Brueghel to Freud

Interesting exhibition at the Courtauld showing highlights from their print collection.

The commentaries looked at how each work was produced and why. Pre-photography prints were used to educate and to disseminate the work of an artist. Post—photography you can see prints becoming works of art in their own right and another medium for artists to use.

In the early section I was fascinated to see which artists did their own etching. The show included a copy of the only print Brueghel the Elder made himself however Parmigianino was known for producing his own etchings.

I loved a scene of a mock battle which was staged every year in Florence by Jacques Callot. It was made in a limited edition of 1000 in the shape of a fan. 500 of these were made up into fans to give away on the day. It was commissioned in 1619 by Cosimo II.

The later prints took on a more stylized form. There was a wonderful Bonnard of a woman with children and dogs which was made up of expressive blocks of greens and browns. A lovely touch was a wall of female nudes by Manet, Gaugin, Freud, Picasso and Matisse which was a great opportunity to compare styles.

Review
Telegraph


 

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