Taste for Impressionism Paintings from The Clark. Masterpieces by Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Degas, Sisley and Morisot, as well as an exceptional group of more than twenty paintings by Renoir, from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts. The exhibition also embraces important works by pre-Impressionist artists such as Corot, Theodore Rousseau and J-F.Millet, as well as examples of highly polished 'academic' paintings by Gerome and Bouguereau.
This summer the Royal Academy of Arts will present From Paris: A Taste for Impressionism
Paintings from The Clark. The exhibition will showcase 70 major works, many of which have
never been on public display in the UK before. Masterpieces by Manet, Monet, Pissarro, Degas,
Sisley and Morisot, as well as an exceptional group of more than twenty paintings by Renoir,
from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts, will be
shown. The exhibition will illustrate the Clark Art Institute’s holdings of French 19th-century art,
with particular emphasis upon Impressionism. The exhibition will also embrace important works
by pre-Impressionist artists such as Corot, Théodore Rousseau and J-F.Millet, as well as
examples of highly polished ‘academic’ paintings by Gérôme and Bouguereau.
The paintings in the exhibition will be presented by genre, in order to reveal the range of subject
matter and diversity of stylistic approach in French 19th-century art. The groups of works will
include: landscapes and cityscapes; marine views; genre paintings depicting scenes of life;
nudes; still lifes; portraits - including self portraits of artists central to the exhibition such as
Renoir and Degas, and paintings reflecting the contemporary interest in Orientalism. Highlights
from each of these sections will include Monet’s The Cliffs at Étretat, 1885, Alfred Sisley’s, Banks
of the Seine at By, c. 1880–81, Berthe Morisot’s The Bath, 1885–86 and Jean-Léon Gérôme’s The
Snake Charmer, c. 1879. A selection of 20 works by Auguste Renoir will be on display including
At the Concert, 1880.
The history of the Clark collection dates back to 1910 when Sterling Clark settled in Paris after a
career in the United States Army and began collecting works of art. Sterling married Francine
Modzelewska (but known by her stage name Clary) in 1919 and together they continued a shared
passion for collecting. In 1950 the Clarks decided to found the Sterling and Francine Clark Art
Institute in Williamstown, Massachusetts as a permanent home for their vast collection,
although they had originally thought to build their museum in New York City. The Clark family
had close ties with nearby Williams College (Sterling’s grandfather was an 1831 graduate of this
college and had served as a trustee from 1878 to 1882). The museum opened to the public in
1955.
ORGANISATION
From Paris: A Taste for Impressionism Paintings from The Clark is organised by the Sterling and
Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, in association with the Royal
Academy of Arts. The exhibition has been curated by Richard Rand, the Robert and Martha
Berman Lipp Senior Curator of Paintings and Sculpture from the Sterling and Francine Clark Art
Institute with MaryAnne Stevens, Director of Academic Affairs, Royal Academy of Arts.
EXHIBITION TOUR
Palazzo Reale, Milan, 2 March–19 June 2011
Musée des Impressionnismes, Giverny, 13 July–31 October 2011
Fundación “La Caixa,” Barcelona, 17 November 2011–12 February 2012
Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Texas 11 March–17 June 2012
Royal Academy of Arts, London, 7 July–23 September 2012
Montreal Museum of Fine Arts, 8 October 2012–20 January 2013
Mitsubishi Ichigokan Museum, Tokyo, March–May 2013
Hyogo Prefectural Museum of Art, Kobe, June–August 2013
Shanghai Museum, September–November 2013
CATALOGUE
A fully illustrated catalogue has been published to accompany the exhibition From Paris: A Taste
for Impressionism Paintings from The Clark, with contributions by James A. Ganz and Richard R.
Brettell. James A. Ganz offers a biographical introduction to Sterling Clark, while Richard R.
Brettell discusses the Clark collection within the broader context of other early twentieth-century
American collectors, such as Albert Barnes, Henry Clay Frick and Duncan Phillips. Lavish
illustrations are accompanied by illuminating entries about each of the paintings.
ABOUT THE STERLING AND FRANCINE CLARK ART INSTITUTE
The Clark Art Institute today offers an important depth and range of programmes in its role as
both an art museum and a centre for research and higher education in the visual arts. The
Institute organizes groundbreaking exhibitions, hosts an international fellows programme, and,
together with Williams, sponsors one of the USA’s leading master’s programmes in the history
of art.
ABOUT THE ROYAL ACADEMY OF ARTS
The Royal Academy of Arts was founded by George III in 1768. It has a unique position in being
an independent, privately funded institution led by eminent artists and architects whose purpose
is to promote the creation, enjoyment and appreciation of the visual arts through exhibitions,
education and debate.
For further press information, please contact Simone Sagi at the Royal Academy Press Office on
tel: 020 7300 5610, fax: 020 7300 8032 or email press.office@royalacademy.org.uk
Image: James Tissot, Chrysanthemums, c. 1874–76. Oil on canvas, 118.4 x 76.2 cm. Acquired in honor of David S. Brooke (Institute Director, 1977–94). © Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA, 1994
Royal Academy of Arts
Burlington House Piccadilly, London
Open to public:
10 am – 6 pm daily (last admission 5.30 pm)
Late night opening:Fridays until 10 pm (last admission 9.30 pm)
ADMISSION
£9 full price; £7 registered disabled and 60 + years; £5 NUS / ISIC cardholders; £3 12–18 years
and Income Support; £3 8–11 years; 7 and under free. RA Friends go free.