Sometimes, one needs to recharge with a little art. At Via Umbria, we hope to open an art gallery inside our store in the fall, with some of our favorite pieces from around Umbria.

Which is why this Sunday we are took a trip to the National Gallery of Art, which recently acquired many Renaissance prints. Seeing the techniques and practices of artists from the 1600’s helps us appreciate the contemporary etchings we will be putting on display in the fall.

Worth a quick dip into the lower level of the museum, this exhibition covers graveure, engravings, and etchings made slightly after the heyday of the Renaissance.

Sixteenth century Italy was booming with printmakers, who were mostly memorializing the revolutionary artists that had come before them. Collectors from across the continent could purchase a keepsake glimpse into the great masterpieces of the Renaissance by purchasing a comparative print. It was also a way for artists to show their technique, in a portable way, when trying to woo potential commissioners. As we tour through the exhibit, we pick out which pieces we would hang on our walls, and others we perhaps could do without (for example, the skeletons pictured. Beautiful or gruesome?)

We admit it, this exhibition is a little (ok, totally) devoid of color. But if you are familiar with the technique of etching, you can see that these do take a significant amount of time and effort. if anything, this exhibit can be appreciated for the sheer sophistication of the etching, and the small corner of art history that it represents.

The NGA has spent a considerable lump of money to acquire these prints, but for good reason, as they believe that

“Better than any other art form, prints satisfied an exploding demand for the images of the day. They ranged from depictions of the remains of antiquity, to creations inspired by modern humanist thinkers, to religious imagery supporting the Catholic Church’s response to the Reformation. Interpreting works in other media, prints transmitted styles across Europe, filling the contemporary imagination and establishing an enduring canon. Engravers and woodcutters reproduced designs supplied by great masters, notably Raphael and Titian.”

But if this exhibition does not make you feel as sharp as the master’s etching needle, you can always head to the gelato bar to perk yourself up afterwards. All that technical art demands something a little dolce. 

Happy Weekend!

— Via Umbria

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Want to see the real thing in Italy? We are now taking bookings for the Fattoria Del Gelso for next year, and writing a guide to artwork in the region this summer. Stay tuned, art lovers!

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Recent Acquisitions of Italian Renaissance Prints: Ideas Made Flesh

NGA June 7 – October 4, 2015

West Building

Image courtesy of the NGA, (Dente)