Cathy's Art Diary

Insightful online lecture from Courtauld Research Forum and Ulster Museums on the fashions of the Belle Epoque and in particular an analysis of the dress in Renoir’s “La Loge”. This lecture marked two exhibitions at the Ulster Museums, a loan of various Renoir’s, including “La Loge” from the Courtauld and their own companion show on fashion in the Belle Epoque ie from 1870s to the start of the First World War. Charlotte McReynolds gave us a brief overview of the Belle Epoque exhibition then Ingrid Mida, a picture dating consultant, also known as The Dress Detective took us thought the finer detail of the dress in “La Loge”   revealing that at the date it was painted, 1874, the striped dress would have been slightly old fashioned. This may have been a deliberate statement about the woman by Renoir, or it might be that at this period he had to borrow outfits for his models. Mida compared the picture to real clothes, fashion plates and photographs of the time and looked at what...

Fascinating online lecture from the National Gallery talking us through the design of Raphael’s Mond Crucifixion of 1502-3.  Carlo Carsato started by asking if we though the picture was boring as it appears uncomplicated and slightly minimal. He then took us through a series of other paintings which may be quoted in it and asked us again. Having made us look at the work and think he then took us through where it was made for and how it would have looked in situ. He examined how the proportions of the space would have influenced the composition then talked us through the various elements. Finally he looked at how the elements were put together and how they were designed to draw our eye around the work and how that would have aided the spiritual contemplation of it. It was a really thoughtful look at the picture, described simply and clearly.

Beautiful exhibition at the Philip Mould Gallery of Elizabethan and Jacobean portraits. This show had a wonderful selection of pictures both miniatures and full-scale works. They were shown with excellent descriptions detailing new research on the works. Small moan though that the labels were hard to read as they were places quite low in a low-lit room. They played havoc with my varifocals! I was very touched to see tiny miniatures of Elizabeth I and Robert Dudley, about the size of a thumbnail. It seems likely these were commissioned by Dudley as it was unlikely anyone else would have dared to commission this pair. The Elizabeth was a less formalised version than we usually see. It was a nice hang to put next to a formal full-scale version of her in a Pelican and Tudor Rose dress. There were five Hilliards in the show and an Isaac Oliver and these miniatures were clearly show with magnifying glasses provide. I was intrigued by   newly found Decourt of Henry III of France who...

Lively online lecture from ARTscapades on the truth and legend of the Borgias. The author Sarah Dunant, who has written two novels about the family, took us though their history from Rodrigo becoming Pope Alexander VI in 1492. She looked at why their names may have been blackened, basically because they were Spaniards in the midst of an Italian Catholic church, and how quickly stories of corruption and sexual intrigued started to circulate. She placed them in their time saying that they were no more corrupt than most families of the time. She looked in a particular at Lucrezia and Cesare, outlining her three marriages and his successful military campaign across Italy which inspired Machiavelli’s The Prince. I liked that she talked about the artwork they commissioned at the Vatican particularly the decoration of the apartments they built including the frescos by Pinturicchio which includes this portrait of Lucrezia aged 13 as St Catherine.    

Super two day online course from the Wallace Collection looking at the history of sculpture and it’s use. Richard Stemp, basing his talk on the Wallace Collection but bringing in other examples, took us through the main materials used for sculpture on the first day starting with some wonderful wax plaques, moving through how bronzes were made, work in clay and looking at stone carving. He talked about how small bronzes were made to be held in the hand in the Renaissance and viewed from all angles. One day two he looked specifically at how sculpture has been used to make portraits and memorialise people. He took us though trends in church memorials with some concentration on Italian Renaissance works but also looking at 18th century British pieces which will certainly make me look at the acres of memorials in Westminster Abbey and St Paul’s in a different way. This was a really useful introduction to sculpture and much needed break from paintings.

Interesting online lecture from the Courtauld Research Forum on the American Pre-Raphaelites. Sophie Lynford from Harvard Art Museum explained how the American Pre-Raphaelite movement developed, how it was influence by the British group and how it promoted the Abolition of slavery. She took two pictures by Thomas Charles Ferrer, who had been born in England, to describe the ideas of the movement and how they challenged the American sublime landscape artists. She started with “Gone, Gone” from 1860, shown here, which was on display in New York as the Civil War broke out and them looked at “View of Northampton from the Dome of the Hospital” from 1863, which was a direct response to Thomas Cole’s earlier painting of the nearby Ox Bow Lake. I am not sure I would have worked out the abolitionist links from the paintings but Lynford said this came though more in their writings.

Fascinating online lecture form the London Art History Society looking at the new British Museum exhibition on Thomas Becket. Lloyd de Beer, curator of the show, talked us through Becket’s life, murder and cult and via that also lead us through the exhibition. He introduced us to some wonderful exhibits such as the Becket Leaves, illustrations from an early life of the saint, shown here, a stained-glass window brought from Canterbury for the show and even a font from Norway which shows Henry II complicity in the murder. I can’t wait to see this show as I did this period for A level. It feels like it covers all the bases and I wonder if my old essays will come flooding back to me. It will be interesting to see what new evidence has come to light over the last 40 plus years!