Victoria and Albert Museum
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| Established | 1852, as the South Kensington Museum; renamed 1899 in honour of Queen Victoria and her late consort Albert |
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| Location | On the corner of Cromwell Gardens and Exhibition Road in South Kensington, west London. |
| Website | http://www.vam.ac.uk/ |
The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) is on the corner of Cromwell Gardens and Exhibition Road in South Kensington, west London. It specialises in applied and decorative arts. Entrance has been free since November 22, 2001, following a short period when the Conservative government had imposed first voluntary and then compulsory charges.
History
Foundation
The museum was established in 1852 as the South Kensington Museum under the control of the Science and Art Department, following the success of the Great Exhibition of 1851, along with the Natural History Museum, Royal Albert Hall, Albert Memorial and the Science Museum — together they form a cluster of cultural sites known informally as Albertopolis. Its first director was Sir Henry Cole, a utilitarian and joint organiser of the Great Exhibition who acquired some of the objects from the exhibition for the collection. Over the years the museum attracted many important collections to it. Originally, it contained both arts and sciences and was designed to inspire visitors with examples of achievement in both fields. It was believed at the time that this would help improve the tastes of consumers, manufacturers and designers, creating a virtuous circle that would benefit the culture and the economy.[1]
1900–1950
The museum's bronze front doors (found in the John Madejski Garden) placed James Watt (mechanics) on an equal footing to Titian (painting) and Humphry Davy (chemistry) with Michelangelo (sculpture) and Isaac Newton (astronomy) with Bramante (architecture) . However, in 1913, the scientific collection was split off and formed the core of the Science Museum. Since then the museum has maintained its role of one of the world's greatest decorative arts collections. At the outbreak of World War II most of the collection was packed away and sent either to a quarry in Wiltshire, Montacute House in Somerset or to a disused tunnel near Aldwych tube station. Large items were sand bagged and then bricked in where they were displayed. Prior to the return of the collections after the war, "The Britain Can Make It" exhibition was held between September and November 1946. This was organised and held under the auspices of the Council of Industrial Design which had been established by central government in 1944 ‘to promote by all practicable means the improvement of design in the products of British industry’.
Since 1950
In the 1980s Sir Roy Strong renamed the museum as "The Victoria and Albert Museum, the National Museum of Art and Design". Strong's successor Elizabeth Esteve-Coll oversaw a turbulent period for the institution in which the museum's curatorial departments were re-structured leading to public criticism from some staff. Esteve-Coll's attempts to make the V&A more accessible included a criticised marketing campaign emphasising the cafe over the collection.
As part of its outreach programme to young people, the V&A became the first museum in Britain to present a rock concert in July 1973. The V&A presented a combined concert/lecture by British progressive folk-rock band Gryphon. During the event, organized by then newly-appointed V&A Director Roy Strong and music producer Martin Lewis, the musicians explored the lineage of mediaeval music and instrumentation and related how those contributed to contemporary music 500 years later. This innovative approach to bringing young people to museums was a hallmark of the Directorship of Roy Strong and was subsequently emulated by some other British museums.
The museum also runs the Museum of Childhood at Bethnal Green; and the Theatre Museum in Covent Garden and used to run Apsley House.
Architecture
The building is Victorian and Edwardian. It covers 11 acres (45,000 m²) and has 145 galleries.
