“Impression, Sunrise”: The true story of the masterpiece by Claude Monet

Fig.1, Claude Monet, Impression, Soleil Levant, 1872,
oil on canvas, 50 × 65 cm, Paris,
Musée Marmottan Monet, Gift of Victorine
and Eugène Donop de Monchy,
1940 © Christian Baraja

It is well known that the term “Impressionist” dates back to Claude Monet’s “Impression, Sunrise” (fig. 1) that was shown in the First Impressionist Exhibition. The fame of this monumental Impressionist work until now discouraged any deep investigation of its background. Yet the painting still remains shrouded in many mysteries. Does it depict a sunrise or sunset? When was it painted? It is signed “72,” but was it not in reality “73”? And so on. The ambitious exhibition “Impression, Sunrise: The true story of the masterpiece by Claude Monet,” currently underway at the Musèe Marmottan Monet, seeks to uncover many of these secrets by examining the history of the painting, its 1874 inaugural exhibit and how the piece came to the Marmottan museum in 1940 after changing hands among various collectors.

Fig. 2, Raoul Lefaix, L’Hôtel de l’Amirauté,
1928, Photograph on paper blued in the
album "Le Havre en 1928", 20 x 14.5 cm,
Le Havre, Bibliothèque Municipale
© Bibliothèque municipale du Havre

‘I had something I painted from my window in Le Havre: the sun in the midst and in the foreground some masts sticking up. They wanted to know its title for the catalogue (because) it couldn’t really pass for a view of Le Havre. I replied, “Use Impression.”’

The first person to get unravel the secret of the accurate “when” and “where” of “Impression, Sunrise” was Donald W. Olson, Professor of Physics and Astronomy at Texas State University. Based on existing evidence that the painting was a view from a window of a hotel in the northwestern French port town Le Havre by the Atlantic Ocean, Olson determined the hotel by examining maps from that era and more than four hundred photos and postcards. It turned out to be the Grand Hôtel de l’Amirauté et de Paris (fig. 2). Because cranes and masts can be seen below, Olson concluded that Monet painted from the fourth or fifth floor.

It was further revealed that since the window of the room faced east, the sun must have been rising, and that the sun would have been in the position in the painting in either mid-November or late January. In addition, the rise and fall of the tide, the weather and wind direction were studied, based on the depiction of the large ship. This narrowed the time to either November 13, 1872 at 7:35 a.m. or January 25, 1873 at 8:05 a.m. Olson and the exhibit curators concluded that since Monet had signed “72” next to his name, the most likely date of its execution was November 13, 1872 at 7:35 a.m.

In addition to 26 works by Monet including “Impression, Sunrise,” the exhibit is also displaying 35 pieces by artists such as Eugène Boudin, who instructed Monet, and Pierre-Auguste Renoir and Camille Pissarro both of whom took part with Monet in the First Impressionist Exhibition as well as 61 historic items. On this 140th anniversary year of the First Impressionist Exhibition, the exhibit casts another light on the history of impressionism.

“Impression, Sunrise”: The true story of the masterpiece by Claude Monet
Until January 18, 2015

Musée Marmottan Monet

2 rue Louis Boilly
75016 Paris
France
http://www.marmottan.fr/uk/

Opening times:

Tuesday 10:00-21:00
Wednesday—Sunday 10:00-18:00

Closed on Mondays, 1 Jan, 1 May, 25 Dec　

Late Turner Exhibition

fig.1, J.M.W. Turner, Rain, 
Steam, and Speed – The Great Western Railway,
1844, ©The National Gallery, London

Rain, Steam and Speed – The Great Western Railway (fig.1) is a masterpiece landscape that radiates in Western European art history. It is the work of Joseph Mallord William Turner who continues to be regarded as one of Britain’s greatest painters. A steam locomotive spewing steam, a symbol of modernization, is crossing the Maidenhead railway bridge across the Thames in the rain. The painting skillfully portrays the light and movement of the wind to depict the fast speed of the train. A hare desperately crosses the tracks in front of the locomotive while to the left, a lone boat floats on the Thames. Both are in contrast to the modernity and speed of the steam locomotive. How old was Turner when he created his work that signaled the unveiling of the modern painting? Was he a youth brimming with vibrant sensitivity or man of mellow maturity?

