On Exhibition in NY: The Spanish Manner: Drawings from Ribera to Goya

Special Exhibition: "The Spanish Manner: Drawings from Ribera to Goya"
When: October 5, 2010, through January 9, 2011
Where: The Frick Collection. 1 East 70th Street NY, NY 10021 Phone: 212-288-0700
The Frick Collection in NY is featuring the first ever exhibition dedicated to Spanish drawings by famous Spanish artists. New York City is second only to Madrid in the quality and amount of its collections of Spanish drawings.

More than 50 of the best Spanish drawings from museums and private collections are on display. The collection is also a prelude to another important Spanish exhibition starting on October 26th called: "The King of War: The Portrait of Philip IV by Velázquez"

The collection is very unique because most Golden Age artists worked directly on canvas, leaving behind very few drawings and sketches. This collection is therefore a novelty of ancient art, very difficult to organize.

It is also the prelude to the exposure of another important piece of seventeenth-century Spanish painting, as from October 26 this institution in New York will present "The King of War: The Portrait of Philip IV by Velázquez."

Thecollection is mostly made up of drawings sketched with pencil, ink,charcoal, or chalk. The scenes are often inspired by the Bible or thelives of saints, but also show Counter-Reformation ideology - martyrdoms, torture, and scary creatures - All these topics define the "Spanish manner."

These beautiful drawings from the seventeeth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries show that Spanish artists were well versed in Italian traditions but had their own signature techniques, especially in regard to their treatment of the human figure.

The exhibition begins with sketches from important art centers in 17th century Spain: Seville, Madrid, and Spanish-dominated Naples with a series of rare drawings by the masters of the early 17th century, Francisco Pacheco (1564-1644) and Vicente Carducho (1576-1538),followed by several spectacular red chalk drawings by the painter José de Ribera (1591 - 1652).

There are also quick sketches of which some are the work of the Andalusian master Bartolomé EstebanMurillo (1617-1682) and others of Francisco de Herrera el Viejo(1590-1656), as well as his son, Francisco de Herrera el Mozo (1622-1685),or Juan Carreño de Miranda (1614-1685), court painter, friend andprotege of Diego de Velázquez (1599-1660).

The final section of the exhibition features 22 sheets by Francisco de Goya and Lucientes (1746-1828), whose drawingsare rarely presented in the context of his Spanish predecessors.Goya'sworks on display form part of the 8 cycles of drawings made between thelate 18th century and his death. Goya's work represents a culminationof a century with a distinct Spanish mode of draftsmanship.

Jonathan Brown, Institute of Fine Arts in New York, stated: "Goya is the culmination of drawing, the best artist of all time". He also noted that while other Spanish artists are often marginalized and forgotten, a Goya original sketch can easily sell for a million dollars.

The exhibition is organized by Jonathan Brown, Carrolland Milton Petrie Professor of Fine Arts, Institute of Fine Arts, NewYork University; Lisa A. Banner, independent scholar; and Susan Grace Galassi, Senior Curator at The Frick Collection.