Inspiration by Design: Word and Image from the Victoria and Albert Museum
20 March 2015–14 June 2015
Keith Murdoch Gallery, State Library of Victoria

Premiering at State Library Victoria, this free exhibition showcases some of the world’s finest book art, graphics, photography and illustration.

From London’s acclaimed Victoria and Albert Museum, Inspiration by Design celebrates 150 years of collecting by the National Art Library. Immerse yourself in the book beautiful, from historic illustrated manuscripts and rare artists’ books to modern graphic design and fashion photography.

See over 100 treasures including original hand-drawn illustrations from Beatrix Potter, a Pablo Picasso artist book, fashion sketches from Dior and Comme des Garçons, rare medieval manuscripts and much more.

This exciting international exhibition is accompanied by a host of free public programming, including exhibition tours, film screenings, creative workshops and illuminating discussions.

For full information, please visit: http://www.slv.vic.gov.au/inspiration-by-design

Aliens, Androids & Unicorns
The Hal Salive Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection

Special Collections, De Beer Gallery
1st Floor, Central Library, University of Otago

12 March to 29 May 2015
Hours: 8.30am to 5.00pm | Monday to Friday

More info: http://www.otago.ac.nz/library/news/otago087593.html

The Salive Collection consists of both Science Fiction and Fantasy and complements the Fastier hard-science collection of Sci-Fi. Van Vogt was a Salive favourite, as was Samuel Delany.

Salive was also relentless in collecting pre-1949 issues of Astounding Stories, and continued collecting the series, which turned into Analog Science Fiction and Fact.

Fantasy authors who feature predominantly include C.J Cherryh, Jack L. Chalker, Poul Anderson, and Piers Anthony.

In March 2013 Rachel Salive donated the Hal Salive Science Fiction and Fantasy Collection to Special Collections, University of Otago.

It forms an excellent resource for students and scholars in the field of science fiction and fantasy (in all its formats) and remains a lasting legacy to a fine collector.

On Now

From the sacred to the profane: The challenges and possibilities of Renaissance art
A National Gallery of Victoria Touring Exhibition

Venue: Warrnambool Art Gallery
Date: 7 Dec 14—15 Mar 15
Cost: Free
More info: http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/exhibition/from-the-sacred-to-the-profane

Coming Soon

Exquisite Threads: English Embroidery 1600s–1900s: From the NGV Collection

Venue: NGV International
Date: 2 Apr 15—12 Jul 15
Cost: Free
More Info: http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/exhibition/exquisite-threads-english-embroidery-1600s-1900s

The Golden Age of China
Qianlong Emperor (1736–1795)

Venue: NGV International
Date: 27 Mar 15—21 Jun 15
Cost: TBA
More Info: http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/exhibition/the-golden-age-of-china

Treasures of the Jewish Ghetto of Venice Exhibition: Restored by Venetian Heritage
8 December 2014 – 16 March 2015
The Art Gallery of Western Australia

In 1943 a number of precious silver and bronze objects dating from the 1700s to early 1900s were hidden from the approaching Nazi armies by two Venetian Jewish religious leaders who never returned from the concentration camps. These valuables, which represent traditional Venetian Jewish silversmithing and bronze-casting methods, were forgotten until they were unearthed during the restoration of the Scuola Spagnola (or Ponentina) in the Venetian ghetto a few years ago, and a selection from this collection are on display at AGWA.

Over the centuries, Venice was considered a hub of Jewish culture, with its residents playing a valuable role in the city’s economy from the time of the Renaissance. In 1516, the Venetian Senate segregated Jews in a six-acre area that housed several thousand people and five synagogues, at the site of a former foundry (geto). To mark the 500th anniversary of the Jewish Ghetto of Venice the international organisation Venetian Heritage, in cooperation with Maison Vhernier, has organised for these objects to be restored and displayed in an exhibition titled Treasures of the Jewish Ghetto of Venice. Recently presented at the Winter Palace in Vienna, the exhibition has also been seen in New York, Houston and Venice.

