left to right: Arms and Armor Galleries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1921; Armor from the Metropolitan Museum’s encyclopedic collection.
Bashford Dean and the Creation of the Arms and Armor Department
The knight in shining armor of the Metropolitan Museum would have to be Bashford Dean, the amazingly accomplished “Renaissance man” who created the museum’s distinguished collection of arms and armor.
To mark the collection’s centennial, the museum has mounted an exhibit surveying Dean’s multifaceted career—snapshots, notebooks and a rare example of late Gothic German armor which was completed and restored under his supervision.
To further mark the anniversary, metal clad soldier and horse figures in the galleries have been installed in new cases, lighting has been improved and new explanatory labels and signage all enhance what is possibly the second most comprehensive collection in the world. Through September 29, 2013. www.metmuseum.org
left to right: Studies for Bernini’s “Daniel in the Lions Den; Bernini’s “Daniel in the Lions Den”
Bernini: Sculpting in Clay
Wondrous revelations of the creative process behind some of Rome’s most magnificent monuments are showcased in “Bernini: Sculpting in Clay.” Red chalk sketches and drawings led to clay and wood models which would be presented to patrons and popes for approval to be elaborated into monumental sculptures and fountains.
The exhibit encompasses a remarkable collection of the various facets of works in progress, all displayed with maps and projections illustrating how Bernini’s works transformed the city. It’s a fascinating opportunity to witness the progress and impact of the creative act. Through January 6, 2012. www.metmuseum.org
Ingres “Study for La Grande Odalisque” from the Courtauld Gallery collection
Master Drawings from Mantegna to Matisse, The Courtauld Gallery
Inspired by the drawings in Harvard’s Fogg Museum, three patrons assembled their own collection of masterworks spanning the centuries. Now 58 drawings from London’s Courtauld Gallery are on display in New York City. A tender bedroom sketch of Rembrandt’s wife and child, Honore Daumier’s comic watercolor of “Le Malade imaginaire,” Leonardo da Vinci’s pen and ink “Studies for Saint Mary Magdalene” lifting the lid of a jar of oil, and Michelangelo’s masterpiece chalk portrait of an idealized youth surrounded by worldly vices “The Dream”/”Il Sogno” will be showcased at the Frick through January 27, 2013. www.frick.org
