Enfilade

Now on view at The Met:

Collecting the Arts of Mexico
The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 17 July 2015 — 7 August 2016

Nicolás Enríquez, The Virgin of Guadalupe with the Four Apparitions (detail), 1773, oil on copper, 56.5 x 41.9 cm (New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, 2014.173)

In 1911, Emily Johnston de Forest gave her collection of pottery from Mexico to the Metropolitan Museum. Calling it ‘Mexican maiolica’, she highlighted its importance as a North American artistic achievement. De Forest was the daughter of the Museum’s first president and, with her husband, Robert, a founder of The American Wing. The De Forests envisioned building a collection of Mexican art, and, even though their ambitions were frustrated at the time, the foundational gift of more than one hundred pieces of pottery anchors the Met’s holdings. Today, more than a century later, their vision resonates as the Museum commits to collecting and exhibiting not just the arts of Mexico, but all of Latin America. This exhibition highlights the early contributions of the De Forests and others, and presents recent additions to the collection for the first time.

Learn more about five paintings by Nicolas Enriquez (1704–1790) featured in this exhibition on MetCollects.

William Chambers, Presentation drawing showing a perspective view of an unexecuted design for a Mausoleum
for Frederick, Prince of Wales, initialed and dated 1751, Pencil, pen and ink, and watercolour, 490 x 705 mm
(London: Sir John Soane’s Museum)

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Press release (17 August 2015) from Berlin’s Museum for Architectural Drawing:

In Pursuit of Antiquity: Drawings by the Giants of British Neo-Classicism
Auf den Spuren der Antike: Meisterzeichnungen des britischen Neoklassizismus
Sir John Soane’s Museum, London, 1 February  — 1 June 2008
Museum für Architekturzeichnung, Berlin, 3 October 2015 — 14 February 2016

Curated by Jeremy Musson

Important architectural drawings held by Sir John Soane’s Museum, one of the most significant collections of its kind in Great Britain, form a new temporary exhibition at the Museum for Architectural Drawing in Berlin. In Pursuit of Antiquity: Drawings from the Giants of British Neo-Classicism illustrates the ambition of leading British architects of the late 18th century who strove to create new architecture in the Classical tradition that could compete—in terms of public works, private houses, mausolea, interior detail and even furnishings—with the glories of the ancient world. Illustrating this central theme, some of the finest drawings and designs by Sir John Soane himself, Robert Adam, George Dance the Younger, Sir William Chambers, and James Wyatt are being shown for the first time in Germany.

In Pursuit of Antiquity is curated by architectural historian and author Jeremy Musson and was originally shown at Sir John Soane’s Museum in 2008. Musson’s selection from the Museum’s unrivalled collection includes an astonishingly detailed cutaway drawing of Holy Trinity Marylebone, one of Soane’s three neo-classical churches. Such designs are a reminder of the passionate belief held by Soane and his architectural contemporaries that the quality of a society could be judged by its public buildings. London was then the centre of the largest empire since Rome, and the exhibition includes Soane’s design for two huge triumphal arches (celebrating Waterloo and Trafalgar) at each end of Downing Street. The deliberate association of ancient and modern empires is clear.

Alongside designs for monumental public architecture, In Pursuit of Antiquity also includes more intimate details, such as chimneypieces and domestic furniture, whose Egyptian, Grecian, and Roman nuances reflect aspirations for the birth of a new golden age. The exhibition focuses on ancient Rome and its great monuments as a source of inspiration to the architectural students of the 18th and 19th centuries who exhaustively measured, studied, surveyed, and, above all, drew these structures as part of their education. The exhibition also explores the idea of an architectural drawing—from sketch to final presentation. Drawings by French and Italian artists such as Percier, Clérisseau, and the great Piranesi, all represented in Soane’s collection, illustrate the links between these architects and British architects.

Often described as ‘the father of modern architecture’, Sir John Soane (1753–1837) brought together a magnificent collection of architectural drawings intended to provide exemplars for himself, his sons, and his assistants. It was to be a source of reference, inspiration, ideas, and comparison and later became a key aspect of his conscious creation of a museum collection. Today, the outstanding drawings held at Sir John Soane’s Museum stand alongside the collection of the Royal Institute of British Architects as the two pre-eminent collections of architectural drawings in the country.

Jeremy Musson is an architectural historian, broadcaster and author. He is the author of The Drawing Room: Country House Design and Decoration (2014), English Country House Interiors (2011), How to Read a Country House (2006), and series editor of books published from the archive of Country Life, including The Regency Country House and The Country Houses of Adam. He also contributes to The British Art Journal and The Georgian Group Journal . He lectures regularly, including for the University of Cambridge, the Attingham Summer School, and the Royal Oak. Born in London in 1965, Musson lives in Cambridge with his family.

