COLLECTION OF PAINTINGS| COLLECTION OF PAINTINGS |
|
ACTIVITIES:
Head of the Collection: M.A. Vedrana Gjukic-Bender, Museum Consultant The collection comprises about 300 paintings by old masters from 15th to the second half of the 19th centuries of which more than a third are works of the highest artistic value and are classified as historical monument. Among these is a smaller group of paintings that were created in the workshops of renowned 15th and 16th century masters from Dubrovnik (Blaz Juraj Trogiranin, Mihajlo Hamzic, Lovro Dobricevic and their disciples). These workshops were run by native painters who were educated in Italy introducing a Renaissance spirit into native painting. They were thus able to create a distinct style in which new tendencies were merged with the principles of late Gothic painting. Other works are mostly by Italian authors. The collection came into being through donations and acquisitions and has been opened to the public since its relocation to the Rector's Palace in 1950. A considerable number of paintings originate from the holdings of the Dubrovnik Arts Gallery from whence they were moved in 1979. The permanent display from 1996 comprises around one hundred works that are exhibited in the halls of the Rector's Palace. These paintings are illustrative of the taste of a small-town community which was concerned with the preservation of its centuries-old tradition just as it paid special attention to the decoration of interior spaces. Among the exhibits is a great number of works by famous painters and members of renowned schools of painting. In addition to native Renaissance painters, to be seen are also works by several Italian and northern painters such as P. Bordone's Venus and Adonis, Vicenzo Catena's Girl and a Flute Player, and others. The collection also includes a number of works by mannerist painters (Tintoretto's Holy Family, Lelio Orsi de Novellara's Pieta, and the school and circle of the Bassano family...). However, the largest number of paintings are by baroque and classicist painters such as Carracci, Nuvoloni, Maratta, Codazzi, Liberi, Solimena, Zanchi, Katusic, Martini, as well as a host of anonymous and less well-known artists. For many centuries, Dubrovnik directly participated in European politics, and in its cultural habits and taste followed the developments in art of the neighbouring countries. Owing to its status of a free republic, Dubrovnik attracted a great number of various artists, including numerous painters who, thanks to the understanding and supportive municipal authorities, were able to create works of lasting value. A group of some 90 portraits of prominent citizens of Dubrovnik, mostly works by less well-known or anonymous painters, takes up a special place within the collection. Among portraits of famous public figures, scientists, writers, and politicians are also those of Gradic, Getaldic, Boskovic, Gundulic, Zuzoric, Bunic, Gucetic, Baseglia, and many others. The collection of paintings is complemented by a collection of more than 1,000 prints in various techniques comprising works from 16th to the 19th centuries. Some of the albums and prints contained in this collection were created in the printing workshops of Morgan, Volpata and Del Sarta, and there is also one by P.F. Martecchini entitled Galleria di Ragusi illustri containing lithographic prints of portraits of renowned men and women from Dubrovnik.
Copyright MDC
& Carnet
|
