Elliott in Gotham
elliottingotham
Miro or Caravaggio? Is it possible one of the world’s greatest collections of old master art – the Berlin Gemäldegalerie – could be put into storage?
[in part artlog, theguardian] Rarely does a massive donation of art cause discontent, but Ulla and Heiner Pietzsch’s contribution to Berlin’s museums has fueled public outcry by pitting the old against the new in a fight for museum space. Berlin has struggled of late for that precious commodity as renovations continue at Museum Island and … Continue reading
Is this the Mona Lisa’s skeleton? Discovery of bones in Florence convent believed to be those of silk merchant’s wife who inspired Da Vinci
[MailOnline] Archaeologists are convinced they’ve unearthed the secret behind the world’s most famous painting, the Mona Lisa. Buried beneath the floor of a convent in Florence, Italy they’ve found a skeleton they believe belonged to Lisa Gherardini, the model who posed for Leonardo’s da Vinci’s mysterious masterpiece. Lisa Gheradini, was the wife of a rich silk … Continue reading
Gold, Jasper and Carnelian: Johann Christian Neuber at the Saxon Court; The Frick Collection, New York City, through August 19, 2012
A Jeweler Picks Up Where Nature Left Off. Johann Christian Neuber’s Gold-and-Stone Snuff Boxes at the Frick [The New York Times, http://www.frick.org%5D Most intoxicating vices involve some kind of paraphernalia, designed for convenience, traveling light and, often, showing off. These run the gamut from engraved silver liquor flasks, Art Deco cigarette cases and Moroccan leather … Continue reading
UPDATE: Destruction of Timbuktu World Heritage Site by Islamist Extremists Continues Unabated
As we reported on June 29, Ansar Dine, the Islamist militant sect affiliated with Al-Qaeda, has declared war on Timbuktu’s ancient monuments, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, as being “idolatrous.” In spite of international outrage and threats of UN intervention, the militants last week destroyed yet more 700 year-old tombs containing the remains of Islamic … Continue reading
Jane Austen’s Ring Sells for Five Times Estimate in Sotheby’s English Literature Sale
[artdaily.org] LONDON.- Yesterday, July 10, 2012, in Sotheby’s English Literature, History, Children’s Books & Illustrations sale, a previously unknown gold and gem set ring belonging to the great English author Jane Austen, sold for £152,450 (US$ 236,770) – more than five times its pre-sale high estimate of £20,000-30,000. Eight bidders battled for the turquoise ring, … Continue reading
The New York Times Weighs in on the Purported Discovery of the Cache of Caravaggio Works, Presenting Decidedly Skeptical Views
In an article in today’s New York Times, entitled “Scholars Doubt ‘Rediscovered’ Caravaggio Drawings”, Elisabetta Povoledo writes from Rome as follows: As grand academic claims go, the researchers who say they have found dozens of drawings by the young Caravaggio chose a rather unorthodox way of making theirs. On Friday the researchers, Maurizio Bernardelli Curuz … Continue reading
Italian art historians ‘find 100 Caravaggio paintings’
The Telegraph today published two reports of the possible discovery of a cache of previously-unknown works by Michelangelo Merisi, better known as Caravaggio, in the Castello Sforzesco in Milan. The reports were picked up by, i.a., artnet.com, BBC News, and Bendor Grosvenor’s blog, Art History News. Here are the reports. I. By Nick Squires, Rome 8:30PM BST 05 … Continue reading
Bonhams smashes world record prices for Bentley and Rolls Royce in £22 million Goodwood Festival sale
In a bit of a variance from our main theme of old master art, I thought I would highlight another of my passions, vintage automobiles. This sale of just a few days ago at Bonhams featured some automobiles that are of such beauty, I feel they qualify as art objects. WEST SUSSEX.- The eyes of … Continue reading
Becoming Van Gogh: Denver Art Museum, October 21, 2012 – January 20, 2013
(Denver, Colo.) – Becoming Van Gogh, an in-depth exploration of Vincent van Gogh’s unconventional path to becoming one of the world’s most recognizable artists, will be on view at the Denver Art Museum (DAM) from October 21, 2012, through January 20, 2013. The exhibition examines critical steps in the largely self-taught artist’s evolution through more than … Continue reading
Elegance and Refinement: The Still-Life Paintings of Willem van Aelst, The National Gallery, Washington, D.C., June 24 – October 14, 2012
[Source: Philip Kennicott, The Washington Post] As far as we know, Willem van Aelst never painted a landscape, portrait or history scene. He focused on still life, meticulous pictures of flowers, fish, armor and dead game, often arrayed on a table or marble slab, with drapery or cloth slightly pulled or rumpled in such a … Continue reading
Is the Palace of Versailles the Right Venue for Exhibiting Monumental Contemporary Sculpture? Well Once Again it is Being Used as Such, and This Time it’s Portuguese Sculptor, Joana Vasconcelos.
At the age of 41, Joana Vasconcelos has became the youngest contemporary artist and the first woman to have her work on display at Versailles, following in the footsteps of Jeff Koons, Takashi Murakami, Xavier Veilhan and Bernar Venet. The use of the former home of the kings and queens of France as a venue … Continue reading
A Priceless Heritage At Risk from Mali Islamic Extremists!
As Emily Sharpe has reported in The Art Newspaper, concern for the cultural heritage of Mali is growing after militant Islamic fundamentalists desecrated a 15th-century tomb of a Muslim saint in Timbuktu in May, and threatened to destroy other tombs as well as anything else they perceive as being idolatrous or contrary to their version … Continue reading
UPDATE: Masterpiece by Girolamo Romanino achieves $4,562,500 at Christie’s. [Earlier entry: Looted 16th-Century Masterpiece to go to Auction: Girolamo Romanino’s “Christ Carrying the Cross”]
In an update to our earlier post concerning the looting and restitution of Romanino’s masterpiece “Christ Carrying the Cross Dragged by a Rogue”, the work sold at Christie’s on June 6, as announced in artdaily.org and elsewhere. NEW YORK, NY.- Christie’s Old Master Paintings sale on June 6 in New York was led by the … Continue reading
Edward Hopper at the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Madrid, June 6-September 18, 2012
[Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza] The American painter Edward Hopper (Nyack, 1882 – New York, 1967) was one of the foremost exponents of twentieth-century Realism. Although he did not attract the attention of critics or the public for much of his life and was forced to work as an illustrator to earn a living, his works are now icons of … Continue reading
Joan Miró: “The Ladder of Escape,” The National Gallery of Art, May 6 – August 12, 2012
[examiner.com] Joan Miró (1893-1983), one of the world’s greatest and most influential 20th century artists, who used his “free and violent” works to protest fascism in his beloved Spain, is celebrated in an exhibit that opened May 6 at DC’s National Gallery, the only US venue. . . “Joan Miró: The Ladder of Escape“, with some … Continue reading
Elliott in Gotham 