Turner painted this landscape in 1844, the year he turned 69. Having joined the Royal Academy -- the authority of the British art world -- when he was barely 26 years old, Turner could be described as having evolved at an early age. But he remained devoted to his art, and he continued to pursue new forms of expression until the end of his life at age 76.

fig.2, J.M.W. Turner, Ancient Rome;
Agrippina Landing with the Ashes of Germanicus,
exhibited 1839, oil paint on canvas, support: 914 x 1219 mm,
frame: 1230 x 1530 x 140 mm, Tate.
Accepted by the nation as part of the Turner Bequest 1856

The Tate Britain in London is currently showing the exhibit Late Turner focusing on the works of Turner between the years of 1835, when he turned 60, until his death in 1851. Centered on the paintings at Tate, which boasts the world’s largest Turner collection, the exhibit displays 150 works including pieces from galleries around the world.

Turner’s subject matters ranged from historical landscapes of mythology and historic events to familiar settings of the outskirts of London. In fact, he did not stay within Britain, but painted the sceneries of Venice, the ancient ruins of Rome and various other places that he visited (fig.2). Turner’s subject matters were broad, but what remains constant in his work is his pursuit of the expression of light. In his late works, Turner attempts to dissolve everything into a space of brimming light. This method of expression of light was criticized as too radical at the time but would later have a strong influence on Monet and other impressionist painters. Still today these late works are regarded as the most acclaimed of Turner’s paintings.


The pieces in Late Turner show no sign of gloom or decline in enthusiasm due to age. What we see is Turner vigorously continuing to capture in light, the dramatic changes in the natural world and the transfigurations of life under modernization.

Late Turner: until January 25, 2015. Open daily.

Tate Britain

Millbank
London SW1P 4RG
United Kingdom
http://www.tate.org.uk/visit/tate-britain

Opening times:

10:00－18:00 daily

Renewal and Reopening of the Mauritshuis Museum

fig.2 Fotograaf: © Ronald Tilleman, Credits: Mauritshuis, Den Haag

The Mauritshuis Museum reopened on June 27 following a two-year long period of renovation. The massive refurbishing was made possible by the availability for rent of a part of a building across the street that once housed a private club. (fig. 1) The two buildings are now connected by a new underground lobby. The old museum has on permanent display, at it has in the past, treasures of the Dutch golden age including Rembrandt and Vermeer. The new wing has enhanced the museum’s educational facilities with new special exhibition rooms, lecture spaces for children and a library.

fig.1 The main building and new wing of the Mauritshuis

The renovation of the old museum structure focused on faithfully reproducing Jacob van Campen’s 17th century building representative of Dutch classical architecture. A repainting of the museum has highlighted the symmetric and straight lines of its design. The interior had been refurbished in the 18th century following a 1704 fire but according to the styles of the time rather than of the original. The plaster walls have now been repainted and the wallpaper replaced with woven silk cloth with beautiful patterns.

It was not only the buildings that were renovated during this long museum closure period. Climate control and lighting systems were improved. Ceiling paintings embedded as part of decorative murals were taken down and restored. Italian painter Pellegrini’s works from the Golden Room had discolored to gray from the soot of coal burning stoves. The cloudy gray film was removed, returning its original soft colors(fig.2).

fig.3 Johannes Vermeer, Girl with a Pearl Earring,
c. 1665, Mauritshuis, The Hague.

In the galleries, the works of the leading painters of the Dutch Golden Age are displayed in roughly the same places as before the renovations. The 17th-century paintings such as Rembrandt’s The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulip and Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring(fig.2) and View of Delft that returned to the newly restored museum fit back in so perfectly, it is as if they are declaring, “this is our home.” Museum Director Emilie Gordenker says, “The building is one of the most notable surviving examples of seventeenth-century architecture in the Netherlands, which provides an impressive setting for the paintings.” After two years, this small and lovely pearl of a museum is once again radiating new light.