The Victorian areas have a complex history, with piecemeal additions by different architects. Founded in May 1852 the museum started life at Marlborough House, but by September of that year it had been moved to Somerset House, it was not until 1856 that the museum moved to the present site. This area of London was known as Brompton but had been renamed South Kensington. The land was occupied by Brompton Park House, which was extended, most notably by the 'Brompton Boilers', which were starkly utilitarian iron galleries with a temporary look; they were later dismantled and used to build the V&A Museum of Childhood. The first building to be erected that still forms part of the museum was the Sheepshanks Gallery in 1857 on the eastern side of the garden; its architect was Captain Francis Fowke. The next major expansion was designed by the same architect: the North and South Courts, both of which opened by June 1862. They now form the galleries for temporary exhibitions and are directly behind the Sheepshanks Gallery. An ambitious scheme of decoration was developed for these new areas: a series of mosaic figures depicting famous European artists of the Medieval and Renaissance period were produced. These have now been removed to other areas of the museum. Also started were a series of frescos by Lord Leighton: "Industrial Arts as Applied to War" 1878–1880 and "Industrial Arts Applied to Peace", which was started but never finished. The last work by Fowke was the design for the range of buildings on the north side of the garden and the galleries on the west side of the garden, this includes the refreshment rooms, reinstated as the Museum Café in 2006, with the silver gallery above, (at the time the ceramics gallery), the top floor has a splendid lecture theatre although this is seldom open to the general public. The ceramic staircase in the northwest corner of this range of buildings was designed by F.W. Moody, all the architectural details are produced in moulded and coloured pottery, all this was designed and built in 1864–1869. The style adopted for this part of the museum was Italian Renaissance, much use was made of terracotta, brick and mosaic, this north façade was intended as the main entrance to the museum with its bronze doors (see above), designed by Godfrey Sykes, who also designed the terracotta embellishments and the mosaic in the Pediment of the North Façade commemorating the Great Exhibition the profits from which helped to fund the museum. This building replaced Brompton Park House, which could then be demolished to make way for the south range.
The interiors of the three refreshment rooms were assigned to different designers. The Green Dining Room was the work of Philip Webb and William Morris, displays Elizabethan influences, the lower part of the walls are panelled in wood with a band of paintings depicting fruit and the occasional figure, with moulded plaster foliage on the main part of the wall and a plaster frieze around the ceiling and stain glass windows. The Centre Refreshment Room was designed in a renaissance style by James Gamble, the walls and even the Ionic columns are covered in decorative and moulded ceramic tile, the ceiling consists of elaborate designs on enamelled metal sheets and matching stained glass windows, the fireplace was designed and sculpted by Alfred Stevens and was removed from Dorchester House prior to that buildings demolition in the 1930s. The Grill Room was designed by Sir Edward Poynter, the lower part of the walls consist of blue and white tiles with various figures and foliage enclosed by wood panelling, above there are large tiled scenes with figures depicting the four seasons and the twelve months these were painted by ladies from the Art School then based in the museum, there is an elaborate cast iron grill still in place.
With the death of Fowke the next architect to work at the museum was Colonel (later Major General) Henry Scott (1822-83). He designed to the north west of the garden the School for Naval Architects now the Henry Cole Wing in 1867–72, now used to house the joint V&A and Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) architectural drawings library and the education centre to open in 2007, continuing the style of the earlier buildings although Sgraffito was used to decorate the east side of the building. Scott also designed the two Cast Courts 1870–73 to the southeast of the garden, these vast spaces have ceilings 70 feet in height to accommodate the plaster casts of parts of famous buildings, including Trajan's Column (in two separate pieces). The final part of the museum designed by Scott was the Art Library and what is now the sculpture gallery on the south side of the garden, built 1877–83. This completed the northern half of the site but left the museum without a proper façade.
The main façade stretches 720 feet down Cromwell Road and then continues down Exhibition Road was designed by Aston Webb after winning a competition in 1891 to extend the museum, construction took from 1899–1909, built from red brick and Portland stone. Stylistically it is a strange hybrid, although much of the detail belongs to the Renaissance there are medieval influences at work. The main entrance consisting of a series of shallow arches supported by slender columns and niches with twin doors separated by pier is Romanesque in form but Classical in detail. Likewise the tower above the main entrance has an open work crown, a feature of late Gothic architecture and a feature common in Scotland, but the detail is Classical. The main windows to the galleries are also mullioned and transomed, again a Gothic feature, the top row of windows are interspersed with statues of many of the British artists whose work is displayed in the museum. Prince Albert appears within the main arch above the twin entrances, Queen Victoria above the frame around the arches and entrance. These façades surround four levels of galleries; other areas designed by Webb include the Entrance Hall and Rotunda, the East and West Halls, the areas occupied by the shop and Asian Galleries plus the Costume Gallery. The interior makes much use of marble in the entrance hall and flanking staircases, although the galleries as originally designed were white with restrained classical detail and mouldings, very much in contrast to the elaborate decoration of the Victorian galleries, although much of this decoration was removed in the early twentieth century.
