Old Masters in a New Light: Rediscovering the European Collection

September 19–December 16, 2018

BAMPFA’s outstanding collection of historical European art—including several important new acquisitions—is showcased in this exhibition, the culmination of a major research and conservation effort.

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Giuseppe Varotti: Jephthah Meets His Daughter After His Victory, c. 1756–60; oil on canvas; 47 1/4 x 40 in.; BAMPFA, gift of Alan Templeton.

Upcoming
Films
Upcoming
Events
Selected
Objects
Past
Films
Past
Events

Past Events

Friday, November 30, 12 PM
Gallery Talk: Todd Olson on Old Masters in a New Light

UC Berkeley art history professor Olson explores the close relationship between religious experience and eroticism in two works on view in Old Masters in a New Light.

BAMPFA
Saturday, October 13, 1:30 PM
Sign Language–Interpreted Tour: Old Masters in a New Light

Explore the works on view in Old Masters in a New Light in this tour with expert American Sign Language interpreter Patricia Lessard.

BAMPFA
Wednesday, October 3, 12 PM
Gallery Talk: Alan Templeton and Grace Harpster on Old Masters in a New Light

Scholar and collector Templeton and art historian Harpster offer their informative perspectives on works in Old Masters in a New Light.

BAMPFA
Saturday, September 29, 1:30 PM
Lecture: Catherine Lusheck: Why Style Matters—Connoisseurship and the Old Masters

Art historian Lusheck delves into intriguing issues of artistic style and connoisseurship, showing why attribution and an appreciation of the “hand of the artist” truly mattered in the European Renaissance.

BAMPFA
Selected Sundays, Wednesdays, and Free First Thursdays
Guided Tours: Old Masters in a New Light

Explore the works on view in Old Masters in a New Light with tours led by UC Berkeley graduate students.

BAMPFA

Old Masters in a New Light: Rediscovering the European Collection

September 19–December 16, 2018

Since 1872, the University of California, Berkeley has been collecting works by European artists, building a collection that includes many rare and exceptional works distinguished by artistic innovation, emotional and psychological depth, and technical virtuosity. Consisting mostly of gifts from professors, alumni, and other supporters, the collection continues to evolve, representing artistic influences and connections among many European countries, from the fourteenth century to the dawn of the modern era.

Recently, BAMPFA has worked with scholars and experts from around the world to determine more accurate attributions for a number of these works, a process that has resulted, in one instance, in the discovery that a work by a previously unidentified artist is actually a significant painting by the fourteenth-century Venetian master Paolo Veneziano. We have also undertaken efforts to clean, conserve, and reframe numerous paintings representing the breadth and quality of the collection. This exhibition is the culmination of these efforts—presenting our Old Master collection in “a new light” for your appreciation.

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Special thanks to Alan Templeton, whose generous and thoughtful donations have supported extensive research and conservation efforts, as well as the acquisition of several important works of art, which are featured in this exhibition.

Old Masters in a New Light: Rediscovering the European Collection

September 19–December 16, 2018

Selected Exhibition Objects

Painting

Jephthah Meets His Daughter After His Victory

Giuseppe Varotti

Past Events

Gallery Talk: Todd Olson on Old Masters in a New Light

Sign Language–Interpreted Tour: Old Masters in a New Light

Gallery Talk: Alan Templeton and Grace Harpster on Old Masters in a New Light

Lecture: Catherine Lusheck: Why Style Matters—Connoisseurship and the Old Masters

Guided Tours: Old Masters in a New Light