 26 2011
A gently interesting video on Freud's Standing by the Rags, 1989. Worth a click.
Freud - new exhibition at the NPG
July 26 2011
A new exhibition of Freud's portraits will open at the National Portrait Gallery, London, in February 2012. The artist had been working with the gallery ahead of the exhibition.
'Leonardo' drawing case struck out
July 25 2011
The US Appeals court has thrown out a case against Christie's brought by the consignor of the above drawing. It was catalogued as 19th Century German School in a sale in 1998, but some scholars now say it is by Leonardo. Full details in the ATG here.
Wildenstein - 'Je ne sais rien'
July 25 2011
Guy Wildenstein has said he did not know about some 30 missing paintings found in his vaults:
...last week he spent 36 hours in police custody, sleeping two nights in the headquarters of a special art-theft squad outside Paris, where he was formally charged with concealing art that had been reported missing or stolen.
The crime, known officially as a “breach of trust,” carries a maximum penalty of seven years in prison.
In the course of his questioning Mr. Wildenstein made a surprising claim: He told the police that the institute, which specializes in gathering detailed information about art for scholars, lacked any inventory for a roomy vault where dozens of valuable artworks that it does not own were discovered this year by the police.
“I didn’t inspect the vault,” Mr. Wildenstein said, according to internal court records of his questioning by an investigative judge while in custody. “We have never had an inventory of the vault.”
Full story in the New York Times here.
Freud - pre-superstardom
July 25 2011
Picture: New York Times, Self-Portrait etching.
In The Art Newspaper, Anna Somers Cocks has a good piece on Freud's critical reception as recently as 20 years ago:
Some very high prices have been paid for Freud's work in recent years, Benefits Supervisor Sleeping, 1995, selling for $33.6m in May 2008 at Christie's New York, a new record for a living artist. The short memory of the conformist, fickle art world has led many to forget, however, that only 20 years earlier he was considered a curious, late, insular British manifestation of expressionism and so of no serious interest. His first Paris retrospective, by the unorthodox curator Jean Clair at the Centre Pompidou in 1987, was widely denounced for being unworthy of an institution dedicated to the avant-garde. That same exhibition could not find a top venue in the US prepared to take it so it ended up at the Hirshhorn Museum in Washington, DC, the same year.
Freud - the Studio Sale?
July 25 2011
Pure speculation, but if there is to be a Freud studio sale, it will surely be an epic. Are Sotheby's and Christie's already scrambling for the honours? Or was it all arranged a long time ago? Will Sotheby's' accidental shredding of a Freud drawing in 2000 count against them?
Freud - death of the portrait?
July 25 2011
Picture: Telegraph
Mark Lawson has a fine piece in The Guardian today, arguing that the death of Lucian Freud marks the death of the painted portrait. His point is that Freud was the last redoubt of the portrait painter in his battle with the photographer. He concludes:
For decades, Freud succeeded in a fight that is now unwinnable. With his passing, the art of the portrait has passed from the canvas to the screen.
Nowhere is Lawson's point more obviously made than the soul-destroying photo-realist portraits one finds in the BP Portrait Award. Personally, I can't see how painting a photograph of someone is any more skilfull than photographing a painting of someone. But they seem to be all the rage these days. And the wider question is not just, was Freud the last great British portraitist, but was he the last great British painter?
Poussin attack - Leonardo exhibition at risk?
July 25 2011
Interesting story in the Independent yesterday about the Poussin attack at the National Gallery - now there are concerns that the loan of Leonardo's Lady with an Ermine could be at risk. The Czartoryski Trust, which owns the picture, is in negotiations with the gallery:
Olga Jaros, who took over as chairman of the foundation, confirmed that a decision had yet to be made, and that a contract has yet to be signed with the National Gallery. "In the light of what happened last weekend at the National Gallery, I have informed the foundation what has happened. We are still in negotiations."
Even before Saturday's attack, concerns had been voiced over the painting's hectic schedule. It is at present on loan to the Palacio Real in Madrid for an exhibition of Polish art treasures. It is then scheduled to visit Berlin before travelling to London.