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Press release for the exhibition now on view at The Getty:

Louis Style: French Frames, 1610–1792
The Getty Center, Los Angeles, 15 September 2015 — 3 January 2016

Curated by Davide Gasparotto, Anne Woollett, and Gene Karraker

Louis Style: French Frames, 1610–1792 celebrates the dramatic stylistic transformation and technical skill of French frame making in the 17th and 18th centuries. Drawn from the J. Paul Getty Museum’s collection of antique frames, this exhibition presents an array of French design in wall furniture under four kings—from the simple moldings and Italian-inspired ornaments in the time of Louis XIII (1610–1643), to the opulent carved and gilded masterpieces in the age of Louis XIV (1643–1715), to the sculptural forms and rich finishes of the transitional period of the Régence (1715–1723) and Louis XV (1723–1774), and concluding with the restrained treatments preferred during the reign of Louis XVI (1774–1792).

Jean-François de Troy, Before the Ball, 1735, oil on canvas, in a Louis XV frame, carved and gilded oak (The J. Paul Getty Museum)

Louis Style: French Frames, 1610–1792 will be the first exhibition devoted to frames at the Getty Museum. Featuring more than forty frames and framed paintings, Louis Style offers visitors the rare opportunity to consider in depth the types and function of this art form. The installation provides a rich compendium of French design and craftsmanship, along with practical tools, such as the vocabulary of ornament needed to identify the period of a frame, as well as insight into the construction and gilding techniques specific to frames made in France. By addressing the important relationship between a painting and its frame (which sometimes date from different periods and regions), visitors to the exhibition will also gain an awareness of the significance and use of frames in museums.

During the early 1600s through the 1700s—a golden age for frame-making in Paris—the functional surrounds for paintings became expressions of artistry, innovation, taste, and wealth. The primary stylistic trendsetters were the kings of France, whose desire for increasingly opulent forms of display spurred the creative efforts of brilliant designers and craftsmen to magnificent expressions of their personal styles. French frames of this period are distinguished by the use of oak and gold leaf as materials, and techniques of water gilding, elaborate carved ornamentation and varied finishes.

Over the course of several decades, the Museum has assembled a substantial group of period frames to enhance and appropriately display its paintings collection, resulting in a rich and varied assemblage of moldings. Enduring visitor interest in frames and framing led to the publication of D. Gene Karraker’s Looking at European Frames: A Guide to Terms, Styles and Techniques (J. Paul Getty Museum, 2009), illustrated exclusively by works in the collection. The celebration of the 300th anniversary of the death of Louis XIV this year, marked by two major loan exhibitions at the Getty Center, provides the opportunity to present one of the largest and most beautiful areas of the frame collection.

Louis Style: French Frames, 1610–1792 was organized by Senior Curator of Paintings and Department Head, Davide Gasparotto, Curator of Paintings, Anne Woollett, and Associate Conservator of Frames, Gene Karraker.

Now on view at the Musée Lambinet:

La Fibre des héros, l’Histoire racontée par la Toile de Jouy
Musée Lambinet, Versailles, 19 September — 20 December 2015

Dans le cadre des commémorations nationales du bicentenaire de la disparition de Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf (1738–1815), fondateur de la manufacture de Jouy, le musée Lambinet présente l’exposition La fibre des héros. Celle-ci propose de retrouver, grâce à la toile imprimée, le reflet des idéaux et des événements qui ont intéressé la société à la fin du XVIIIe siècle et dans la première moitié du XIXe siècle. Les toiles à personnages, fidèles aux canons néo-classiques en vogue à leur époque, représentent souvent des héros antiques. D’autres toiles mettent en scène des épisodes et héros du monde littéraire, militaire ou scientifique contemporain. Reflets de l’actualité, elles montrent aussi le vol des premiers aérostats ou encore des combats navals marquants. Ces décors ultra-narratifs ont été principalement produits par la manufacture de Jouy-en-Josas, mais aussi les manufactures de Rouen, de Nantes ou de Mulhouse. Empruntées majoritairement au musée de la toile de Jouy, à Jouy-en-Josas, les toiles exposées forment un complément de l’exposition Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf, 1738–1815: Les toiles de Jouy, une aventure humaine, industrielle et artistique, qui se tient à Jouy du 15 septembre au 27 décembre 2015.

Now on view at the Musée de la Toile de Jouy:

Christophe Phillipe Oberkampf. Les toiles de Jouy: Une aventure humaine, industrielle et artistique
Musée de la Toile de Jouy, Jouy-en-Josas, 15 September — 27 December 2015

Pour tout savoir sur l’histoire de Christophe-Philippe Oberkampf et la façon dont il a fait de la Toile de Jouy un produit mondialement connu, le musée propose un parcours chronologique qui relate l’ascension de ce fils d’un teinturier allemand, né en 1738 et devenu un des pionniers de la révolution industrielle. Arrivé à Paris comme simple ouvrier, peu instruit (il le déplorera toute sa vie) mais visionnaire, Oberkampf fit de la manufacture qu’il fonda à Jouy-en-Josas la deuxième entreprise de France à la fin de l’Ancien Régime. Toujours à l’avant-garde des progrès techniques, il sut par ailleurs s’entourer de peintres talentueux, comme Horace Vernet ou Jean-Baptiste Huet, pour imaginer les motifs de ses toiles. L’exposition raconte cette histoire, ou comment les Toiles de Jouy ont supplanté les ‘palampores’, ces toiles indiennes importées des lointains comptoirs et comment elles ont conquis toutes les couches de la société, participant à une démocratisation de la mode et de la décoration, grâce à l’industrialisation des procédés inventée par Oberkampf.

