Exhibition | Heavy Metal: Arms and Armour
From the National Museum of Finland (Kansallismuseo) . . .
Heavy Metal: Arms and Armour (Aseita ja haarniskoja) from the 16th to 18th Century
Häme Castle, Hämeenlinna, Finland, 22 April — 23 October 2016
In the end of April 2016 an armour exhibition of international stature will be opened in Häme Castle. Originally from Graz Austria the exhibition demonstrates large collection of arms and armour from the 16th to 18th centuries. The exhibition will also include one of the few whole preserved horse armour and weapons. The infantry half armours on display are related to Finnish history, since similar armour was used by the Finnish light cavalrymen in the service of King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden during the Thirty Years’ War in the 17th century.
Medieval Häme Castle provides a unique and authentic setting for the exhibits. During the exhibition there will be plenty of additional activities such as a medieval feast, market and jousting. The seventeen pieces of armour in the exhibition are from the Styrian Armoury of the Universaalmuseum of Joanneum in Austria, which has the world’s largest and oldest collection of armour. They are on display for the first time in Northern Europe. The exhibition gives a unique opportunity to explore armour from the 16th to 18th century. Five of the pieces featured are whole breastplate armours (Maximilian and Italian type); twelve are infantry half armours. Also on display will be helmets, halberds, boar spears, swords, muskets, and wheel-lock pistols.
Display | Spotlight on French Royal Furniture by Riesener
Installation view of A Closer Look: Spotlight on French Royal Furniture by Jean-Henri Riesener (1734–1806) in the White Drawing Room at Waddesdon Manor, The Rothschild Collection (The National Trust), 23 March – 23 October 2016. © The National Trust, Waddesdon Manor.
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Press release for the display now on view at Waddesdon:
A Closer Look: Spotlight on French Royal Furniture by Jean-Henri Riesener (1734–1806)
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 23 March — 23 October 2016
Curated by Ulrich Leben and Emily Roy
Waddesdon is unique in the world for having three extraordinary chests of drawers by Jean- Henri Riesener (1734–1806), two of which belonged to members of the French royal family. They are displayed in the White Drawing Room at Waddesdon for this special exhibition. The display allows visitors to look closely at these magnificent pieces and to learn about their design, technical construction, and fascinating history. It provides a rare opportunity to look in 360° at objects normally placed against walls.
You can see the magnificent chest of drawers commissioned by the Comtesse de Provence, sister-in- law of Louis XVI, magnificently veneered in purple heart, with marquetry of tulipwood, mahogany, sycamore, ebony, boxwood, casuarina, holly and burl wood with gilt-bronze mounts and marble top. She ordered this chest of drawers from Riesener on 8 February 1776 and it was delivered to her apartment in Versailles the following month. This was astonishingly fast for such a complex piece of furniture. Also in the collection is a chest of drawers for Louis XVI youngest sister Madame Elisabeth (1764–1794) for her coming of age at just 14 years old!
The exhibition includes a specially commissioned digital animation showing the construction of Madame Elisabeth’s chest of drawers and two films, produced by the J. Paul Getty Museum, showing the making of intricate marquetry and gilt-bronze mounts. The display marks the beginning of a research project—in collaboration with The Wallace Collection and The Royal Collection—which aims to learn more about Riesener, the techniques and materials he used, and the world of buying and making furniture in 18th-century France.
The curators would like to thank the following for their help with the preparation, design and installation of the exhibition: Colin Bailey, Vincent Bastien, Alexis Borde, Max Coppoletta, Fréderic D’Arras, Mike Fear, the J. Paul Getty Museum, Jürgen Huber, Helen Jacobson, Lindsay Macnaughton, David Mlinaric, Miriam Schefzyk, Christoph Vogtherr, and the Collections, Facilities, IT and Marketing Departments.
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Additional images are available here»
Study Session | French Royal Furniture by Jean-Henri Riesener
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Study day opportunities at Waddeson Manor in connection with the Riesener exhibition:
Study Session: Spotlight on French Royal Furniture by Jean-Henri Riesener
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 25 May, 28 July, and and 23 September 2016
Waddesdon Manor houses three extraordinary chests of drawers by court cabinet-maker Jean-Henri Riesener, two of which belonged to members of the French royal family. They are among twelve pieces of furniture now at Waddesdon that were originally at the Palace of Versailles. Riesener was perhaps the most celebrated cabinet-maker of the 18th century, the official cabinet-maker to King Louis XVI, and the favourite of Queen Marie Antoinette. Each of these chests of drawers is richly decorated with colourful marquetry (designs made with wood veneers) depicting flowers and trophies and geometric patterns, and mounted with finely chased and gilded bronzes. Learn about their design, technical construction, and fascinating history. £25 (includes grounds admission), £15 National Trust/Art Fund members, £10 students. Wednesday 25 May, Thursday 28 July, and Friday 23 September 2016. Coffee on arrival at 10.15; session 10.45–12.15.