Obviously, there's a significant difference in risk between a Leonardo in a reinforced glass box, and an un-glazed Poussin. So I hope the Leonardo lenders don't overreact.
The most worrying aspect, however, is the news that buget cuts have led to a reduction in security guards at the National Gallery, with some having to monitor two rooms. This, if true, is cause for concern - really the protection of the paintings is the National Gallery's number one duty. But I'm afraid that, having seen some of the guards at work, and the ease with which the Poussin was vandalised, a more thorough security overhaul is required.
David Packwood at Art History Today also discusses the problem here.
Jonathan Jones - charge for museum entry
July 25 2011
Picture: H M Bateman, detail from 'the man who' series.
In response to budget cuts, and the recent Poussin attack, Jonathan Jones says in the Guardian that museums should re-introduce museum fees:
Britons have realised how precious our great collections are. The world shares the passion, and if you visit the British Museum this summer the sheer crowd numbers startle. How about turning that popularity into money? We can't let recent progress in our galleries and museums be destroyed by a cost-cutting mentality that first freezes, then rolls back, everything that has been achieved.
I think free museums are a great British tradition, but I don't want these museums to decay. Charging for entry is a better remedy than selling paintings, closing galleries or sacking staff. Might it even give visitors a keener sense of the value of some of the greatest experiences it is possible to have?
It's hard to argue against these points. For those who go to galleries all the time, an annual national museum pass, like that for the National Trust, would be easy to administer - say £30? And as Jones says, a fee of sorts would generate a sense of ownership for our museums and galleries. It would also allow us to charge foreign visitors, who make up, for example, over half of the British Museum's visitors. Please don't lets pretend that tourists come to Britiain just because they can get into galleries for free, nor that we can make up the revenue through the gift shop and cafes.
For reasons I have never understood, museum charges are seen as some ghastly taboo. If museums want to be free, they should be. If they want to charge, they should be allowed to. Here's a paradox for you: in Paris, you pay to get into the Louvre, but not Notre Dame. In London, you pay to get into Westminster Abbey, but not the National Gallery. Which is right?
It's worth noting that the Metropolitan Museum in New York, which recently increased its entry charge to $25, has this year had a record 5.68 million visitors, the highest in 40 years. That's more than the National Gallery...
New Acquisitions at Philadelphia
July 25 2011
Picture: Philadelphia Museum of Art
Works by Monet, Sisley and Pissarro have been acquired by the Philadelphia Museum of Art. The works are all gifts from donors, and can be seen here. The highlight is Monet's Path on the Island of Saint MArtin, Vetheuil, 1881, above.
Lucian Freud 1922-2011
July 22 2011
Picture: Sotheby's. 'Self-Portrait' by Lucian Freud, 1952.
The Guardian has a good 'life in pictures' slideshow here.
The Daily Telegraph has '10 things you didn't know about his paintings' here.
A reader writes:
He stopped in the street once to admire my dog, but of course I was far too shy to say anything.
Art and war
July 21 2011
Picture: Museum of the Confederacy
Here's a strangely fascinating new online exhibition from the Museum of the Confederacy in Richmond, Virginia. It shows 31 paintings all by Conrad Wise Chapman, a Confederate soldier during the American Civil War, and his father John Gadsby Chapman. Of this picture, showing one of the first submarines used in war, Conrad Chapman wrote:
The inventor of this boat, a mane named Hunley, can be seen... it was at first thought would [sic] be very effective; twice it went out on its mission of destruction, but on both occasions returned with all the crew dead. After this had happened the second time, someone painted on it the word 'Coffin'.
I must say, I hadn't heard of the Museum of the Confederacy before. It's interesting to read their founding statement on their website:
The clothes, the arms, the money, the belongings of the Confederate soldier, and the women whose loyal enthusiasm kept him in the field, are properly objects of historical interest. The glory, the hardships, the heroism of the war were a noble heritage for our children. To keep green such memories and to commemorate such virtues, it is our purpose to gather together and preserve in the Executive Mansion of the Confederacy the sacred relics of those glorious days. We appeal to our sisters throughout the South to help us secure these invaluable mementoes before it’s too late.