The June 27 reopening of the museum can be seen on Youtube. Following a humorous presentation of the trip around the world of Vermeer’s Girl with a Pearl Earring during the museum’s restoration period, there are some glimpses of the museum interiors.

Mauritshuis Museum

Plein 29
2511CS, Den Haag
The Netherlands
http://www.mauritshuis.nl/en/

Opening times:

Tue—Sun：10:00－18:00
Thur：10:00－20:00
Mon：10:00-18:00（Until 1 November 2014）

From Watteau to Fragonard, les fêtes galantes

The Jacquemart-André Museum is the prominent and magnificent former residence of Edouard André and Nélie Jacquemart, decorated and renovated to accommodate the couple’s vast art collection, which they wanted to incorporate into their daily environment. Currently on exhibit is “From Watteau to Fragonard, les fêtes galantes,” comprised of about 60 items, centered on their collection.

fig.1 Antoine Watteau (1684 - 1721), Récréation galante,
ca 1717-1719, oil on canvas, 114,5 x 167,2 cm,
Berlin, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin, Gem_ldegalerie,
© BPK, Berlin, Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Jörg P. Anders

In the early 18th century, the light-hearted, graceful lines of Rococo art were blossoming and replacing the imposing religious and historic paintings typical of the Baroque style. Fêtes galantes is the popular category of paintings during this time that portrayed lovers frolicking in beautiful gardens and nature. One of the main painters of this genre was Jean-Antoine Watteau. Born in the Flanders region, Watteau went to Paris as a youth where he painted the elegantly dressed men and women into the traditional, bucolic setting of Flanders, amid abundant greenery and flowers in full bloom. The Rococo style refined lines and bright colors created a poetic and romantic atmosphere. (fig. 1)

Watteau did not have any students, but toward the end of the 1710s many painters began copying his work and creating pictures influenced by his style. The artist most shaped by Watteau was Nicolas Lancret. Lancret incorporated elements of reality into his works such as popular fashion of the times or places that anyone back then would recognize. For example, the woman dancing in the center of La Carmago Dancing is the Paris Opera star Marie Camargo. Camargo was known for her active footwork and brought many new steps to 18th century ballet. In order to facilitate the complex steps, she shortened her dresses from just below the ankle to the calf. In the painting her skirt is short and reveals that she is wearing toe shoes.

fig.2 Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732-1806), La Fête à Saint-Cloud,
ca. 1775-1780, oil on canvas, 211 x 331 cm, Paris,
collection Banque de France, © RMN-Grand Palais / Gérard Blot

The popularity of fêtes galantes did not decline in the latter part of the 18th century but rather flourished further. As art patrons sought paintings to decorate their homes, larger works were created to fit the measurements of such spaces. A remarkable example is Jean-Honoré Fragonard’s La Féte à Saint-Cloud (fig.2). Fragonard painted with a superior brush technique, an enormous garden in which people are enjoying at their leisure a play and dancing. Most notable in the painting is a fountain at the center; the water soars up to a height of more than 5 meters, creating an extraordinary setting for the festivities. This painting represents the peak of the fétes galantes genre started by Watteau.

Musée Jacquemart-André

158 Boulevard Haussmann
75008 Paris
France
+33 1 45 62 11 59
http://www.musee-jacquemart-andre.com

Opening times:

Tue—Fri, Sun：10:00－18:00
Mon、Sat：10:00－20:30

Veronese Exhibit

図2 X7484, Paolo Veronese (1528-1588), Portrait of a Lady,
known as the "Bella Nani", about 1560-5, Oil on canvas,
119 × 103 cm, Musée du Louvre, Paris (R.F. 2111),
© RMN (Musée du Louvre)/All rights reserved

An exhibit of the works of Veronese, a leading painter of 16th century Renaissance Venice is underway at the National Gallery in London. The showcased complex frescoes, altarpieces and portraits include ten from the Gallery’s collection and some 50 on loan from other European and American acquisitions.