The Museum survived the Second World War with only minor bomb damage, the worst loss was the Victorian stained glass on the Ceramics Staircase which was blown in when bombs fell near by, pock marks still visible on the façade of the museum were caused by shrapnel from the bombs.
In the immediate post war years there was little money available for other than essential repairs. The 1950s and early 1960s saw little in the way of building work, the first major work was the creation of new storage space for books in the Art Library 1966-7, this involved flooring over Aston Webb's main hall to form the book stacks, with a new medieval gallery on the ground floor (now the shop opened in 2006). Then the lower ground floor galleries in the south west part of the museum were redesigned opening in 1978 to form the new galleries covering continental art 1600-1800 (late renaissance, Baroque through Rococo and neo-classical). In 1974 the museum had aquired what is now the Henry Cole wing from The Royal College of Science. To link this to the rest of the museum a new entrance building was constructed on the site of the former boiler house from 1978-1981, the intended site of the Spiral.
Some of the Victorian decoration was recreated in the main silver gallery in 2002, this included two of the eight columns having their ceramic decoration replaced and the elaborate painted designs restored on the ceiling. After the success of the British Galleries opened in 2001, it was decided to embark on a major redesign of all the galleries in the museum; this is known as "Future Plan". This is expected to take about ten years and was started in 2002, to date several galleries have been redesigned, in 2002: the main Silver Gallery, Contemporary; in 2003: Photography, the main entrance, The Painting Galleries; in 2004: the tunnel to the subway leading to South Kensington tube station, New signage through out the museum, architecture, V&A and RIBA reading rooms and stores, metalware, Members' Room, contemporary glass, the Gilbert Bayes sculpture gallery; in 2005: portrait miniatures, prints and drawings, displays in Room 117, the garden, sacred silver and stained glass; in 2006: Central Hall Shop, Islamic Middle East, the new cafe, sculpture galleries. Several designers and architects have been involved in this work Eva Jiricna having designed the enhancements to the main entrance and rotunda, the new shop, the tunnel and the sculpture galleries. Gareth Hoskins was responsible for contemporary and architecture. Softroom, Islamic Middle East and the Members' Room.
Recently, controversy surrounded the museum's proposed building of an £80 million extension called The Spiral, designed by Daniel Libeskind, which was criticised as out of keeping with the architecture of the original buildings. The Spiral's design was described by some as looking like jumbled cardboard boxes. In September 2004, the museum's board of trustees voted to abandon the design after failing to receive funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund.[2]
In 2005 some of the sculpture galleries were closed in preparation for a major reorganisation which, it is claimed, will better allow the works to be viewed in their historical context. The ceramics exhibits are currently closed for "redevelopment", and the first phase covering about one quarter of the galleries is scheduled to open in late 2009. Certain prearranged tours of the ceramics exhibits are possible, however. In July 2006 the new Neo-Classical Sculpture Gallery and Jameel Gallery of Islamic Art opened as the first stages of that project.
