This fascinating news will interest members in Sydney, particularly those whose research interests include Shakespeare and Australian theatre:

Bell Shakespeare is taking up residence of a great pop-up space in The Rocks. Opening its doors today, Bell Shakespeare’s Closet, located at 123-125 George Street Sydney, has become home to the Company’s costume and development departments for seven weeks.

Drop in to see some of the costumes being made for Henry 4 and check out some of our more elaborate costumes and props used over our 23 year history.

The space will be open to the public from Wednesday to Saturday between 10am and 4pm.

Two exhibitions which may be of interest to members, the first is currently on in Melbourne, and the second is opening in Brisbane next year.

“The Four Horsemen: Apocalypse, Death and Disaster”
31 Aug 2012 – 28 Jan 2013 | National Gallery of Victoria (NGV)

Exhibition website

‘The Four Horsemen’ presents images of death and disaster in prints, illuminated manuscripts, illustrated books and paintings from the fifteenth to the early eighteenth centuries. This was a period of great turmoil in Europe, during which bitter religious conflict, war, famine and pestilence generated deep anxiety. Dramatic events and natural disasters were increasingly read as divine punishments or warnings that the Last Days were imminent.

This exhibition explores the ways in which artists gave expression to the beliefs and fears that plagued individuals and whole societies. The 120 works on display, including Albrecht Dürer’s extraordinary woodcuts illustrating the Apocalypse, prints by Hans Holbein, Jacques de Gheyn and Jacques Callot, illustrate witches, monsters, demons and the Devil. Death, personified as a skeleton, featured prominently in the visual culture of the period, and is represented in all guises – dancing, riding on horseback, and stalking unsuspecting men and women as they go about their daily lives.

The works in this exhibition are drawn from the Prints & Drawings collection of the NGV and include key loans from the State Library of Victoria and the Special Collections of the Baillieu Library, University of Melbourne.

“Quilts 1700-1945”
15 June – 22 September 2013 | Queensland Art Gallery (QAG)

Exhibition website 

In collaboration with London’s Victoria and Albert Museum (V&A), ‘Quilts 1700-1945’ explores more than 200 years of British patchwork and quilt-making. The exhibition resonates with historical and cultural references that challenge the assumption that stitching is simply ‘women’s work’ – every quilt has a hidden history: an unspoken story which is concealed within its layers.

Exclusive to Brisbane, this exhibition will comprise objects drawn from the extraordinary textile collection of the V&A, with additions from some of the UK’s finest regional museums and private collections. The exhibition also includes one of the world’s most important textiles, the Rajah Quilt 1841, from the National Gallery of Australia, sewn by convict women during transportation to Van Diemen’s Land.

Magnificent Manuscripts – Treasures of Book Illumination from 780 through 1180
Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, Munich
October 19, 2012 – January 13, 2013

Exhibition Website

With 72 extraordinary manuscripts from the collection of the Bavarian State Library, as well as three exceptional works from the Bamberg State Library, the Kunsthalle of the Hypo Cultural Foundation presents a wide overview of the earliest and most precious examples of German book illumination.These 75 magnificent volumes represent some of the greatest cultural and artistic achievements of the Carolingian, Ottonian and Romanesque eras. Within this library’s extensive collection, the Ottonian manuscripts in particular form a unique nucleus that is unsurpassed worldwide. Owing to their extraordinary fragility, these highly valuable works can hardly ever leave the library’s vault. This exhibition of original manuscripts therefore offers a unique opportunity to discover thousand-year-old testimonies to our cultural heritage. 

For more information about the exhibition: http://www.bsb-muenchen.de/Detailed-information.403+M5a20f3cfe33.0.html

For those unable to attend the exhibition, digital copies of all manuscripts on display at the exhibition can be accessed online here: http://pracht-auf-pergament.digitale-sammlungen.de

In 2013 The University of Western Australia will mark 100 years since the passing of the 1911 Act of Parliament that established the University.

Many events and activities will be held throughout the year, including an Alumni Weekend. One hundred treasures from around the University have also been chosen to celebrate the centenary. These treasures are showcased in an online exhibition on the UWA Centenary website: http://www.centenary.uwa.edu.au

The whole list of treasures is a fascinating selection of objects, both serious and the light-hearted, which tell the story of the University’s cutting-edge research, history of performing arts, magnificent art and cultural collections, iconic buildings, memories of student life, gardens, and secret treasures that rarely see the light of day.

The following are a few medieval and early modern related selections from the list: 

Formulary of English Chancery Writs, c.1350
Grant to the Abbey of La Sauve Majeure, Bordeaux, 1240
Jan Jansson, Polus Antarcticus, c.1650
Kirckman harpsichord, 1760
New Fortune Theatre
Bible in Latin, 1478

A commemorative book 100 Treasures From UWA is available for purchase from UWA Publishing: http://uwap.uwa.edu.au/books-and-authors/book/100-treasures-from-uwa

A free art exhibition currently running at the National Gallery of Australia in Canberra, which may interest members.

Divine worlds: Indian paintings

Divine worlds brings together masterpieces of Indian painting from the collection of the National Gallery of Australia. Dating from the 16th to the 20th century, the paintings range from exquisite intimate miniatures to vast hunting scenes, monumental pilgrimage maps and brilliantly coloured devotional shrine hangings. Celebrating the traditions of Hindu, Jain and Islamic India, the paintings are rich in legend, regal drama and romance. Divine worlds offers a magnificent opportunity to revel in rarely seen treasures from the national art collection.

Exhibition Website

Dates + times:
1 September – 11 November 2012
Open 10.00 am – 5.00 pm every day

Tickets:
FREE

A gallery of the works is available online for those who are unable to visit the exhibition.

Renaissance
National Gallery of Australia, Canberra
9 Dec 2011 – 9 April 2012

Exhibition Website

For the first time the National Gallery of Australia will give visitors the opportunity to experience Early and High Renaissance paintings by many of the greatest Italian artists. Raphael, Sandro Botticelli, Giovanni Bellini and Titian are some of the painters represented in our summer exhibition, which reveals an amazing gamut of talent and creative splendour. More than 70 works on canvas and wood panel will be on display only in Canberra.

These treasures are on loan from the Accademia Carrara in Bergamo, Italy. Borrowing from its marvellous collection is only possible because the Accademia is renovating its display spaces, and the museum is temporarily closed.

The exhibition is open until: 9 April 2012.