Look
Last time I was in London for work, I took advantage of having some time off to play tourists for the day. After a great lunch at the Barbican Centre, utilising my members' discount (of which more in a future post) I had a trundle round on the buses to The National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, for the express purpose of seeing their Making Colour exhibition. This fabulous show is really a collaboration between the curators and their colleagues in the scientific unit at the gallery, as it explores the history of pigments used in painting, and their development to the present day, through carefully-selected paintings from the National Gallery's own holdings, loans from other institutions and private collections; and examples of raw materials from which pigments are derived, together with their artificially-created equivalents.
The exhibition is shown in the basement of the Sainsbury Wing, where the lighting can be carefully controlled, and with the exhibits shown, unusually, against black walls, the colours burst out at the viewer with astonishing vividity. For the less specialist visitor, there is a good introductory section, and then a room for each colour in the spectrum focusses attention on the range and glory of the pigments used to create them. Including the raw materials, and short videos on how some materials are converted to pigments and to paint, is highly instructive, and makes the viewer look at the finished work in a completely new way, appreciating the use of colour aside from the subjects. The Blue section shows the fascinating journey of lapis lazuli, which was used to create the eye-popping blues used in the Renaissance; the Red room has a lovely little display of the variety of natural substances used to create various shades and intensity of this colour, from slightly brownish reds from tree bark to more delicate, pinkish reds from insects such as the cochineal beetle.
The paintings used to illustrate the use of the various pigments are drawn from across the spectrum of periods, places and styles, and amply demonstrate their use of colour. The hot reds of a Degas study; vivid blues for Renaissance Madonnas; earthy green nineteenth-century landscapes; delicate dabs of pure colour across the spectrum creating a Pointillist masterpiece; all are excellent examples which relate perfectly to the raw materials on show. Attention is also given to fugitive pigments, which fade over time, leaving some elements of paintings looking very far from the way that their creators intended. The final rooms examine the use of silver and gold in paintings, drawing the perhaps surprising conclusion that these often appear more realistic in their painted approximation than when the metals are applied directly to the picture.
As a former art historian, I was already familiar with some of the history of pigments, but this was the first time I had seen an exhibition which explored the subject in such depth, and with so many very fine paintings to illustrate its theory, in addition to the fascinating science of colour; I learned a lot from this excellent show, not least why so many Italian Renaissance angels have faces which are an alarming shade of green! I'd thoroughly recommend this exhibition to anyone who enjoys art galleries, or has ever wondered how painters manage to make their work appear brighter than life. It's showing until 7 September - don't miss out. Sadly, there's no glossy catalogue for this exhibition, but the NG are selling their excellent little book on colour in the gift shop, together with some well-photographed postcards, which I had to bring home with me.
After my uplifting visit to the basement of the gallery, which was blissfully cool on what was a scorchingly hot day, I wandered out for a breath of fresh air. I knew I could only be in one place when I witnessed a bagpipe player in full kilt and regalia, blasting away, not giving us Flower of Scotland or The Skye Boat Song, but playing the theme from Star Wars at full volume across Trafalgar Square. I set off for the bus stop with a grin on my face and a light heart. London really is the best city in the world.
The exhibition is shown in the basement of the Sainsbury Wing, where the lighting can be carefully controlled, and with the exhibits shown, unusually, against black walls, the colours burst out at the viewer with astonishing vividity. For the less specialist visitor, there is a good introductory section, and then a room for each colour in the spectrum focusses attention on the range and glory of the pigments used to create them. Including the raw materials, and short videos on how some materials are converted to pigments and to paint, is highly instructive, and makes the viewer look at the finished work in a completely new way, appreciating the use of colour aside from the subjects. The Blue section shows the fascinating journey of lapis lazuli, which was used to create the eye-popping blues used in the Renaissance; the Red room has a lovely little display of the variety of natural substances used to create various shades and intensity of this colour, from slightly brownish reds from tree bark to more delicate, pinkish reds from insects such as the cochineal beetle.
The paintings used to illustrate the use of the various pigments are drawn from across the spectrum of periods, places and styles, and amply demonstrate their use of colour. The hot reds of a Degas study; vivid blues for Renaissance Madonnas; earthy green nineteenth-century landscapes; delicate dabs of pure colour across the spectrum creating a Pointillist masterpiece; all are excellent examples which relate perfectly to the raw materials on show. Attention is also given to fugitive pigments, which fade over time, leaving some elements of paintings looking very far from the way that their creators intended. The final rooms examine the use of silver and gold in paintings, drawing the perhaps surprising conclusion that these often appear more realistic in their painted approximation than when the metals are applied directly to the picture.
After my uplifting visit to the basement of the gallery, which was blissfully cool on what was a scorchingly hot day, I wandered out for a breath of fresh air. I knew I could only be in one place when I witnessed a bagpipe player in full kilt and regalia, blasting away, not giving us Flower of Scotland or The Skye Boat Song, but playing the theme from Star Wars at full volume across Trafalgar Square. I set off for the bus stop with a grin on my face and a light heart. London really is the best city in the world.
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