Born in 1528 as the son of a stone cutter, Veronese was formally called Paolo Caliari but later changed his name to reflect his birthplace of Verona. Showing talent from a young age, by his late teens Veronese painted works commissioned by Verona’s aristocratic families. Although he is known as a Venetian painter, Veronese was born in Verona, some 100 kilometers west of Venice, and only moved to Venice when he was nearly 30 years old.

In Supper at Emmaus (around 1555, fig. 1) a Venetian aristocratic family is depicted taking part in the dinner at Emmaus. Jesus is seated in the center, looking up toward heaven and blessing the bread he holds in his left hand. Veronese does not focus on the Biblical event taking place in the center. On the right is a family uninterested in Christ, and in the foreground adorable children are frolicking with a dog. Rather than depict the holy world of God, Veronese painted Christ in the context of the daily life of Venetians. Christ and his disciples are portrayed in their traditional clothes while the others are wearing the current Venetian fashion.

fig.1 X7483, Paolo Veronese (1528-1588), The Supper at Emmaus,
about 1555, Oil on canvas 290 × 488 cm, Musée du Louvre, Paris (146),
© RMN (Musée du Louvre)/Gérard Blot

One of the most highly regarded portraits by Veronese is La Bella Nani (around 1560-1565, fig. 2). The model is unknown, but from her clothes she appears to be a woman of the Venetian aristocracy, and the ring on her left hand suggests she is a bride. The woman wears a high-class blue dress with a pearl necklace, is adorned with rings and bracelets of rubies and sapphires, and has gold ornaments draped on her shoulders. Veronese has painted the jewelry in quick light strokes, and this free and bold portrayal reveals his genius.

The works of Veronese boast spectacular color. Critics of the 17th century described the painter’s lustrous palette as a mix of gold, the best quality pearls, rubies, and sapphire, along with the highest grade diamonds. The opulence and extravagance of Venice was portrayed most volubly in Veronese’s paintings of feasts such as The Feast in the House of Levi.

The Veronese exhibit runs through June 15.

The National Gallery, London

Trafalgar Square,
London WC2N 5DN
The United Kingdom
+44 (0)20 7747 2885
http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/

Opening times:

Daily 10am – 6pm,
Friday 10am – 9pm

Closed on:

1 January and 24 – 26 December

The Louvre Abu Dhabi and its exhilarant line-up

Model of the Louvre Abu Dhabi which is expected to open next year.

Many people have already heard about the opening of a museum with the Louvre name in the United Arab Emirates. The Louvre Abu Dhabi is scheduled to open in December 2015.

Bactrian princess Central Asia,
late third-early second millennium BCE

A preview of some of the most significant pieces of the new museum is currently on display at the Louvre in Paris in the show Birth of a Museum. The works are characterized by diversity and splendor. For example, a lovely small, calcite Princess statuette (around 1,000 BC Central Asia), a gold bracelet with exquisite lions incrusted at each end (around 700 BC), a marble Buddha head from India, an octagonal box inlaid with mother-of-pearl and tortoise shell (China, Tang dynasty); they are all treasures that take one’s breath away.

Japanese scrolls and Roman sculptures together contribute
to create a space of both serenity and motion

If we look to the paintings, the Western works alone comprise a wonderful collection that covers many eras and various subjects. It includes the founder of the Venetian painting Giovanni Bellini’s Madonna and Child, France’s Corot’s landscapes full of poetic sentiment, Manet’s the Bohemian, along with works by Picasso and Magritte as well as the mono-color painting of Yves Klein. The display also deserves attention. A Japanese scroll faces a statue emphasizing the shapely physical body, Indian, Turkish and Persian miniatures vie for beauty, while an art deco table is placed before a screen.

In December 2012, the Louvre opened a new wing in the former coalmining town of Lens in Northern France. Its main and very popular exhibit “Gallery of Time” allows visitors to view in one large space the history of several thousand years from the East and West, that include the Louvre’s pieces from the time of the birth of the written language to 19th century paintings and sculptures. In turn, the Louvre Abu Dhabi uses “universal” as its catch phrase and has collected works from around the world. The art was gathered under the auspices of the governmental organization Agence France Museums which is comprised of 12 national art museums and public establishments including the Louvre, the Center Pompidou, the Musée d’Orsay, the Orangerie, the Grand Palais and Versaille. France and the UAE agreed upon the Louvre Abu Dhabi project seven years ago, both banking their governments’ prestige on its success.