The garden
The central garden was redesigned by Kim Wilkie and opened as the John Madejski Garden, on 5 July 2005. The design is a subtle blend of the traditional and modern, the layout is formal; there is an elliptical water feature lined in stone with steps around the edge which may be drained to use the area for receptions and gatherings. This is in front of the bronze doors leading to the refreshment rooms, a central path flanked by lawns leads to the sculpture gallery; the north, east and west sides have herbaceous borders along the museum walls with paths in front which continues along the south façade; in the two corners by the north façade there is planted a American Sweetgum tree; the southern, eastern and western edges of the lawns have glass planters which contain orange and lemon trees in summer. At night both the planters and water feature may be illuminated, and the surrounding façades lit to reveal details normally in shadow, especially noticeable are the mosaics in the loggia of the north façade. In summer a cafe is set up in the south west corner. The garden is also used for temporary exhibits of sculpture, for example a sculpture by Jeff Koons was shown in 2006.
Collections
The museum has a huge range of collections of European, Indian, Chinese, Korean, Japanese, Islamic decorative arts, totalling 4 million items. It has galleries for sculpture, glass, jewellery, church plate, armour, weapons, costume, textiles, musical instruments, wrought iron, stained glass, metalwork, ceramics, furniture, architecture, photography, British watercolour artists and much more.
The V&A also houses:
- Britain's national collection of sculpture up to 1900, including Bernini's fountain of Neptune and Triton and Canova's The Three Graces
- The national collection of photography
- The national collection of miniature paintings
- The national art library
Cast courts
One of the most dramatic parts of the museum is the Cast Courts in the sculpture wing, comprising two large, skylighted rooms two storeys high housing hundreds of plaster casts of sculptures, friezes and tombs. One of these is dominated by a full-scale replica of Trajan's Column, cut in half in order to fit under the ceiling. The other includes reproductions of various works of Italian Renaissance sculpture and architecture, including a full-size replica of Michelangelo's David. Replicas of two earlier Davids by Donatello and Verrocchio, are also included, although for conservation reasons the Verrocchio replica is displayed in a glass case.
The two courts are divided by corridors on both storeys, and the partitions that used to line the upper corridor (the Gilbert Bayes sculpture gallery) were removed in 2004 in order to allow the courts to be viewed from above.
The galleries
Due to a series of thefts from the museum, many of the older galleries have been closed to the public and will only be open on certain dates. This will continue until the galleries have been redesigned as the old glass cases are especially easy to break into. The areas that are closed include: the ceramics, Baroque and Rococo and the 18th century galleries and Jewellery. The museum has around 150 galleries that are divided into the following areas, but given the vast extent of the collections only a small percentage is ever on display.
Architecture
The only permanent displays in the country that cover the general history of architecture, using models, photographs, elements from buildings and original drawings, are to be found in a new V&A gallery which opened on November 18, 2004. The RIBA Architectural Drawings Library has been transferred to the museum, joining the already extensive collection held by the V&A to form the largest such collection in the world, with over 600,000 architectural drawings, over 750,000 papers, including architectural diaries, travel journals, letters, notebooks, essays, papers and office archives and over 700,000 photographs of architecture from around the world.
Not only are all the major British architects of the last four hundred years represented, but many European (especially Italian) and American architects' drawings are held in the collection. The holdings of drawings by Palladio are the largest in the world. British architects whose drawings, and in some cases models of their buildings, in the collection, include: Inigo Jones, Sir Christopher Wren, Sir John Vanbrugh, Nicholas Hawksmoor, William Kent, James Gibbs, Robert Adam, Sir William Chambers, James Wyatt, Henry Holland (architect), John Nash, Sir John Soane, Sir Charles Barry, Charles Robert Cockerell, Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin, Sir George Gilbert Scott, John Loughborough Pearson, Richard Norman Shaw, Sir Edwin Lutyens, Charles Holden, Lord Richard Rogers, Lord Norman Foster, Sir Nicholas Grimshaw and Zaha Hadid.
Asia
This covers India, China, Japan, Korea, South East Asia and the Islamic world which includes North Africa and Turkey.
