The Museum of Art Pudong in Shanghai unveiled an extraordinary new exhibition on Thursday, titled “The Greats of Six Centuries,” featuring a comprehensive collection of 70 paintings borrowed from the renowned Spanish art museum, Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza. Encompassing a wide array of genres, including portrait, landscape, and still life, this exhibition is being hailed by art experts and museum insiders as a significant cultural event that will foster and amplify China-Europe cultural dialogues.
Artistic director of the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Guillermo Solana, offered insights into the collection’s masterpieces, which include Vincent van Gogh’s “The Stevedores in Arles,” Edouard Manet’s “Horsewoman, Full-Face,” and Peter Paul Rubens’ “Venus and Cupid,” among many others, during a guided tour for media and visitors.
Solana highlighted the pivotal role the Spanish Embassy in China played in facilitating this landmark exhibition, a remarkable event coinciding with the 50th anniversary of Spain-China establishing diplomatic ties. The embassy had been nurturing plans for more bilateral cultural exchanges years in advance to strengthen the cultural ties between Spanish and Chinese people. This exhibition marks the first time that paintings from the Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza have been showcased outside Spain, a milestone in itself.
Selecting the 70 most emblematic pieces from a collection of 785 paintings for the Chinese audience was no easy task, Solana revealed. The chosen artworks will return to Spain when the exhibition concludes in Shanghai on November 12, 2023, since these are exhibited items, not stored ones, and the management hopes to limit their absence from the home museum.
The exhibition is thoughtfully organized across eight rooms in the Museum of Art Pudong, each highlighting a different theme. The “Faces of the Renaissance” section showcases 15th and 16th-century portraits from Flemish, German, and Italian schools. One standout piece is “Portrait of a Young Man” by Raphael and his close collaborators, which captivatingly depicts an adolescent boy in muted colors and delicate light effects.
Peter Paul Rubens’ “Venus and Cupid” is featured in the “Baroque Painting: Realism and Emotion” section, representing the vitality and voluptuousness characteristic of Rubens’ Baroque ideals. Canaletto’s “The Grand Canal from San Vio, Venice” is part of “The 18th Century in Europe: Views, Landscapes, Portraits and Other Themes” section, beautifully capturing the city’s primary artery.
In the “19th Century in Europe: French Realism and Impressionism” section, masterpieces by Vincent van Gogh and Edouard Manet depict everyday experiences through expressive and agitated brushstrokes and color contrast. Other sections spotlight American 19th Century Painting, 20th Century European Expressionism, and Postwar European and American Art.
The exhibition has already made a profound impression on visitors. Fanny Fu, a Chinese university student who spent a semester in Paris, expressed amazement and delight at the opportunity to appreciate these masterpieces in Shanghai.
The director of the Museum of Art Pudong, Li Minkun, reiterated their commitment to bringing prestigious global art pieces to Chinese audiences and fostering cultural exchanges. This collection, representing diverse styles and movements in European and North American art history, is an exceptional opportunity for Chinese art enthusiasts.
Both Solana and Li confirmed ongoing discussions about future collaborations to strengthen China-Europe cultural exchanges.
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