2011 sees the Fitzwilliam museum bringing us a stunning selection of prints and drawings, from the contemporary works of today's renowned printmakers to Italian Rennaisance masterworks.
Afterlife: Recent prints by Jake & Dinos Chapman, Paul Coldwell, Mat Collishaw, Jane Dixon, Paul Morrison, Hughie O’Donoghue and Marc Quinn 14 December 2010 - 8 May 2011
This selection brings together recent work by some of the most renowned artists working in the print medium today. The title of this exhibition refers not only to the content of the images – touching on themes of mortality, preservation and regeneration – but to the way the print process has been used to transfigure and recycle elements of nature and art. The featured artists have all created some of their best work in print, with imaginative use of a range of traditional and digital processes, stimulated by collaboration with British printers and publishers.
All the exhibits have been acquired for the Fitzwilliam’s collection through a variety of sources, including The Art Fund, the Friends of the Fitzwilliam Museum and the Chadwyck-Healey Charitable Trust.
Italian Drawings: Highlights from the Collection 8 March – 12 June 2011
The third in the Fitzwilliam’s Hidden Depths series exploring aspects of the permanent collection, this exhibition celebrates the highlights of the Museum’s Italian Drawings collection.
See works by some of the greatest Italian masters: Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael, the Carracci, Guercino, Titian, Tintoretto and Veronese, Correggio and Parmigianino, Maratti, Passeri and the Zuccari, Barocci, Vasari, Polidoro da Caravaggio, Perino del Vaga, Salvator Rosa, Giambattista Tiepolo, Giandomenico Tiepolo, Francesco Guardi, Ribera, Sabatelli and Modigliani. Also included are sketch-books by Stefano della Bella, Agnese and Carlo Dolci.
Mounted to mark the publication of the new catalogue of the collections of Italian and Spanish Drawings, these displays offer a fascinating insight into the extraordinary quality of the Museum’s old master works on paper.
Italian Etchings: The Draughtsman’s Print 22 February – 29 August 2011
This display, mounted to complement the exhibition, Italian Drawings: Highlights from the Collection brings together a selection of fine prints from the Museum’s collection. Works on display are by artists from the 16th to the 18th centuries, including Parmigianino, Guido Reni, Castiglione, Salvator Rosa, Giambattista Tiepolo and Canaletto.
The print technique of etching was developed in the sixteenth century, and gave artists the facility to make printing plates without years of specialist training or collaboration with a professional engraver. The artist could draw directly onto the plate as easily and effectively as drawing on paper.
Image Credits: Mat Collishaw, Insecticide, 2010 © Mat Collishaw Correggio (Antonio Allegri), The Nativity with the arrival of the shepherds © The Fitzwilliam Museum www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk
