Madame Moitessier by Ingres: Art through Words National Gallery London

27^th October 2012

The subject of October’s Art through Words was the portrait of Madame Moitessier by Ingres.  Sara Dibb led the session assisted by Stephen Barrett.

 

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/calendar/art-through-words-27-october-2012

In January, Sara had drawn a perspective tactile diagram of Paris By Night by Pissarro and repeated the idea with a tactile reproduction of the painting of Madame Moitessier.  This seemed to be a little simpler and found total appreciation with all the visually impaired visitors for whom such large scale tactile representations are a new experience.  Some, like me, are familiar with the thermoform representations which are smaller and require some familiarisation with language of the senses in the artwork.    

 

Tactile reproduction of Ingres's portrait of Madame Moitessier

 

 

Sara introduced the painting with the reproduction and then introduced her tactile version.  Tracking the human body is familiar enough but Sara’s tactile version neatly illustrates the odd reflection in a mirror of the sitter.  (I was beginning to get the mirror touch or even mirror neurons references as a witty remark but kept quiet.)

Ingres had taken a long time to finish this picture and had run off another portrait in between.  The sitter has made an unusual gesture with her right hand in jabbing her pointing finger into her head, thumb hidden with remaining fingers pointing downwards.  One of us suggested that Victoria Beckham (Posh Spice) used this pose.  I tried to copy the gesture.  She is abslument couvert de beaucoup de bling!

Following an example of Empress Eugenie, the dress is of Lyons silk and has printed (not embroidered) patterns.  On the left there is one of those oriental fans (table tennis bats) which I noted in the paintings on show in the Impression Collection of Clark at the RA.  (http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/07/royal-academy-from-paris-taste-for.html)  The tactile diagram allowed us to follow the detail of the picture and we were able to locate the expanded pieces with references to “landmarks”

As well as describing the picture, Sara also told us about its history and how it came into the National Gallery by Sir Kenneth Clark (Civilisation) in 1936.   There is also an interesting story about the original frame for the picture which had become separated and later reunited when on show in the National Gallery.  The National Gallery is having a photographic exhibition and a similar pose of someone in a Mary Quant outfit is positioned next to the Ingres. 

Our walk through the gallery took us past the Turner Temeraire picture which I recognised, though on the way back to the Sainsbury Wing I thought I could detect a Cuyp landscape only for Stephen to say that it was by Claude. At least I was in the right region with an Italianate landscape. 

Sara had been wearing a printed top much in the fashion of Madame Moitessier.  I had been sitting next to Sara, but being polite had not commented on it until Sara slipped it into the discussion around the picture and photograph discussion. 

Many thanks to Sara for getting this tactile diagram prepared for us and to Stephen for assisting us through the busy galleries.

Postscript:

There are continued possibilities to study this picture in the comfort of one’s home.  A photo has been taken of the tactile diagram of the picture with the reproduction of the Ingres portrait.  I can be noted touching the reflection of the cheek of Madame.

 

 

Reflections on the cheek of Madame Moitessier

 

Veronese: The Rape of Europa : Art through Words - National Gallery, London

29^th September, 2012

After my summer break, I went to the Saturday morning Art Through Words in the National Gallery. These are held at 11.30 and we meet in the Sainsbury Wing at the Information Desk.

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/calendar/art-through-words-29-september-2012

I find it easier now to use the London Underground as the Trafalgar Square exit from Charing Cross has been reopened.  Walking through Trafalgar Square allows traffic free access to both the National Gallery and the National Portrait Gallery. 

Three of the usual attendees were already there and we chatted about other events.   I was soon greeted by Marian whom I had met at a Wallace Collection workshop.  Marian is from the West Midlands and is visually impaired.  Marian also volunteers at the Barber Institute in Birmingham.  (They have a nice collection of Flemish and Dutch Paintings which I am keen to visit.)

Soon afterwards we met our describers for the session, Viyki Turnbull and Clare Coope.  Viyki had described the Corot “Peasants under the Trees at Dawn” (http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/02/corot-peasants-under-trees-at-dawn.html) and as an artist has a mine of practical tips. 