For more info. please visit: http://www.artgallery.wa.gov.au/exhibitions/treasures-jewish-ghetto-venice.asp

Five Centuries of Melancholia
30 August-30 November 2014
The University of Queensland Art Museum

The year 2014 marks the 500th anniversary of Albrecht Dürer’s engraving Melencolia I 1514. Taking its cue from the engraving, the exhibition explores five centuries of melancholy in art. From the Renaissance onward, melancholy has been invoked as a condition, perspective, and/or mood; melancholy has inhabited figures, objects and landscapes. In addition to Dürer, the international artists include Francisco Goya, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, Jusepe Ribera and Odilon Redon, along with contemporary Australian artists such as Rick Amor, Destiny Deacon, Tracey Moffatt and Imants Tillers. Artworks are drawn from national and state institutions, and regional, university and private collections.

Curator: Dr Andrea Bubenik

Presented in partnership with the UQ Node, ARC Centre of Excellence for the History of Emotions (Europe 1100 – 1800).

The new exhibition on Pre-Internet ‘Social Media’ opening at the Rosenbach Museum and Library may interest members who will be visiting the US soon. Thanks to Anne Scott for forwarding me this information.

The Rosenbach is pleased to announce the upcoming opening of our newest exhibition—Networking Before the Net: Sharing Information in the Pre-Digital Age. Opening January 29, this exhibition explores the fascinating question of whether the internet has truly changed our social interaction with one another, through comparisons of current digital social media platforms to their analog precursors.

Displayed in two galleries in the Rosenbach brothers’ historic 1865 townhouse, Networking Before the Net offers a provocative opportunity to explore the convergence of the past and present through traditional exhibition and digital content sharing. The exhibition examines social media tenets such as image sharing, public commenting and messaging, and the role of the social network in our everyday lives. It explores the similarities between printed pamphlets and blogs, telegrams and text messages, and even shows visitors the 19th century’s version of Instagram.

Highlights include:

• A 1780 broadside written by Benedict Arnold encouraging soldiers to abandon the Continental Army
• An handwritten letter from Greta Garbo to Mercedes de Acosta
• Political pamphlets written by Daniel Defoe, author of Robinson Crusoe
• An original 1776 Philadelphia printing of Thomas Paine’s Common Sense from the Free Library of Philadelphia collection

The exhibition will be on display until June 16.

A couple of exhibitions on show in 2014 at the National Gallery of Victoria which may interest members:

Italian Masterpieces From Spain’s Royal Court
16 May 2014 – 31 Aug 2014

The holdings of Italian art in the Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid are unique and unrivalled in museums outside Italy.  Drawn from its magnificent collection, this exhibition of over 70 paintings and 30 drawings presents a rich selection of works spanning 300 years of Italian art, from the early sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries.

More than 70 artists are represented including Raphael, Correggio, Titian, Tintoretto, the Carracci, Poussin and Tiepolo.  The exhibition reflects the taste of the Spanish Royal Court whose Kings and Courtiers avidly collected Italian art.  Successive rulers also commissioned works directly from the artists in Italy or enticed them to Spain to work in the Royal Household.  Many of these works are at the heart of the Prado’s collection and have never before left Spain.

The exhibition is organised by Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid in association with the National Gallery of Victoria and Art Exhibitions Australia.

For full details please visit: http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/exhibitions/italian-masterpieces-from-spains-royal-court-museo-del-prado-madrid

Bushido: Way of the Samurai
4 Jul 2014 – 30 Nov 2014

Bushido explores the fascinating world of the samurai who were the warriors, rulers and aristocratic elite of Japanese society for more than 800 years.

