Paris. It is only a “transitional” exhibition, to fill a gap in the programming between the reopening of the museum after work, which took place at the beginning of September, and the next event in 2025, dedicated to Artemisia Gentileschi (1593-1656 ). But at the Jacquemart-André Museum, a hole in the calendar is filled with the help of Jacopo Bassano, Titian, Lorenzo Lotto and Bernini, thanks to the Borghese Gallery in Rome which is taking advantage of the work to have its works travel to Paris. To make the selection, the main constraint that Pierre Curie encountered was the size of the exhibition spaces in the Parisian museum: no Deposition of Raphael for its curator, who can however console himself with several dozen essentials from Rome.
The Lady and the Unicornby the same Raphael, The Last Supper from Bassano, The Boy with the Fruit Basket of Caravaggio, or the Venus blindfolding Love by Titian (who plays the prestige doubles for Sacred love and profane lovetoo fragile to travel): the Roman casting of Jacquemart-André is exceptional. The scenario chosen to stage these masterpieces follows the journey of Scipio Borghese, the wealthy cardinal at the origin of this collection housed in his villa on Mount Pincio. “We were careful not to stop at the death of the cardinal, however, specifies Pierre Curie, it is a collection that was built up over two centuries. »
Scipio nevertheless remains the main character in the constitution of the collection, a protagonist in chiaroscuro, like the works of Caravaggio that he accumulated. The first ones he acquired tell the story of the omnipotence of a family which made art a tool of power: they came from the personal collection of the Cavalier d’Arpin (1568-1640), an artist who worked for the Borghese and whose workshop was arbitrarily seized in 1607 by Scipio’s uncle, Pope Paul V. Around a hundred works collected by the painter thus came into the possession of the young cardinal.
A collector who is both patron and predator
The commission, and even the companionship with the artists, is also part of the acquisition process of Scipio Borghese, who maintains a relationship with Bernini, represented in the exhibition by his painted self-portrait, as well as by a small sculpted bust of the pope Paul V. An unusual object, a jewel of miniature sculpture, perhaps a gift from the sculptor who tells a story of friendship with his powerful patron. The collector is both patron and predator, as when he whispers to the Barberini family the commission for a genre scene by Lionello Spada, a Concert also presented to Jacquemart-André.
View of the exhibition “Masterpieces from the Borghese Gallery” at the Jacquemart-André Museum.
© Nicolas Héron / Culturespace
Support for painters and sculptors, capture of artistic riches: the story of the creation of this large-scale collection of Italian art occupies the first half of the tour, allowing the visitor to understand such a concentration of major works. If it runs out of steam a little in the last two thematic rooms, the exhibition remains well conducted, with an effort of mediation and presentation which does not rely on the simple exhibition of masterpieces.
Narrowness of spaces
The winding and narrow route of the temporary exhibitions, on the other hand, appears more than ever unsuitable for these major events, and some videos published by visitors on social networks demonstrate visiting conditions reminiscent of rush hours on the Paris metro. It is difficult to appreciate Bassano’s large formats with the necessary hindsight; the feeling of small volumes and lack of space is accentuated by the screen prints covering the walls, reminiscent of the interior of a villa. Hanging smaller works, such as the marvelous Virgin and Child by Lorenzo Lotto, appears much more suited to adjoining rooms.
The combined effects of the reopening of the museum after a year of work and the fame of the Borghese collection, as well as a generous number of visitors, have predictably swelled the ranks of visitors. However, the museum did not take advantage of its renovation project to provide a solution to this restrictive situation, already noted during the exhibitions “Caravaggio in Rome” in 2018 or “Botticelli, artist and designer” in 2021-2022. Nocturnes, extension of visiting hours, reduction of the daily visitor quota and flow management taken into account in the scenography, it is hoped that the museum activates some of these levers before the arrival of Artemisia, the new star of ancient art.