Viyki started by reading an extract from the poem by Ovid in his Metamorphosis series.  The story of the abduction, seduction or rape of Europa by Jupiter transformed into a calf like bull set the story.  Viyki briefly explained the narrative aspects of the picture.  Europa is seen being laid on the back of a bull, then is shown astride the bull moving towards the sea on the shore of Sidon and finally they are in the sea.  (I did not say this, but Debussy La Mer and the sequence from Shirley Valentine came into mind!)

Viyki then described the painting, starting from the top right hand corner.  The picture can be found on the link below.

The Rape of Europa by Paolo Veronese (about 1570) - http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/paolo-veronese-the-rape-of-europa

We were working in the quiet of a study room with an almost full size reproduction.   The main action is the hoisting of Europa by two of her attendants in what Viyki described as a fireman’s lift.  Europa is then on the back of the bull and her right leg is raised and angled. 

The angles and lines associated with each character with a line of gaze was described.  Aspects of clothing were discussed and how Veronese had painted them.  The bull was described as crouched down and turning his face towards Europa, he started to lick her feet.  Images of Sarah Ferguson and other habits were hinted by some.  I asked if the bull had had his horns gilded. (In the Odyssey Homer describes the scene with Telemachus at the court of Nestor in Pylos with Pisistratus  at a banquet in which slaughter is made of a white, unblemished calf whose horns had been gilded prior to slaughter.)  This Veronese bull was certainly garlanded but we were not sure about the golden horns.  A zoom copy of the central characters was then given to each of us. 

These blow ups allow much more access to some of the detail and I could make out some of the facial expressions of Europa and one of the handmaidens.  In fact, the handmaiden reminded me of one of the nurses lifting a patient with a hip replacement!

Someone asked if Europa was wearing earrings.  The answer was in the negative.  Then the statement was made that this Europa was no allusion to a saint.  I did not know that saints did not wear earrings. 

At this point a large copy of Guido Reni’s painting of the Rape of Europa was passed round.  This appeared to be a bit more saintly as this woman was not wearing earrings. 

The Rape of Europa by Guido Reni (1637-9)- http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/guido-reni-the-rape-of-europa

Next it was time to visit the Veronese painting in the gallery.  In Art through Words we are invited to say our names and say how far we have come.  We had two sighted visitors, Margherita Mazzoni and Dr Gianetta Corley (also known as Barbara), Cathedral Guide at St Paul’s Cathedral, who joined us as we went to view the original painting. 

The copy we had studied gave us a good idea of the original but it always amazes me how much more one thinks one sees when gazing at the real thing.  There are 2 small paintings below the Veronese and the picture labels were read out to me. 

Adjacent to the Veronese was something familiar.  To the left is a very large Titian.  The Diana and Callisto and Diana and Acteon have been moved from the Titian 2012 Metamorphosis exhibition and now face each other. I checked with Clare if this was the case and we discussed the Metamorphosis show.  I had enjoyed the complementary works, some more than others. 

At the end Viyki offered to take us to another point in the gallery or the exit.  Marian had come to London to view the Bronze exhibition so I navigated the way to the RA where I made my second visit.

These Art through Words sessions allow peaceful study of a painting followed by a trip through the gallery.  The social aspect is also important as we visually impaired people are also seen in the gallery. 

The next Art through Words is on 27^th October at 11:30.  More details can be found on:

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/calendar/art-through-words-27-october-2012

Titian: Metamorphosis 2012, National Gallery, London

*** Update 12/9/2012

My second visit to this exhibition was in the last week and the space was relatively busy.  Everything had been in working order.  The installation of Conrad Shawcross (robotic arm) was moving a lot and I found it interesting picking up the movement on my peripheral vision.  The peep show area was open and was quite dark (surprise, surprise!).  I could make out two bright spots in the centre, presumably the peep holes.  The wide screen section showing the ballet rehearsals was quite busy with several people standing.  It was interesting sitting at the front and sensing the movement of people on the wide-screen.  I had recently attended a performance of Prokofiev’s Cinderella in Edinburgh.  This was my first attendance at a full ballet since I lost my sight and this may have been inspired by enjoying this Titian 2012 exhibition which managed to bring so many themes together.