Display | Persuading the King: A MS Petition by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin
Now on view at Waddesdon:
Persuading the King: A Manuscript Petition by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin (1724–1780)
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 23 March — 23 October 2016
Curated by Rachel Jacobs
This display highlights a new addition to the collection at Waddesdon: Gabriel de Saint-Aubin’s volume, Placets de l’officier Desbans (1775). This elaborate manuscript petition (placet) was submitted to Louis XVI and Marie-Antoinette by a soldier, Edme Louis Desbans, asking for a long-promised promotion. Gabriel de Saint-Aubin was one of the greatest draughtsman of 18th-century France, and the drawings with which he brought this document to life were designed to glorify the royal couple while appealing to their artistic tastes and sensibilities. This unique work offers a glimpse into the politics of promotion and favour at the French court near the end of the Old Regime—in which the fortune of an individual depended upon the arts of persuasion. It has all sorts of resonances today, from patronage to the mysterious world of the political lobbyist.
A pdf file of the text panels is available at the Waddesdon website.
Study Session | Persuading the King
Study day opportunity at Waddeson Manor in connection with the exhibition:
Study Session Persuading the King: Gabriel de Saint-Aubin’s Placets
de l’officier Desbans and Other Books by the Saint-Aubin Brothers
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 24 June 2016
A rare opportunity to study Waddesdon’s newly acquired royal petition by Gabriel de Saint-Aubin, alongside other manuscript volumes, drawings, and prints by the artist and his brothers Charles-Germain and Augustin. Senior Curator Dr Juliet Carey and Curator Rachel Jacobs will offer a glimpse into the politics of promotion and favour near the end of the Old Regime. Works will include Gabriel de Saint-Aubin’s Memoire sur la reformation de la police de France (1749) and a special copy of Du Perron’s Discours sur la peinture et sur l’architecture (1757), made for the book’s dedicatee Madame de Pompadour. Charles-Germain de Aubin’s famous Livre de caricatures will provide a subversive counterpoint to the arts of flattery and persuasion that lay at the heart of court culture. £25 (includes grounds admission), £15 National Trust/Art Fund members, £10 students. Friday, 24 June 2016. Coffee on arrival at 10.15; study session 10.45–12.15. Book early to avoid disappointment.
Study Session | Books and Bindings at Waddesdon Manor
From Waddesdon:
Study Session: Books and Bindings
Waddesdon Manor, Buckinghamshire, 12 May and 15 September 2016
Come and explore the treasures of the Waddesdon collection of 17th- and 18th-century books and bindings. These include unique manuscripts and luxuriously illustrated printed volumes. Many of the books in the collection have illustrious provenances including great bibliophiles and members of the French Royal Family. The session will provide an opportunity to view some of the treasures of the Waddesdon Collection and to learn about book history through some of its finest examples. £25 (includes grounds admission), £15 National Trust/Art Fund members, £10 students. Thursday 12 May and 15 September 2016. Coffee on arrival at 10.15; study session 10.45–12.15.
Paul Mellon Centre Rome Fellowship, 2017
From the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art:
Paul Mellon Centre Rome Fellowship
The British School at Rome, April — June 2017
Applications due by 23 May 2016
One Rome Fellowship is offered annually to allow a Senior or Mid-Career scholar three months at the British School at Rome to work on an Anglo-Italian art-historical topic of any period from the medieval era onwards.
The Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art offers a variety of Fellowships (for individuals) and Grants (for institutions and individuals) twice a year in a strictly timetabled schedule. The programme supports scholarship, academic research and the dissemination of knowledge in the field of British art and architectural history from the medieval period to the present, although all supported topics must have an historical perspective. We do not offer fellowships and grants in the fields of archaeology, the current practice of architecture or the performing arts. We have no discretionary funds outside our stated programme.
The Rome Fellowship is for the three months April to June 2017. The Fellowship cannot be deferred to a later academic year nor can it run concurrently with a Fellowship awarded by another institution.
This three-month full-time Rome Fellowship will be awarded by the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art, in conjunction with the British School at Rome. The Fellowship is for an individual employed at a University, Institution of Higher Education, Museum, Gallery or Archive, or for an independent scholar. The award is intended for individuals who have already published a significant body of scholarly work and/or are internationally recognised in their field of expertise. The Paul Mellon Centre will make allowance for applicants who have had a career break or who are established scholars without doctorates.
This award allows a senior or mid-career scholar three months at the British School at Rome to work on an Anglo-Italian artistic or architectural topic. Applicants are expected to provide details of the proposed outcomes of their research in Rome in their application.
The Rome Fellowship is offered for the period April to June 2017.
More information is available from the Paul Mellon Centre.
Call for Papers | Warburg Postgraduate Symposium: Cultural Encounters
From the conference website:
Warburg Institute Postgraduate Symposium
Cultural Encounters: Tensions and Polarities of Transmission
from the Late Middle Ages to the Enlightenment
The Warburg Institute, London, 17 November 2016
Proposals due by 31 May 2016
The Warburg Institute will host its first postgraduate symposium on 17 November 2016. It will explore the concept of cultural encounters and focus particularly on their productive outcomes. We are interested, above all, in the dynamics of cultural change across time and space. The symposium will be multidisciplinary and will cover topics that fall into the unique classification system of the Warburg Library: Image, Word, Orientation and Action.
