By Dean Gregory, to Museum Spotlight Europe (May 2021)
The esteemed Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg, Russia seeks to welcome visitors with an array of special exhibitions from Africa and ancient Egypt to the Middle Ages and Russia. Featuring porcelain sculpturalists and glassmakers of Murano and Surrealism, these exhibitions illuminate the breadth and prowess of human civilization and imagination.
The Hermitage: A Primer
The Hermitage Museum, formerly known as the State Hermitage Museum, houses approximately three million works of art from the Stone Age through contemporary times. European paintings, principally from the Renaissance and Baroque periods, serve as a hallmark of the institution, including Michelangelo’s Crouching Boy and Raphael’s Madonna Conestabile. Founded by Catherine the Great in 1764, the space operated initially as the Winter Palace and court museum in Tsarist Russia. In 1852, the museum opened to the general public. As Russia evolved into the Soviet Union in the early 20th century, the collection expanded with works of art requisitioned from private collections. Following World War II, the collection grew again with the acquisition of early 20th century European art.
Medieval and Proto-Renaissance Art from Italy
In a collaboration with the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria, the exhibition, Arts of the Middle Ages: Masterpieces from the Galleria Nazionale dell’Umbria showcases the splendor of medieval and Proto-Renaissance art from Italy, from the 13th to 15th centuries. Single-panel icons, processional crosses and polyptychs, among other works and items, make up the exhibition. Master Duccio di Buoninsegna’s icon depicts the Madonna and Child from the 14th century. Marble sculptures are displayed with key works from Arnolfo di Cambio. The influences on the artistic style, rooted in Byzantium, echo a cross-cultural influence found within Russian Orthodox icons; These influences also shaped the approaches of Cimabue, Giotto and Fra Angelico. The exhibition takes place until August 15, 2021.
Hans Op de Beeck in the Winter Palace Courtyard
In the Winter Palace Courtyard, the Hermitage showcases a sculpture by the Belgian Artist, Hans Op de Beeck, entitled The Horseman. This life-sized piece features a horseman with a pet monkey positioned above the owner’s head. In addition to sculpture, Op de Beeck utilizes a medley of techniques and media, including: watercolors, video art and 3-D installations. Based in Brussels, Belgium, the artist grapples with the human experience through a tragic-comic approach that seeks to inspire wonder, introspection and solace. The exhibition lasts until October 3, 2021.
Celebrating Nevsky
Back within the Hermitage, a collection of approximately 150 works from the 13th to 20th centuries are on display honoring Alexander Nevsky, formally known as Alexander Yaroslavich, Prince of Novgorod and Pskov. The exhibition, Alexander Nevsky, Prince and Saint: Imagery and Symbolism, highlights a wooden shrine of Nevsky’s relics, and a tomb created from the first silver discovered in Russia. The show celebrates the 800th anniversary of his birth. A potent military commander and diplomat, he was canonized as a saint by the Russian Orthodox Church in 1547. During the reign of Peter the Great, Nevsky was designated as the patron saint of St. Petersburg. The exhibition ends on September 5, 2021.
Surreal Books
An exploration of the books by Surrealist artists features dozens of objet d’art by 20th century masters, including Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, Man Ray, Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró, among others. The exhibition, Surrealism and the Book. From the Collection of Mark Bashmakov, juxtaposes the works of artists directly and indirectly involved with the movement to assess the influence of Surrealism beyond time and place. Philosophically, Surrealism emerged in Europe after World War I, stemming from the Dada movement. The literature and art of the movement sought to engender new ways of seeing and thinking by stimulating the unconscious mind through a process called automatism. The exhibition takes place from June 16 until October 3, 2021.
African Masks
Approximately 100 masks from Africa are on display, featuring a medley of styles and forms with various symbolic meanings and utilitarian purposes. The exhibition, Transfigurations. African masks of the XIX–XX centuries, reflects the depth and sophistication of African art as well as its influence on various Western painters, from Picasso and Matisse to Jean-Michel Basquiat and Cy Twombly. The exhibition is open from June 26 through December 12, 2021.
The Classicism of Bertel Thorvaldsen
Honoring the 250th birth anniversary of the Danish sculptor, Bertel Thorvaldsen, a Neoclassical master during the 19th century, the Hermitage Museum showcases Thorvaldsen’s artwork. In collaboration with the Thorvaldsens Museum in Copenhagen, Denmark, the Hermitage Museum presents the exhibition Classical Myth in the Art of Bertel Thorvaldsen: Drawings and Sculptures from the Collections of Thorvaldsens Museum, Copenhagen, and the Hermitage. Thorvaldsen created works of Napoleon, the Pope and figures from various European royal families. Born in the Danish capital, the artist established his career in Rome. Today, his works are found worldwide in museums such as the Le Louvre in Paris, the Victoria & Albert Museum in London as well as the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin. The exhibition opens on July 14, 2021 and closes on October 3, 2021.
In the next installment of our three-part series on the Hermitage Museum, Museum Spotlight Europe will take a look at special exhibitions dedicated to Egyptian mummies and Russian porcelain, with a special exhibit on Fyodor Nikolaevsky.
Cover image by Dennis Jarvis
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