6/10/2010
Michelangelo
Albertina, Wien
The Drawings of a Genius. The exhibition spans from Michelangelo's earliest surviving drawings, his designs for the Battle of Cascina, and his studies for the vault frescoes and The Last Judgement in the Sistine Chapel to the refined drawings the artist presented to Tommaso de'Cavalieri and a number of late treatments of the Crucifixion. Curated by Dr. Achim Gnann.
Curated by Dr. Achim Gnann
Between 8 October 2010 and 9 January 2011, the Albertina presents the first major Michelangelo
exhibition in more than twenty years. This display of 120 out of the artist’s most precious drawings
offers a comprehensive insight into the work of this great genius.
The sheets come from the
Albertina’s own holdings, as well as from important European and American museums – the Uffizi
and the Casa Buonarroti in Florence, the Louvre in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New
York, the Teylers Museum in Haarlem, the Royal Library in Windsor Castle (property of the British
monarch) and the British Museum in London – and private collections.
The exhibition spans from Michelangelo’s earliest surviving drawings, his designs for the Battle of
Cascina, and his studies for the vault frescoes and The Last Judgement in the Sistine Chapel to the
refined drawings the artist presented to Tommaso de’Cavalieri and a number of late treatments of
the Crucifixion.
Michelangelo’s drawings will be juxtaposed to examples of works by artists from the master’s
immediate surroundings (Giulio Clovio, Sebastiano del Piombo, and Daniele da Volterra), which is
meant to demonstrate how clearly Michelangelo’s drawings distinguish themselves in terms of style
and ingenuity.
It was three years ago that curator Dr Achim Gnann began his preparations for this exhibition. His
goal is to review those datings of Michelangelo’s drawings that have sometimes been considered
controversial and elaborate on the evolution of the artist’s style with utmost clarity.
Michelangelo Symposium at the Albertina (19 – 20 Nov. 2010)
Within the framework of the exhibition, the Albertina, in cooperation with the Art History
Department of the University of Münster, will hold a symposium entitled Michelangelo as a
Draughtsman. Experts of international repute will participate in the two-day conference. The
symposium will be devoted to Michelangelo’s figural drawings and aims to discuss and review the
scientific methods employed in the identification of the artist’s characteristic stylistic features.
Catalogue Edited by Klaus Albrecht Schröder and Achim Gnann, with texts by Achim
Gnann
The catalogue is published in German and English by Hatje Cantz Publishing
and will be available at the Albertina Shop and at www.albertina.at for
29 euros.
Press Department Mag. Verena Dahlitz (head)
T +43 (01) 534 83 - 510 , M +43 (0)699.121 78 720, v.dahlitz@albertina.at
Image: Michelangelo Buonarroti
Three Men Standing in Wide Coats Turned Towards the Left, around 1492-96
© Albertina, Vienna
Press conference October 6, 2010, 10:00 a.m.
Opening October 7, 2010, 6:30 p.m. at the Hofburg
Albertina, Basteihalle
Albertinaplatz 1, A-1010 Vienna
Opening Hours Daily 10 am to 6 pm
Wednesday 10 am to 9 pm