The aim of the symposium will be to map the diverse and intricate forces which have driven cultural encounters in the past and which also help define contemporary societies. Amongst the questions that we hope to address are: the degree to which productive outcomes can be seen as a conscious reception and reformulation of external ideas and models; resistances to exchange and in what form; the long-term implications of such encounters and their outcomes.
The symposium is intended for postgraduate students and early career researchers. It will bring together speakers from different backgrounds in the humanities and draw on a variety of disciplinary tools and methodologies. Submissions are invited across a wide range of topics represented by the global cultural interests of the Warburg Institute, including but not limited to:
• Artistic creations: forms, models, styles
• Literary productions and transmission of texts: translations, adaptations, copies
• Philosophy, rhetoric and transmission of ideas
• Personal encounters: Academies, universities and epistolary exchanges
• Encounters with the ancient past: reception, interpretation, visualisation
• Religious encounters, propaganda and politics
• Geographical discoveries: new continents, new cultures and animal species, etc.
• Scientific innovation: findings, theories, inner contradictions, etc.
Proposals for papers should be sent to warburg.postgrad@gmail.com by 31 May 2016:
• Maximum 300-word abstract, in English, for a 20-minute paper, in PDF or Word format
• One-page CV, including full name, affiliation, contact information
All candidates will be notified by 31 July 2016. Limited funding to help cover travel expenses is available. Attendance is free of charge.
Organized by Desirée Cappa, Maria Teresa Chicote Pompanin, James Christie, Lorenza Gay, Hanna Gentili, Federica Gigante, and Finn Schulze-Feldmann
New Book | Ideas of Chinese Gardens: Western Accounts, 1300–1860
From Penn Press:
Bianca Maria Rinaldi, ed, Ideas of Chinese Gardens: Western Accounts, 1300–1860 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 2015), 400 pages, ISBN: 978-0812247633 (cloth), ISBN: 978-0812292084 (ebook), $90 / £58.50.
Europeans may be said to have first encountered the Chinese garden in Marco Polo’s narrative of his travels through the Mongol Empire and his years at the court of Kublai Khan. His account of a man-made lake abundant with fish, a verdant green hill lush with trees, raised walkways, and a plethora of beasts and birds took root in the European imagination as the description of a kind of Eden. Beginning in the sixteenth century, permanent interaction between Europe and China took form, and Jesuit missionaries and travelers recorded in letters and memoirs their admiration of Chinese gardens for their seeming naturalness. In the eighteenth century, European taste for chinoiserie reached its height, and informed observers of the Far East discovered that sophisticated and codified design principles lay behind the apparent simplicity of the Chinese garden. The widespread appreciation of the eighteenth century gave way to rejection in the nineteenth, a result of tensions over practical concerns such as trade imbalances and symbolized by the destruction of the imperial park of Yuanming yuan by a joint Anglo-French military expedition.
In Ideas of Chinese Gardens, Bianca Maria Rinaldi has gathered an unparalleled collection of westerners’ accounts, many freshly translated and all expertly annotated, as well as images that would have accompanied the texts as they circulated in Europe. Representing a great diversity of materials and literary genres, Rinaldi’s book includes more than thirty-five sources that span centuries, countries, languages, occupational biases, and political aims. By providing unmediated firsthand accounts of the testimony of these travelers and expatriates, Rinaldi illustrates how the Chinese garden was progressively lifted out of the realm of fantasy into something that could be compared with, and have an impact on, European traditions.
Bianca Maria Rinaldi is Associate Professor of landscape architecture at the Polytechnic University of Turin.
New Book | Thomas Whately’s Observations on Modern Gardening
From Boydell & Brewer:
Michael Symes, Observations on Modern Gardening by Thomas Whately: An Eighteenth-Century Study of the English Landscape Garden (Martlesham, Suffolk: Boydell Press, 2016), 261 pages, ISBN: 978-1783271023, $56.
Thomas Whately’s Observations on Modern Gardening (1770) is the first and most comprehensive study of what has come to be known as the English landscape garden, often claimed to be this country’s greatest original contribution to the fine arts. It became the standard text on the subject; its authority was accepted at home and abroad, and the book was read widely across Europe, mainly in a French translation. It influenced taste and design; taught visitors how to respond to gardens; analysed natural and built elements of the garden; suggested principles of design; and provided descriptions of major gardens of the day, such as those at Blenheim and Piercefield (Monmouthshire), together with the author’s responses, aesthetic, mental and emotional. It indicates a taste for the natural and the ‘picturesque’, foreshadowing romanticism. This first modern edition of the text is accompanied by an introduction and full commentary, covering both general considerations and specific points and topics. Contemporary illustrations have been chosen to illuminate further the gardens and places discussed.
Michael Symes is an author, lecturer and garden historian. He founded the MA in Garden History at Birkbeck, University of London, and specialises in eighteenth-century gardens in Britain and on the continent.
C O N T E N T S
1 Introduction
2 Observations on Modern Gardening by Thomas Whately
3 Latapie and Whately
4 Commentary
Further Reading
Index of Place Names
Enfilade 
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