***end of update

*** Update 16/7/2012
Here are the links provided by Penny Homer via comments left on this post:

First, about the event at the Opera House
http://www.roh.org.uk/productions/metamorphosis-titian-2012-by-various

Second, a review from the FT
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/2/4e0da6e4-ce67-11e1-9fa7-00144feabdc0.html#axzz20mLxcWD7

Thirdly, information about Jonathan Dove, composer for Diana & Actaeon
http://www.editionpeters.com/modern.php?composer=DOVE&modern=1

I wasn't able to attend the big screen event in Trafalgar Square this evening, though everyone enjoyed it!

*** end up update 
12^th July 2012

Three of Titian’s late works are on show together for the first time since the 18^th century:

Diana and Callisto 1556-9

Diana and Actaeon 1556-9
The Death of Actaeon about 1559-75

The works have been bought with the aid of funds for the National Gallery and the Scottish National Gallery to share.  Indeed, when I grew up in Edinburgh, the Titians from the Duke of Sutherland trustees were well known and it was a matter of concern when there was the risk of them being withdrawn from public access. 

On entering this exhibition, the first thing I noticed was the two completed works which face one.  The area is darkly lit and the paintings are subtly illuminated.  As there is a protective layer of non reflective transparent “glass”, it is possible to get up very close. There is no cordon and my companion was able to “point” out the details and the red and blue colours for which Titian was famous. 

I have always admired Titian and I even visited his house in Pieve di Cadore in the Belluno area of north Italy.  The subject matter of the Titian pictures is the Metamorphosis series of poems by Ovid.  At school in Edinburgh we studied the Metamorphoses in Latin classes.  The seen translation for the exam was Love of Apollo for Daphne.  Daphne was turned into a tree but in these Titian pictures Diana (Artemis) turns Actaeon into a stag, which is then killed by his stag hounds. 

The pictures could be described as violent soft pornography of the time.  Philip II of Spain had commissioned the work and they were intended for private viewing in Madrid.  A BBC Radio3 Nightwaves discussed this on Monday 9^th July.  (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01kkjyp )  Are these pictures Scottish, British, Italian or Spanish heritage?

The idea of metamorphosis is extended in this exhibition with displays of works by Mark Wallinger, Conrad Shawcross and Chris Ofili.  They each have an installation of their own and an interaction with the Royal Opera House wardrobe department and the Royal Ballet. 

There is a lot to enjoy if you have a little sight.  I was able to make out a large portion of the completed Titians up to about 75 cms above my eyeline.  I was also able to identify the blue streams in Diana and Callisto, as well as the red robes of Diana.  Some of the animals are big, especially the dogs, but I could even find the small lap dog.  The two completed works have a sense of motion with fleshy bodies in movement. 

With the scene which seals the fate of Actaeon (he dared to gaze on Diana) the colour of Actaeon’s skin is notably darker than that of Diana and her nymphs.   The killing of Actaeon is violently portrayed with movement conveyed by the prominent bow and the pack of hounds close by. 

Conrad Shawcross:

This resembles a robotic arm working at a distance from antlers.  It reminded me of a crane in fairgrounds when you had to manoeuvre the machinery to get a prize, usually a teddy bear.  The installation is said to be kinetic but I could detect no movement.

Chris Ofili:

Ofili has produced large pictures of scenes from Ovid’s Metamorphosis.  Some of them appeared to be overtly sexual while others resembled the drawings and colours on Greek amphorae. 

Mark Wallinger:

This installation was not working as the lights had gone out!  I listened to the audio (not suitable for visually impaired with touch screen) and heard discussions with a curator.  There was a drama about 3pm as the audio said “on screen now” so I passed the handset to my companion who said “She is standing 10 feet away.” Later on, said companion saw another woman dressed in a bath robe walking down one of the corridors.  Perhaps this was kinetic!

Each artist had also designed costumes and set designs and these are on show with time lapse videos in two rooms.  I could make out a lot standing in front of these.  Note it is quite dark here and tread carefully as you may have an advantage over other visitors.  The cane was useful. 

There is quite a lot of music of a plinky plonky nature coming from an adjacent room showing a film of Royal Ballet rehearsals projected on to a large screen.  Of the performing arts, ballet is the least accessible in my mind.  Unless very close up I see nothing and the music is usually geared to the dance than standing on its own merit.  Nevertheless I could make out a lot of the rehearsal shots I saw in two scenes.  There is a viewing area with about three rows of benches. 