So nothing about slavery then...
Young Tom?
July 20 2011
Picture: Keys Auctioneers
This curious drawing came up for auction last week in Norfolk. It was catalogued as 'attributed to Gainsborough'. It's a self-portrait, and relates to a larger painting of the 1750s in a private collection. It made a miserly £3,500.
If it is indeed by the young Tom, it is obviously worth a great deal more than that. Personally I thought it had an excellent chance of being 'right', and we had established some very compelling evidence to suggest that it was. But a well known Gainsborough author had already turned it down, so, sadly, for as long as that person holds sway it as good as worthless. It's an interesting example of the power of a single 'expert'. The drawing has been rather rubbed, so looks weaker than it once was.
Pillocks vs Security guards
July 19 2011
Picture: BBC
The pillock who assaulted Rupert Murdoch today shows how difficult it is to stop such nutters. If someone can get a can of shaving foam past security at the Houses of Parliament, and hit Rupert Murdoch on the head with its contents, then the attack on the Poussin looks like childs play.
But that doesn't mean we shouldn't try and prevent such attacks. To that end, a reader who knows about these things suggests that searches at the National Gallery would be relatively easy to implement. These, he says, are the rules:
Enough staff to prevent queues. No-one likes being searched with an audience so if it gets busy throw more staff at it. Large desk for resting bags etc on and one member of staff doing metal detecting, good equipment needs only a quick sweep, this cuts out spray cans.
Options for paint become very difficult. Stand in front of a picture, heart racing and try to throw paint from a container. It can be very difficult.
Always have an extra staff member just watching and taking no part in the search, absolutely vital this.
Properly done this should cause minimal inconvenience and can be very strong deterrent. It need not cost the earth.
One last thing. Target art is invariable 'cased' in advance. This is when CCTV comes into it's own and a good operator knows his area.
There is tracking software available but I don't think it has ever been used in a museum context.
Top marks, incidentally, to Mrs Rupert Murdoch (in pink) for retaliating against today's pillock. Both the National Gallery and the Houses of Parliament should hire her to train their security guards.
PS - if you're wondering what the tapestry is, The Art Newspaper has the answer here.
Grave matters
July 19 2011
Picture: BG
I was passing St Anne's Church in Kew over the weekend, and so looked in to see if any progress has been made on restoring Gainsborough's grave. The answer is not much - and if you're minded to send the church a few quid, please do. They need to raise £5k.
To my surprise I found next door to Gainsborough (and Gainsborough Dupont) the grave of Jeremiah Meyer, the miniature painter. And round the corner was Johann Zoffany, for whom someone had even left a bunch of flowers.
I don't know why so many important artists are there. I know that Gainsborough wanted to be buried next to his friend, Joshua Kirby, a painter of sorts, who died before him. That Gainsborough, Meyer and Zoffany all painted Queen Charlotte, who lived at Kew, might be relevant.
Art, politics and history
July 19 2011
Here's a video of Barack Obama looking at Normal Rockwell's iconic painting, The Problem We All Live With, with its subject, Ruby Bridges. The picture shows Ruby Bridges' first day at school in 1960 in Louisiana, after the Supreme Court had ruled that segregated schools were unconstitutional. She is being escorted by guards as tomatoes are thrown at her. Above her is written the word 'n*gger' in graffiti.
The painting is now hanging outside the Oval Office. The White House blog says:
The President likes pictures that tell a story and this painting fits that bill. Norman Rockwell was a longtime supporter of the goals of equality and tolerance. In his early career, editorial policies governed the placement of minorities in his illustrations (restricting them to service industry positions only).
