January 28, 2004
A Beautiful and Gracious Manner: The Art of Parmigianino
David Franklin, National Gallery of Canada, Ottawa
Although he lived only thirty-seven years, Parmigianino was one of the most prolific draftsmen of the sixteenth century, and his graphic output represents the range of Renaissance practice in all its forms and media. This lecture, presented by the curator of the currently featured exhibition, explored the artist's life and career.
February 18, 2004
What's Really Going on in Bellini's Saint Francis in the Desert?
Colin Eisler, Institute of Fine Arts, New York
Much disputed in meaning, the subject of this Venetian masterpiece was explored. A new interpretation was provided relating to fifteenth-century concern with Catholic doctrine and to the stimulus of Northern thought and art.
March 24, 2004
Roger Fry and the Reevaluation of Piero della Francesca
Caroline Elam, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Owing in large part to the advocacy of critics such as Roger Fry and Roberto Longhi, in the twentieth century Piero della Francesca became the most admired of all fifteenth-century Italian artists, regarded as the forerunner of Cézanne and Seurat. Drawing on unpublished material, the lecturer explored Fry's development of a new critical language to analyze Piero's art and his pioneering discussion of Piero's artistic evolution in terms of techniques and media.
This lecture was sponsored by the Council of The Frick Collection.
April 14, 2004
Parmigianino, Painter of Grace: Reflections on Artistic Process and Style
Mary Vaccaro, University of Texas at Arlington
Among the most influential of Italian Renaissance artists, Parmigianino was hailed by his contemporaries as "Raphael reborn." Although he made sketch-like paintings, his working method more typically involved the protracted revision of his ideas through preparatory drawings. This lecture considered the arduous means by which the artist arrived at pictures of seemingly effortless, and intensely poetic, grace.
May 19, 2004
Houdon and Freemasonry
Anne Poulet, The Frick Collection
In 1778 the French sculptor Jean-Antoine Houdon was invited to join a prestigious Masonic lodge in Paris, the Loge des Neuf Soeurs. Founded by Helvétius, the lodge sought to bring together outstanding writers, artists, philosophers, and historians of the period. Through Houdon's Masonic ties he came into contact with a number of great figures of his day, many of whom he portrayed, either at their request or through his own initiative. His Masonic sitters included Voltaire, Benjamin Franklin, John Paul Jones, Lafayette, and others. This talk explored the significance of Freemasonry in Houdon's career and in the world of pre-Revolutionary France.
June 9, 2004
Revisions and Resolutions in the History of Printmaking
Peter Parshall, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.
Although the interpretive problem posed by the incomplete work of art is familiar to art historians, it is a topic that has been very little treated in the history of prints. Yet, for reasons inherent in their making, prints have a particular and revealing place in this history. The curator of this summer's special exhibition examined the evolving phenomenon of the unfinished print and its general significance for the aesthetics of the medium.
September 29, 2004
Learning by Doing: Cataloging European Old Master Bronzes
in the Quentin Collection
Manfred Leithe-Jasper, Director Emeritus, Department of Sculpture and Decorative Arts, Kunsthistorisches Museum Vienna
The experiences gained from cataloging bronze statuettes often provide new insights into the works of even well-known sculptors such as Giambologna. In conjunction with the Frick's special fall exhibition, European Bronzes from the Quentin Collection, Dr. Leithe-Jasper discussed the process, progress, and surprises afforded by cataloging these sculptures, focusing on two of Giambologna's most famous compositions, the Striding Mars and Sleeping Nymph.
October 20, 2004
Joseph Duveen: Kingpin of Art
Meryle Secrest, biographer
Henry Clay Frick bought a number of works in his collection from Joseph Duveen, arguably the most important art dealer of the twentieth century. The lecturer, author of a biography of Lord Duveen based on material from the newly accessible Duveen Brothers archives, discussed his life, career, and relationship with Mr. Frick.
November 30, 2004
La Fornarina: Raphael's Last and Most Surprising Masterpiece
Dr. Maria Grazia Bernardini, Director, National Gallery of Art at the Palazzo Barberini, Rome
In conjunction with a special loan to The Frick Collection from the Palazzo Barberini in Rome, this lecture examined the legend surrounding Raphael's celebrated portrait and place it in an artistic and historical context.
December 1, 2004
Gauguin's Paradise Lost
George Shackelford, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
George Shackelford, co-curator of the recent international exhibition Gauguin Tahiti, discussed the artist's voyage to the South Seas and his creation of a dream vision of a new Paradise.
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