This, I thought, neatly juxtaposed with the Wallinger solitary peep show (gimmick?) piece.  True I did not see the peep show but on listening to the audio mentioning the “male gaze” and intoning the late Diana, Princess of Wales my mind had closed.  I felt like the man who had been blinded for gazing at Lady Godiva as she rode naked through Coventry.

Conclusion:

This is a great opportunity to experience a lot of classical art and modern design, concept art and dance.  However, the exhibition had just opened and there were technical problems which meant I did not experience the peep show.  The exhibition is free and the audio may not be suitable. 

Ask at the information desk upstairs for any background materials.  My companion noted Braille and Large Print documentation.  Definitely worth a second visit.

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/exhibitions/metamorphosis-titian-2012

17th Century Dutch Painting - Part 3: National Gallery, London

5th July 2012

This is my third post on 17th Century Dutch Paintings- The Golden Age. The first described the pictures, artists (variable spelling of names) historical background and their suitability for some visually impaired people.  As there are many fine collections, it also introduced the newly refurbished galleries at the Wallace Collection and the National Gallery collection in person and online trails.  ( http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/04/17th-century-dutch-paintings-golden-age.html )

My second piece centred on the Torrie Collection in the Talbot Rice Gallery of the University of Edinburgh. ( http://profwhitestick.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/dutch-paintings-part-2-torrie.html )

I had missed the National Gallery ‘Art through Words’ in June and wanted to pay a visit before the Olympics made some trips difficult.  On arrival, I enquired at the information desk in the Sainsbury Wing and Nicola asked if I could use Braille or large print (I can’t) and then took me to the galleries where the 17th Century Dutch Paintings are. 

The National Gallery has a large collection of Dutch paintings, and as there is no “double hanging” the collection extends through several rooms.  Also, as there are small pictures and quite large ones, an individual artist’s work – such as Cuyp, Jan Steen or even Vermeer – is not exhibited all together in one room. 

Nicola suggested that she wrote down the NG number of a painting that I liked and that that reference would allow me to track the details.  Nicola also kept a separate note of the numbers saying that the information desk could print out the panel notes in large format or that, in my case, they could be sent in a text file by email.  (These notes were sent within 2 working days.)

Using a search engine and typing National Gallery NG Number the first result takes you normally into the picture with its dates and information.

Gerard ter Borch

Portrait of a young man
NG1399

For example I typed National Gallery NG1399 and the full length portrait of a sombre clothed man in almost black diamond shape appears. This proves that with some help in noting the NG number and then getting someone to type it up, it is possible to use this information to undertake a search yourself.  Searching without this number will depend on your searching history and getting the artist’s name right.

The following are some of the paintings that I was particularly struck by during my visit:

Room 21 text panel

Figures in an Italian Garden with Fountains and Statuary

Frederik de Moucheron
NG842

The notes suggest that Adriaen van de Velde painted the figures in this imagined Italian landscape.  I had been discussing the van de Veldes with Nicola and mentioned that two of this talented family who worked in London were buried in the churchyard of St James Piccadilly (I had just eaten a sandwich and had a coffee there.)

River landscape with Horseman and Peasants

Albert Cuyp
NG6522

The large painting of the peasants with cows has a lot of stories within it and Nicola was able to help me find one: a hunter crouching in the bottom left hand corner; I could make out a line of a gun as he was taking aim, but I could not make out his dog.  This is a beautiful painting, though has a cordon around it. 

 

Avenue of Middelharnis

Meindert Hobbema
NG830

This avenue of trees is a popular theme in Dutch paintings and this one is no exception.  Sometimes the Italianate influence can make some perspective lines appear odd and though I like this, I still think that the Cuyp avenue in Dordrecht has more appeal. 

A Dutch Yacht and Other Vessels Becalmed near the Shore

Hendrick Dubbels
NG2587

This picture caught my eye with the ships or boats in full sail but becalmed.  The masts and the pattern of the sails appealed to my peripheral vision so I asked Nicola to make a note of the number.  The search took me into a NG inventory page with a lot of information and I had to go back to another level to check all the details.  A warning: doing too many searches on some paintings makes a prediction search seek some other items.

Haarlem Lock

Meindert Hobbema
NG6138

This shows a typical canal lock with a herring packer’s tower, though according to the National Gallery site the buildings are no longer extant.  Apparently this is the only scene of Amsterdam by the artist who lived in the area.  Key facts on the site give more links to details of the painting. 

