Illuminations : Italian Baroque masterworks in Canadian collections / edited by Benedict Leca ; essays by Devin Therien, C. D. Dickerson III, and Lloyd De Witt.
Catalogue to accompany the exhibition "Illuminations: Italian Baroque masterworks in Canadian collections" held at the Art Gallery of Hamilton from February 21 to May 31 2015. Includes bibliographical references and index.
Contents:
Director's foreword / Louise Dompierre -- Plates -- Introduction / Benedict Leca -- Light and shadow in Italian Baroque painting / Devin Therien -- Bernini, Canada, and light / C.D. Dickerson III -- From Italy to Holland : Caravaggio's darkness and light come north / Lloyd DeWitt -- Collecting Italian Baroque painting in Canada / Devin Therien -- Acknowledgements -- Selected bibliography -- Appendix -- Index.
Summary:
Italian Baroque painting is often discussed in terms of theatre and the creation of powerful visual spectacle through the dramatic use of light. Seventeenth-century painters pushed the limits of artistic expression to reshape the relationship between the illusionistic image and its audience with contrasting styles, new techniques, and by deploying extraordinary optical effects. Featuring some of Canada's foremost Baroque paintings, Illuminations examines how the functional and symbolic representation of light was the expression of a culture captivated by theatrical display. Set in the context of Italy's dynamic and international cultural capitals, Illuminations compares and contrasts religious, mythological and popular imagery. Through a detailed examination of works by Nicolas Poussin, Luca Giordano, Orazio Gentileschi and Guido Reni amongst others, the book explores how 17th-century audiences were confronted with pictures that frequently broke conventions by manipulating the sources and meaning of light, while depicting all types of subjects; painters were able to transform light, controlling its role as a signifier of demeanour, emotion or religious symbolism. The use of light coloured the historical legends and social mythologies of this extravagant world. Published in association with the Art Gallery of Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.