From the 12th century through to the end of the Edo period in 1868 the Shogun, regional lords and their warrior retainers (all samurai in their own right) ruled the country and lived to a strict code of ethics. This military aristocracy aspired to a life of spiritual harmony that not only perfected the art of war but also embodied an appreciation of the fine arts that established their life as an art form itself. Throughout these tumultuous times of war and peace samurai virtues of honesty, courage, benevolence, respect, self-sacrifice, self-control, duty, and loyalty combined with their passion for a cultural lifestyle not only established social stability, but also cultivated a legacy of art and culture in Japanese society that continues to this day.

Bushido: Way of the Samurai will focus on samurai as both warriors and men of refined culture. It will showcase the attire of the samurai in the form of armour, helmets, swords and equestrian equipment. It will display the cultural pursuits of samurai in the form of Noh costumes, calligraphic scrolls, lacquer objects and tea utensils and re-live the legacy of bushido through representations of samurai in large screen paintings, dramatic woodblock prints and noble studio photographs.

For full details please visit: http://www.ngv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/exhibitions/exhibitions/bushido-way-of-the-samurai

A couple of exhibitions on show in 2014 at the Art Gallery of NSW may interest members:

The Lost Prince and the Winter Queen
Royal Portraits from the National Portrait Gallery, London
3 Jul – 28 Sep 2014

In association with the Australia’s most prestigious portrait prize – the Archibald Prize – the Gallery has partnered with the National Portrait Gallery, London to bring to Australia two exceptional 17th-century portraits of royals Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales and Elizabeth of Bohemia, children of James I.

Full details: http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/lost-prince-winter-queen

European Prints and Drawings 1500-1900
28 Aug – 2 Nov 2014

This selection of some 150 works on paper from the Gallery’s fine collection of European prints and drawings reveals the story of the graphic arts in Europe from the late 15th century to the dawn of the 20th century.

Full details: http://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/exhibitions/european-prints-and-drawings-1500-1900

For those members in Perth, or who may be coming to Perth for the PMRG/CMEMS conference in November this exhibition may be of interest.

Celebrating Word and Image 1250–1600
Illuminated Manuscripts from the Kerry Stokes Collection New Norcia Museum and Art Gallery
4 October 2013 to 17 March 2014

Rare medieval manuscripts from the Kerry Stokes Collection will be exhibited for the first time at the New Norcia Museum and Art Gallery from October 2013 to March 2014.

The Kerry Stokes Collection is one of the most extensive and significant private collections of art and historical material in Australia. Celebrating Word and Image 1250–1600 will give Western Australians unprecedented access to these unique manuscripts.

For full details, please see the media release: http://www.newnorcia.wa.edu.au/cms/resources/MediaReleaseV2.pdf

A free exhibition is opening soon at the National Library of Australia in Canberra, which may interest members.

Mapping Our World: Terra Incognita to Australia

Exhibition Website

Date: 7 November 2013 to 10 March 2014
Opening hours: Open from 10.00am daily with last entry at 5.00pm (closed Christmas Day)

Treasured items from some of the world’s greatest map collections will tell the remarkable story of how Australia came to be on the map, and will reveal the history and struggle to imagine and document the world; from the earliest imaginings of the earth and the night sky through to Matthew Flinders’ landmark General Chart of Terra Australis or Australia in 1814.

The exhibition will take you on a spiritual, artistic and scientific journey, showing how European explorers gradually unravelled the secrets of the south land. Highlights of the exhibition include the magnificent Fra Mauro, Map of the world; the remarkable Boke of Idrography presented to Henry VIII; an intricate world map by the Benedictine monk Andreas Walsperger (1448); a fifteenth-century Ptolemy manuscript; magnificent and controversial ‘Dieppe’ charts; one of only four surviving copies of Mercator’s groundbreaking 1569 projection and original manuscript charts by Pacific navigators including Louis de Freycinet, James Cook and Matthew Flinders.

Mapping our World is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see rare and unique cartographic treasures from around the world.

Actor Russell Crowe, who has an interest in maps, will open the exhibition on November 7. Entry is free however bookings are required.