For the first time, the British Museum’s collection has come to Macau. Italian Renaissance Drawings from the British Museum is now on in the Macao Museum of Art, until June 30. Featuring original drawings of 42 Renaissance artists, it beautifully demonstrates Italian artistic achievement during this period.
“We wanted to bring some of the highlights of West European art, so we decided to focus on the Italian Renaissance, which is a key moment in Western art history,” says the British Museum exhibition curator Sarah Vowles, speaking to CLOSER before the unveiling of the exhibition.
“Also, the British Museum has one of the greatest collections of Italian Renaissance drawings in the world, so we chose works from the collection which included drawings by ‘The Big Three’ – Leonardo, Raphael, Michelangelo, but also by lesser-known artists who have produced interesting or challenging drawings which fit into the successions that we have in the show.”
Divided into six sections: the Human Figure, Movement, Light, Costume and Drapery, the Natural World and Storytelling, the exhibition explores some of the themes that characterise Renaissance art. Starting from the study of the human form, it explores how artists brought life and dynamism to their compositions through the study of movement, light and shade, and costumes.
“The exhibition has come together really well,” comments Vowles. “The choice of colours is very vibrant and vivid, and it makes the drawings look great. The sections are divided in an easy-to-follow way, and there is also a video about techniques. I think it’s really going to help people to engage with the works.”
In addition to the drawings, the exhibition also attempts to create a more inclusive experience, made possible by a partnership with the Department of Creative Industries at the University of Saint Joseph.
“We have worked with both professors and students there to develop 3D printings of some of the drawings, and also some other techniques, for people to touch and enjoy in a different way, as our aim is to develop experiences within the museum that go beyond vision,” says Margarida Saraiva, Curator at the MAM.
According to Vowles, drawings have a special appeal and are no less impressive than paintings.
“I hope that the visitors will be inspired to appreciate Renaissance art, perhaps in a new way – not just by thinking about the famous paintings, but also by understanding what goes into creating those,” she notes.
“Drawings are an amazingly intimate way of encountering an artist. We’re seeing almost through their eyes as they are developing their ideas. We hope that it’s something that people will find very accessible, because Chinese painting is very much about works on paper, so we feel that there is an affinity in some ways between the two artistic traditions.”
This exhibition is one of the events leading up to this year’s Art Macao, and part of a series of activities to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Macao Museum of Art. As 2019 also marks the 500th anniversary of the passing of the great Renaissance master Leonardo da Vinci, the exhibition was especially scheduled to be open in April to coincide with the artist’s date of birth in April 1452.