The two countries realize the weight of opening the Arab region’s first world-class museum under the Louvre name. (The name may be used for 30 years.) The works will be loaned from the collections of the above organizations and center around those being previewed in the Paris exhibit. If one considers the scale of the preview, we can certainly look forward with anticipation to the opening next year.

Birth of a Museum until July 28.

The Louvre

75001 Paris
France
Métro: Palais-Royal Musée du Louvre (lines 1 and 7)
http://www.louvre.fr/en

Opening times:

every day (except Tuesday) from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Night opening until 9:45 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays
Closed on Tuesdays, Jan 1, May 1, Dec 25

Nippon Television Network Corporation has worked with the Louvre on the maintenance and display of the Louvre’s three masterpieces, the Mona Lisa, the Venus de Milo and the Winged Victory, and periodically jointly hosts the Louvre exhibitions in Japan.

Rosso, Brancusi, Man Ray

Fig. 1_Constantin Brancusi, La Muse endormie,1910. Arthur Jerome
Eddy Memorial Collection.
The Art Institute of Chicago. © 2013 c/o Pictoright Amsterdam /
Medardo Rosso, Enfantmalade, © 1909. Private collection /
Man Ray, Noire et blanche, 1926. © Man Ray Trust /
ADAGP - PICTORIGHT / Telimage - 2013 / Design: Thonik

An exhibit of the works of three artists who paved the way for modern sculpture, Medardo Ross, Constantin Brancusi and Man Ray, is taking place at the Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen in Rotterdam, the Netherlands. The exhibit focuses on the viewpoints of the artists and their creative process with a display of 40 sculptures and more than 60 photographs taken by the artists themselves.


At the beginning of the 20th century, as photography became accessible to the general public, some artists began to take photographs to record their works. Rosso, Brancusi and Man Ray also partook in this trend, striving to impart with accuracy the goals of the creative processes of their sculpturing by changing the angle or background of their photos or reprocessing them. Rosso incorporated impressionist techniques into his sculptures, using the effect of light on his works while dramatically abbreviating form and capturing a momentary expression and its surrounding atmosphere. He shot his works, which have been likened to paintings, with a soft focus and blurred outlines, making the sculptures appear as if frolicking with light. Rosso went on to cut and paste these photos into collages and write into these with ink, sometimes conceptualizing his subsequent works from this process.

Fig. 2_Constantin Brancusi, Princesse X (Princess X),
© 1930, gelatin silver print, 29.7 x 23.7cm.
Collection Centre Pompidou, MNAM-CCI, Paris.
© 2013 c/o Pictoright Amsterdam.
Photo Bertrand Prévost.

Brancusi, who is regarded as the father of modern sculpture, depicted abstract renderings of people and animals as simple forms. He created a dark room in his studio with the help of Man Ray whose photographer friends taught Brancusi how to shoot. Brancusi was highly protective of how his sculptures appeared, and during his lifetime refused to allow any photos of his work other than his own to circulate. Many of the photos of his bronze pieces, polished to a gold color, reflect a strong light. Some portions reveal a white color from halation. By stressing the effect of light, the photograph expresses the power of the sculpture.

The third artist May Ray was a painter as well as a sculptor but also well known as a photographer. Working outside of conventional boundaries in his subject matter, he created new pieces with combinations of existing objects and people. He also created what are known as rayographs where images are created without the use of a camera by placing objects directly on printing paper and exposing them to light. Rayography creates an elusive world even though working with animate objects.

By observing the photographs taken by the three sculptors, one can view the sculptures through the eyes of the artists. In a multimedia section of the exhibit, visitors can experience the photography techniques employed by the artists as well as load their own photos on the museum’s website.

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen

Museumpark 18-20
3015 CX Rotterdam
the Netherlands
www.boijmans.nl/en

Opening times:

Tuesday to Sunday 11:00-17:00
Closed on Mondays, Jan 1, Apr 27, Dec 25