A River Scene with a Large Ferry and Numerous Dutch Vessels at Anchor

Jan van de Cappelle
NG967

A seascape with a ferry boat and other boats with Dutch flags, this was another picture that caught my eye.

Dutch Vessels Inshore and Men Bathing

Willem van de Velde
NG871

Landscape in Brazil

Frans Post
L39

This was a surprise as one forgets the enormous trading post network the Dutch, with their fleet, had established around the world. 

View of the Westerkerk, Amsterdam

Jan van der Heyden
NG6526

I had noted Jan van der Heyden in the Wallace Collection and I “recognised” the Westerkerk in Amsterdam.  Nicola commented on the detailed drawing of the cobblestones and this was similar to the brickwork detail that Jackie had described to me when looking at other pictures by van der Heyden.

Albert Cuyp

The Small Dort, NG962
The Maas at Dordrecht in a Storm, NG6405
The Large Dort, NG961

At this point I was beginning to show symptoms of a Cuyp overdose and it was delightful.  There are a lot of views of Dordrecht.   

Vermeer

The National Gallery is planning a ‘Vermeer and Musical Instrument’ exhibition for next year and it will include the Lady with Guitar.  I was mentioning this news which I had picked up on Twitter, when Nicola said “We have the lady here on show now.”  Kenwood is being refurbished and though a Rembrandt from Kenwood has gone on tour, the Iveagh Bequest restricts the Lady with the Guitar from ‘travelling’.  The picture is one of my favourites and though I missed the exhibition at the Fitzwilliam in Cambridge, I was able to view the other Vermeers such as Lady seated at a Virginal (NG2568) and Lady standing by a Virginal (NG1383).

Cattle and Sheep in a Stormy Landscape

Paulus Potter
NG2583

One of my friends prefers Paulus Potter to Albert Cuyp.  My thoughts on this cattle and sheep in a storm was that the bovine beast resembled more another species, as I thought one had the appearance of a Highland Stag. 

A Farm with a Dead Tree

Adriaen van de Velde
NG867

I was attracted by the dead tree against the skyline.  Adriaen was famous for drawing figures and anatomical bits of pictures and his work is noted in many pictures with a leading name doing the landscape.

We went through some beautiful Albert Cuyp pictures.  I had been given a book on the NG collection and had bought the Albert Cuyp Catalogue following an exhibition in London and USA.  Whenever I mention Albert Cuyp to friends who are interested in Dutch pictures, they almost always say “Ah Cuyp, the cow man!”  While it is true that Cuyp painted cows he did cover other subjects.    

On our way back to the Sainsbury Wing Nicola mentioned that the Titian exhibition was starting on July 11 and it might be an idea to get there sooner than later.  This is free and downstairs.

Many thanks to Nicola for taking me round the collection.  With her help I was also able to remember many more pictures by using the NG number.  Talks and tours on Dutch pictures are also tweeted on the NG twitter feeds and texts can be downloaded using this method. 

I have found the National Gallery website to be straightforward in its own right by just searching through a search engine.  Knowing a few names, it is possible to locate a given painting.  I was also able to catch up on paintings which I would normally have picked up in an Art through Words session. I also have the picture labels (panel notes) which Nicola sent me by email. 

An example of the picture label for the Albert Cuyp reads very well in a screenreader and the National Gallery separated the labels with an underline.  This makes it easier for me to merge it like this:

Albert Cuyp (1620–1691)

River Landscape with Horseman
and Peasants, about 1658–60

This is Aelbert Cuyp’s largest surviving

landscape. The scene is inspired by
the landscape along the Rhine near
Nijmegen, in the eastern Netherlands.
Cuyp travelled to the area many times.

The golden sunlight is observed from
the work of contemporaries, such as
Jan Both, who had travelled in Italy.

Oil on canvas

NG6522. Bought with the assistance of the
National Heritage Memorial Fund and
The Art Fund, 1989

These provide a neat description of the work and it is now possible for me to form my own gallery notes and tag it to the right painting.  (This is a challenge but makes one work to fix an image in the mind) It would be possible to read a bar code and listen to a synthetic voice read it out, but where is the interaction in that? 

