Redisplaying the German Collection

Interesting online lecture from the National Gallery discussing their German collection and how it has been displayed in the new rehang.

Matthew Morgan interviewed the curator of German paintings, Christine Seidel. They were quick to point of that for most of the period covered by the gallery Germany did not exist as a single country but as a series of city states ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. They also noted that the gallery has the best collection of work from the area outside a German speaking region.

They talked about how there is only one room dedicated to German art and that is in the Sainsbury wing covering 1500-1600 and includes Cranach and Altdorfer. Seidel looked in particular at the latter’s altarpiece “Christ Taking Leave of His Mother”.

They discussed why the gallery’s work by Durer appear in the Venetian room of the Sainsbury Wing and talked about his trips to Venice and the effect they had on his art and that of the local artists.

They moved into the main galleries and talked about the role of Holbein and how he shows a change in the purpose of art with he Reformation before ending with looking at German artists in Rome in the Baroque period covering Hans van Aachen and Adam Elsheimer.

In looking at the rehang they gave a good overview of art from the region over a 200 year period although they admitted they had left a lot out including a detailed look at Cranach.

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