Contents
Page 3__________About The National Gallery of Swindon Page 4_____________Exhibition Map Page 5___________________Room 1 Page 6___________________Room 2 Page 7___________________Room 3 Page 8___________________Room 3 Page 9___________More Information
The National Gallery of Swindon
Welcome to The National Gallery of Swindon, Wiltshire's biggest and most astonishing visual art exhibition. This exhibition explores the main theme of Tonal throughout each individual artwork. From genres including the Renaissance and the Enlightenment, into more modern styles such as Cubism.
Featuring the work of nine popular artists, from across the world, this exhibition is excited to offer a range of must-see artworks at this unique, international scene.
Exhibition Map
Ground Floor
First Floor Information Desk/Audio Toilets
Gift Shop Stairs
Room 1
Ma Jolie Picasso demonstrates use of a very similar colour palette to many of his other paintings of the same period. This is both a stylistic characteristic of the Cubist movement and Picasso's works because in the Analytical phase of Cubism all paintings used subdued colours and the specific shades used in this painting are close to the shades of other Picasso paintings of the time. Along with this, Ma Jolie demonstrates the use of geometrical forms in Analytical Cubism.
Nude Descending a Staircase, No.2 This work, by Duchamp, depicts a figure demonstrating an abstract movement in its ochres and browns. The noticeable "body parts" of the figure are composed of nested, conical and cylindrical abstract elements, assembled together in such a way as to suggest rhythm and convey the movement of the figure merging into itself. The woman of the painting is constructed deliberately without definite form.
The Madonna of Chancellor Rolin The Madonna of Chancellor Rolin is an oil painting by the Early Netherlandish master Jan Van Eyck, painted around 1435. It is kept in the MusĂŠe du Louvre, Paris, and was commissioned by Nicolas Rolin, chancellor of the Duchy of Burgundy, whose votive portrait takes up the left side of the picture, for his parish church, Notre-Dame-du-Chastel in Autun, where it remained until the church burnt down in 1793, then in 1805 it was moved to The Louvre where it remains now.
Room 2
The Birth of Venus Botticelli's Birth of Venus is one of the most treasured artworks of the Renaissance. In it the goddess Venus (known as Aphrodite in Greek mythology) emerges from the sea upon a shell aligned with the myth that explains her birth. Venus is illustrated as a beautiful and chaste goddess and symbol of the coming spring
Judith Beheading Holofernes The Italian early Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi shows the scene of Judith beheading Holofernes, common in art since the early Renaissance, as part of the group of subjects called the Power of women, which show women triumphing over powerful men. The subject takes an episode from the apocryphal Book of Judith in the Old Testament, which recounts the assassination of the Assyrian general Holofernes by the Israelite heroine Judith. The painting depicts the moment when Judith, helped by her maidservant, beheads the general after he has fallen asleep drunk.
Doctor Nicolaes Tulp's Demonstration of the Anatomy of the Arm The focal point of this painting is Dr. Tulp, the doctor who is shown displaying the flexors of the cadaver’s left arm. Rembrandt notes the doctor’s significance by showing him as the only person who wears a hat. Seven colleagues surround Dr. Tulp, and they look in a variety of directions—some gaze at the cadaver, some stare at the lecturer, and some peek directly at the viewer.
Room 3
An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump Joseph Wright of Derby has created a new invention - part genre, part portrait, part history painting. It remains unique and has no real imitators, yet it bears the stamp of genius. On a moonlit night in a darkened room, a company of amateurs and friends gather to witness a demonstration of a new device, an air pump, whose functionality can be demonstrated through its effects on a bird.
Oath of The Horatii The story of Oath of the Horatii came from a Roman legend first recounted by the Roman historian Livy involving a conflict between the Romans and a rival group from nearby Alba. Rather than to continue a full-scale war, they elect representative combatants to settle their dispute. The Romans selected the Horatii and the Albans choose another trio of brothers, the Curatii. In the painting we witness the Horatii taking an oath to defend Rome.
Room 3
Supper at Emmaus Caravaggio’s Supper at Emmaus shows a scene from the gospel of Luke 24 where the Resurrected Christ appears to two disciples. He first appears as a traveling man on a journey to the town of Emmaus, not recognized as Christ. It is only at dinner when he breaks bread that the disciples recognize him as Christ. It is not, however, from his appearance that the disciples recognize him. Christ has no beard, and his flowing robes cover any indications of the wounds he suffered during the crucifixion. Instead, he is recognized from a gesture – his raised arm blessing the bread. Judith Beheading Holofernes tells the story Biblical story of Judith, who saved her people by seducing and beheading the Assyrian general Holofernes, which was a common theme in the 16th century. The same story has also been painted by artists such as Sandro Botticelli, Donatello, Artemesia Gentileshi, Giorgione, and Andrea Mantegna. Caravaggio was certainly aware of Judith's traditional identity as a symbol of triumph over tyranny; but he presented the subject primarily as a melodrama, choosing the relatively rarely represented climactic moment of the actual beheading of Holofernes.
Judith Beheading Holofernes
More Information
Photography and mobile phones are permitted in this exhibition, however, please turn flash off. Exhibition Shop Catalogues, books, posters, t-shirts and postcards available. Gallery CafĂŠ The galleries cafĂŠ is unfortunately not located within this exhibition as it has moved just around the corner in the high street. Upcoming Events Visit our website: www.nationalgalleryofswindon.co.uk for more information on events coming soon.