Sabine Haag (1) (1962–)

[Goldenes Zeitalter] is the exhibition catalogue from an exhibit I saw at the Alte Pinakothek in Munich over New Years 2011 consisting of Dutch group portraits from the 17th century, considered that country's "golden age" (hence the title). On tour while the museum was being renovated, the provide an interesting view into the social life of the new country, showing members of local militias, merchant guilds, and charitable boards, members of the new prosperous middle class who replaced of the old Spanish aristocracy when the Netherlands gained independence.

The art is quite lovely, and in real life the paintings are huge. I think the militia groups are my favorite, but also interesting is the inclusion of women in some of the other portraits, which shows that they were capable of achieving influence in their new Calvinist world.

The cover image is The Company of Captain Reynier Reael and Lieutenant Cornelis Blaeuw by Frans Hals and Pieter Codde, which in my edition is wrapped around on both front and back covers (the right image is my front cover).

The exhibition only toured Vienna and Munich, which means the cataloged was never produced in English, which is a shame, because some of the essays are very interesting and informative. But I'm sure these portraits are covered in other English works on golden age Dutch art.… (meer)

The catalogue more or less does what it says on the title. It offers a quick account of young Gustav Klimt's painting of the spandrels (Zwickel in German) in the main staircase of the new Kunsthistorisches Museum, a contract he fulfilled jointly with his younger brother Ernst and Franz Matsch. Each of the three young men was responsible for one side while the fourth side was completed jointly. I wish the exhibition and the catalogue had not focused almost exclusively on Gustav Klimt. It is a bit harsh to the true Gesamtkunstwerk, an attitude that is also revealed by the unfortunate choice of photographing the staircase with the scaffolding already in place. The modern scaffolding which allows the visitors a close look at Klimt's work truly ruins the otherwise glorious four page spread. The Gesamtkunstwerk was a virtual collaboration of Hans Makart's portraits of famous painters, the Hungarian Mihály Munkácsy's allegorical ceiling painting as well as the Klimt brothers' and Matsch's illustration of different eras in art history. Gustav Klimt painted the spandrels of Egyptian, Greek, Byzantine and early Italian renaissance art in what foreshadowed his later combination of female portraits encased in lavish decorative patterns.… (meer)

Vermeer's iconic The Art of Painting has, since its re-discovery in the mid-19th century, attracted the attention of the low and the mighty. Sold by Count Czernin for a sizable sum to Adolf Hitler, the painting passed through the US army inventory to its current resting place, the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna. The museum's changed, more commercially oriented charter led the quite venal former director of the museum to prostitute the painting in exhibitions around the world which required restorative work twice in less than a score of years.

This exhibition and the catalogue are the result of the painting's restoration, now under the guidance of a new, hopefully more diligent direction. I like the idea of devoting an exhibition to a single painting, of exploring its topic, its elements and its techniques in depth (although I am unlikely to understand the chemical processes at work and applied). I love the analysis and explanation of the painting's elements, especially the map in the background.

The catalogue is beautifully designed and illustrated with well-written articles (including English translations). The only aspect I didn't like are the rather weak modern "interventions" which turned out neither memorable nor fitting. Recommended.… (meer)