This shows that a few paintings one enjoys can be enjoyed later on with a record of the visit, thoughts at the time and some cross checking from the gallery.  Another really good and imaginative way in sharing the pictures to the visually impaired community. 

Books recently acquired on 17th century Dutch pictures:

Rembrandt 1892 by John Ingamells (The Trustees of the Wallace Collection, London)

Jan Steen (1626-1679) by Wouter Kloek (Waanders Publishers, Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam)
Dutch Painting: The National Gallery (National Gallery, London)

PS

Metamorphosis: Titian 2012
A unique collaboration with The Royal Ballet
11 July - 23 September 2012
Admission Free
 
Find out more:
http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/metamorphosis-titian-2012

Turner inspired - in the light of Claude: National Gallery, London

I had promised myself a visit to this exhibition and had worked out that if that all went to schedule, I would be able to manage it after my hip operation and without using a crutch.  Concessions are available for visually impaired visitors and the National Gallery, in common with other organisations, allows a companion or even more than one, free entry.   Being a companion to a visually impaired visitor can be hard work, but there is an audio system which I used when there was an audio post, so my friend was also able to enjoy the paintings! 

This exhibition uses a series of paintings by Claude and sets them up with those of Turner.  Claude Lorraine is rated to be the foremost landscape painter in the 17^th Century.  In my Dutch pictures of the same period I have noted the Italian influence of Claude on Dutch painters who went to Italy and then influenced Dutch painters who stayed at home.  About 100 years later Turner was fascinated by Claude and in making his own landscapes used some of the techniques in faithfully copying topography while making a composition. 

Turner had used Claude originals as models for his own landscapes and there are paintings by Turner with the Thames remodelled as a French River.  I found that Turner’s picture of Linlithgow Palace resembled the Enchanted Castle of Claude more than his Solitude. 

The arrangement of the exhibition is such as that many of the Claude paintings have a Turner “version”. These are by no means pastiches; rather, Turner has used Claude’s lighting and conventions and recast them as time moved on. By the time he tried to ingratiate himself with Queen Victoria and Prince Albert, his style was too far removed from others at the time.

A few years ago I went to Tate Modern for an exhibition of Turner.  I have also seen some of the Turner collection at the Tate.  I have always enjoyed his paintings but during this exhibition I found I could make out so much more detail in the Claude “original”.  After the Solitude picture by Turner I stopped comparing and contrasting the two painters and enjoyed the Turner’s for what they have always meant to me, even when I was fully sighted.  Sometimes the imagination has to be used and as with some of the David Hockney paintings, the visually impaired can make their own impression.

This exhibition closes soon and I can highly recommend it. When we went there were no queues and no advance booking seemed to be necessary.  I was glad that I had checked out the exhibition times with the National Gallery staff beforehand.  While exhibitions such as this one are large and can be crowded this was not the case.  http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/turner-inspired

The audio guide was prompted by my friend and each audio prompt allows options for more details.  My friend read out the captions and though we inspected some of Turner’s sketches and notebooks I was more interested in some of the objects in the last room.  In some exhibitions the last room can be an anticlimax or a real thrill.  (I found the last few rooms of the Kusama exhibition a real surprise after a rather slow beginning)  In the Turner exhibition there are some enlarged drawings and photographs of old National Gallery shows.  There is a painting by Frederick Mackenzie illustrating a collection of paintings (shades of Zoffany and Lawrence Dundas).

This exhibition shows that some visually impaired visitors can feel included in a social setting.  In the special gift shop I bought the hardback catalogue of the show with some postcards:   

Catalogue: Turner Inspired: in the light of Claude

Postcards:

Claude:

Seaport with the Embarkation of the Queen of Sheba, 1648

Seacoast with Perseus and the Origin of Coral, 1674

Joseph Mallord William Turner:

Sunrise, a Castle on a Bay: Solitude, 1845-5

Tivoli: Tobias and the Angel, c1835

Modern Italy – the Pifferari, c1838

Piero di Cosimo : Satyr mourning death of a nymph - Art through Words at the National Gallery

Art Through Words is the National Gallery discussion for visually impaired people and is held on the last Saturday of the month.  I had missed the April talk as I was still in hospital and this was my first visit without a crutch in sight. A friend took me on the bus and we arranged to meet up after the talk and take in the Turner Inspired exhibition which closes next week.