From the exhibition press release (23 September 2015). . .

Simeon De Witt: Mapping the Revolution
Zimmerli Art Museum, Rutgers, New Brunswick, New Jersey, 1 September 2015 — 31 July 2016

Curated by Jenevieve DeLosSantos with Donna Gustafson

Ezra Ames, Portrait of Simeon De Witt, 1804 (Zimmerli Art Museum at Rutgers, photo by Jack Abraham)

When General George Washington led troops into colonial New Jersey during the early months of the Revolutionary War, he did not have access to an app—or even adequate drawings on paper—to guide him across the region. But in 1776, Simeon De Witt (1756–1834), the sole graduate that year from Rutgers (then known as Queen’s College), joined the Continental Army to fight the British. As a signature project of Rutgers 250, the year-long celebration of the university’s founding in 1766, the Zimmerli Art Museum presents Simeon De Witt: Mapping the Revolution, on view through July 31, 2016. The exhibition honors De Witt’s crucial role during the Revolutionary War and, throughout the rest of his life, documenting the geography of New York State (he was a native of Ulster County). It also explores the practice of 18th-century cartography through his original maps and tools.

“As we get ready to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Rutgers in 2016, this exhibition reminds us of the important role that New Jersey and its citizens played in the colonies’ efforts to win their independence and form a new democracy,” observed Jenevieve DeLosSantos, who organized the exhibition while working as a graduate curatorial assistant at the Zimmerli and recently received her PhD in Art History from Rutgers. By 1780, De Witt was named surveyor general and sketched maps of New Jersey’s uncharted land, working directly under George Washington. His topographic renderings were a valuable resource to the Commander-in-Chief as he navigated the terrain and evaded British forces.

After the successful conclusion of the war, De Witt built a career with accomplishments that aided new Americans who were instrumental in the early stages of westward expansion. In 1784, De Witt was appointed Surveyor General of the State of New York, a post he held for 50 years. In 1802, he drafted the first large-scale map of the state to be printed. It was the most detailed to date—depicting newly established cities, towns, and county lines—and distributed to salons and offices as an accurate reference of the Empire State’s geography. An 1804 version of this map is on view, on loan from Special Collections and University Archives at Rutgers University Libraries. The map is accompanied by several of De Witt’s original drafting tools, on loan from the Albany Institute of History and Art, and a field compass commonly used during the era, also from Special Collections. These historical objects provide insight into the resources available to De Witt at the time.

The Zimmerli’s 1804 three-quarter length portrait of De Witt in a stately interior captures him in the prime of his life. He thoughtfully gazes beyond the frame of the image, surrounded by the tools of his profession: a telescope, a globe. De Witt’s hand rests on a table, with the top portion of the aforementioned map of New York State visible. That it was painted by the prominent portrait artist Ezra Ames (1768–1836), who lived in Albany, New York, indicates De Witt’s status as an accomplished and respected member of society. More than 700 portraits have been attributed to Ames; among them, Founding Father Alexander Hamilton and the first governor of New York, George Clinton.

The selection includes other items that indicate the popularity of Revolution-era subjects in fine art and popular culture during the nation’s early decades. The Zimmerli’s recently cleaned and conserved portrait of George Washington was painted by Jane Stuart around 1840. The daughter of the renowned portraitist Gilbert Stuart, she opened her own studio after his death in 1828 and sold her work; especially popular were replicas of her father’s portrait of the country’s first president. Also on view are prints that depict important battles in New Jersey during America’s War for Independence, including a map by English engraver William Faden that depicts the positions of Washington’s troops in New Jersey and Pennsylvania at the beginning of the war.

Simeon De Witt: Mapping the Revolution is organized by Jenevieve DeLosSantos, PhD Art History, Rutgers University and Graduate Curatorial Assistant, 2013–2015, with the assistance of Donna Gustafson, Curator of American Art and Mellon Director for Academic Programs. The exhibition is a signature project of Rutgers 250, a yearlong celebration beginning November 10, 2015, to mark the university’s 250th anniversary. Complete information and a list of related events can be found at 250.rutgers.edu.

The Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum houses more than 60,000 works of art, ranging from ancient to contemporary art. The permanent collection features particularly rich holdings in 19th-century French art; Russian art from icons to the avant-garde; Soviet nonconformist art from the Dodge Collection; and American art with notable holdings of prints. In addition, small groups of antiquities, old master paintings, as well as art inspired by Japan and original illustrations for children’s books, provide representative examples of the museum’s research and teaching message at Rutgers. One of the largest and most distinguished university-based art museums in the nation, the Zimmerli is located on the New Brunswick campus of Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey. Established in 1766, Rutgers is America’s eighth oldest institution of higher learning and a premier public research university.