However, in 1963 Rockwell confronted the issue of prejudice head-on with this, one of his most powerful paintings. Inspired by the story of Ruby Bridges and school integration, the image featured a young African-American girl being escorted to school by four U.S. marshals amidst signs of protest and fearful ignorance. The painting ushered in a new era in Rockwell's career and remains an important national symbol of the struggle for racial equality.
In the video Obama describes how much it means to him, the first black President, to have Rockwell's painting by his office in the White House. It's pretty powerful stuff.
It is also, on a purely art historical level, an important moment in the history of 20th Century American painting. I've always struggled to understand why American museums (indeed museums around the world) are so sniffy about Rockwell's work. The same museums that fall over themselves to have a vapid repetition of Jeff Koons' tediously boring souvenir-shop sculptures look with disdain on Rockwell's paintings, which on every conceivable level are more significant artistically, historically and politically. Will the situation will be reversed in fifty years time?
Poussin attack - the security implications
July 18 2011
Picture: National Gallery (detail of floorplan)
I went to see the scene of the crime today. The two Poussins are fine, no trace of damage. The vandal must have used a water-based paint that did not penetrate the varnish, or something similarly removable. The National Gallery will not give out any further details. Nevertheless, the punishment surely should reflect the potential damage, not just the actual damage, if it is to act as any meaningful deterrent.
Having seen Room 19, where the pictures are, I think there are legitimate questions over security at the Gallery. The Golden Calf is a large picture, over two metres wide, and is hung at the end of the room (the red dot, above). The Adoration of the Shepherds, the other Poussin attacked, is to the right, some paces away (the blue dot). The room guard is placed at the end of the normally quite empty room, say some 20m away (the black dot), and stares straight at the Adoration of the Golden Calf. I wasn't there when it happened, of course, but one must wonder how the villain was able to comprehensively spray not one but two pictures before being stopped.
Jonathan Jones at The Guardian says we should step up security dramatically, and makes the comparison with the Louvre, where they x-ray all bags:
A painting like Poussin's Golden Calf is made by a great artist, cherished by owners, and miraculously preserved down the centuries. It is looked after in a museum, cleaned, studied, and silently enjoyed by thousands. And then in an instant someone can brutally attack this venerable human creation and make a vile mark on it.
That cannot be allowed, and modern society cannot be trusted – there is too much craziness out there. Museums should be more severe on visitors. No visitor gets into the Louvre without a security scan. It looks like no one should get into the National Gallery without such scrutiny either. If this is too expensive, museums should charge to cover the costs. Free museums are very fine. But what is the point if people just come in and desecrate the world's cultural heritage? Charge, search, protect.
Meanwhile, a reader with great experience of these things has kindly sent me this insightful view:
Your article [...] illustrates very well the almost impossible task of protecting public art and keeping works on view to that public. It is a delicate balance! As an ex Police officer, ex Christies Porter[...] I am, possibly in a unique position to see the argument on both sides.
[More below]
Vigilance is the best weapon. You can alarm, you can shield and you can imprison certain works behind glass like a dodgy head of state but well trained staff, paying attention cannot be beaten. So how do you stop your guy going to sleep?
Well a number of things can be done. Not tying security personnel to one room for more than half an hour. Move him to another gallery or position, preferably the front entrance and make sure that the supervising staff are on the floor going from room to room all the time. Moving security staff regularly gives the impression that there are more staff than there really are.
Education into how your average art vandal works would also be a good idea. Generally the perpetrator has picked his target and will make b-line for it. Security personnel should be a aware of 'fast trackers' within their environment and have the remit to follow that person whilst notifying his control by radio. Unfortunately knives feature high on the art vandals weapons of choice list, so great care and good training are critical.
Doing the same thing for long periods of time, all day, every day is extremely boring. I know, I've done it. Engaging the staff and making them more than one trick ponies can elevate a boring job into a useful one and as a consequence a more vigilant one.
It is, however, almost impossible to stop the determined vandal. The courts should sentence accordingly to make the 'easy' public art target just not worth making the point in return for a 10 year sentence. Public awareness of the problem should be geared up too.