The time before the meeting allows some chat between other visitors about other events. One had been to an event at Tate Britain and another to an early access to the Royal Academy.  We were welcomed by Linda Bolton who was assisting and Caroline Smith who had prepared the discussion.  Linda has written a piece for the blog and this post gets regular hits when searches are made for art and visually impaired subjects.  ( http://profwhitestick.blogspot.com/2012/02/guest-post-behind-sceneseen-at-art.html ) We were about 16 people and though the majority come from Greater London a couple had made the journey from Kettering.

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/calendar/art-through-words-26-may-2012

The subject for the day was a painting on poplar wood by Piero di Cosimo which was made in 1495.  Caroline had prepared a reproduction of the work and the dimensions seemed strange on first viewing; our print is sized 63 cm by 21 cm.    The painting can be found on http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/piero-di-cosimo-a-satyr-mourning-over-a-nymph

Caroline went through the layout and geometry of the painting with key landmarks. A recently killed nymph is lying along the bulk of the bottom half.  She is flanked by a satyr (top half man, lower half goat) on the left and a dog on the right. Both satyr and dog take up most of the height of the painting and in turn they are framed by foliage almost in the manner of a book end. In the remaining top space there is a landscape of a meadow reaching down to an estuary with some blue mountains in the distance.

We discussed the mythology of the painting and how some Roman and Classical myths had been reworked into plays and also into art work for the popular private market (i.e. non-religious or state).  This piece was privately commissioned and would likely have been found in a private room, probably a bedroom from the subject matter  My impression of the dog reminded me of Egyptian tomb paintings where the god Anubis ( a jackal) guards many of the funerary monuments. Virgil’s tale of the Aeneid was continually being reworked and even some families claimed to be descended to Aeneas in much the same way as Julius Caesar had done.  Kings of England and France had sought to proclaim their status and descent in works they commissioned and I was reminded of a Bettany Hughes radio programme about the Medicis and some Florentine art being used in quite a utilitarian way. 

In the gallery the piece is placed above a “Cassone” or marriage chest (The Scots word kist) and this painting could well have been placed in a panel of such an object.   I was telling a friend about such chests and he said it was common to have a painting on the inside of the lid.  Alternatively, the piece could have been  used in part of the bed furniture. (IKEA, flat packs come to mind)

Caroline then produced enlargements of the sections of the painting to allow some with vision to see a bit more and expand the discussion.

The first expanded section showed the upper part of the dead nymph and the satyr is holding her left shoulder with his left hand while his right hand is touching her head.  Her left arm makes a V shape as it is bent at the elbow. The wound on her neck could be made out and the flow of blood has been commented on by surgeons who suggest that, by the blood flow, the subject must have been standing. Some suggestion of a tracheotomy was made and one of us mentioned diphtheria and a cure. I mentioned that one of my uncles had contracted croup as a 2 year old and had silver tubes inserted into his throat to improve breathing.  Piero is said to have known Leonardo and an exhibition of some of the Leonardo drawings on medical subjects is now on show at Buckingham Palace.  Was the nymph really dead and who killed her?  It was established that her clothing was dry and quickly we resembled a Crime Scene Investigation.   The enlargement also allowed more viewing of the plants in the meadow.

The second enlargement featured the landscape from the top segment of the painting.  This section is a beautiful composition in its own right.   Having been interested in Dutch paintings from the 17^th Century, I find this section from the 15^th century to be fascinating.  This shows a beautiful sky and distant mountains behind an estuary with boats and cranes in flight and on ground. More dogs can be found and I thought they were horses at first. These add-on dogs are not as well painted as the main dog guarding the satyr. Caroline explained that the workings of the chief dog had been exposed and that Piero had changed the profile of the head.  The jaw bone structure and facial features had been altered. 

I learned a lot from this talk. Some of the other participants are well versed in Vasari and the popular dramas at the end of the 15^th Century.  On inspection of the painting in the gallery we were able to view a Cassone placed in front and discuss the craftsmanship at the time. 

Again many thanks to Caroline and Linda for bringing some art to us. 

More information about Piero di Cosimo can be found on the National Gallery website on: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/artists/piero-di-cosimo

The June 2012 Art through Words painting is Turner's  Ulysses deriding Polyphemus -

http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/whats-on/calendar/art-through-words-30-june-2012