The Jameel Gallery of the Islamic Middle East opened on 18 July 2006. The 400 objects displayed represent about 10% of the museum's holdings. One of the highlights of the Islamic collection is the Ardabil Carpet, which is the centrepiece of the gallery. The displays in this gallery cover the period from the 8th century to 1914, with objects from Spain, North Africa the Middle East and Uzbekistan and Afghanistan. A masterpiece of Islamic art is a 10th-century ewer carved from a single block of rock crystal. Many examples of Qurans with exquisite calligraphy dating from various periods are on display. A 15th-century Minbar from a Cairo mosque with ivory forming complex geometrical patterns inlaid in wood is one of the larger objects on display. Extensive examples of ceramics, glasswork and metalwork are on display. The collection of Middle Eastern and Persian rugs and carpets is amongst the finest in the world.
The Nehru gallery of Indian art, which opened in June 1991, contains art from about 500 BCE to the 19th Century. There is an extensive collection of sculpture, mainly of a religious nature, Hindu, Buddhist and Jain. The gallery is richly endowed with art of the Mughal Empire, including fine portraits of the emperors, jade wine cups and gold spoons inset with emeralds, diamonds and rubies, also from this period are parts of buildings such as jaali and pillars. One of the more unusual items on display in the Indian Gallery is "Tipu's Tiger", an automaton and mechanical organ made in Mysore around 1795. It represents a tiger mauling a British soldier, and is named after the then Sultan of the province.
The T.T. Tsui Gallery of Chinese art opened in June 1991. The majority of art works on display date from the Ming Dynasty and Qing Dynasty, but objects dating from the Tang Dynasty and early periods are on show. One of the oldest items on display is a 2,000 year old jade horse head from a burial. Classic examples of Chinese manufactures that are displayed include Lacquer, Silk, Porcelain, Jade and Cloisonne Enamel. One of the largest objects is a mid 17th century bed.
The Toshiba gallery of Japanese art opened in December 1986. The majority of exhibits date from 1550 to 1900, but one of the oldest pieces displayed is the 13th century sculpture of Amida Nyorai. Examples of classic Japanese armour from the mid 19th century, magnificent steel sword blades (Katana), Inro, lacquerware including the Mazarin Chest dated c1640 is one of the finest surviving pieces from Kyoto, porcelain, Netsuke, woodblock prints, textiles and dress are some of the objects on display.
British Galleries
These fifteen galleries — which opened in November 2001 — contain around 4000 items. The displays in these galleries are based around three major themes: "Style", "Who Led Taste" and "What Was New". The period covered is 1500 to 1900, the galleries fall into three major subdivisions; Tudor and Stuart Britain 1500–1714, This covers the Renaissance, Jacobean, Restoration and Baroque styles; Georgian Britain 1714–1837, this covers Palladianism, Rococo, Chinoiserie, Neo-Classicism, The Regency, as well as classical architecture includes Chinese, Indian and Egyptian styles, also the Gothic Revival; Victorian Britain 1837–1901, this covers the later more scholarly phase of the Gothic Revival, French influences, Classical and Renaissance revivals, Aestheticism, Japanese style, continuing influence from China, Indian and the Islamic world, the Arts and Crafts Movement and the Scottish School.
Not just the work of British artists and craftspeople is on display, but work produced by European artists that was purchased or commissioned by British patrons. Also imports from Asia, including porcelain, cloth and wallpaper. Designers and artists whose work is on display in the galleries include Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Grinling Gibbons, Daniel Marot, Sir James Thornhill, William Kent, Sir William Chambers, Robert Adam, Josiah Wedgwood, Matthew Boulton, Antonio Canova, John Constable, Thomas Chippendale, Augustus Welby Northmore Pugin, William Morris, William Burges, Christopher Dresser, James McNeill Whistler and Charles Rennie Mackintosh. Patrons who have influenced taste are also represented by works of art from their collections, these include: Horace Walpole (a major influence on the gothic revival), William Thomas Beckford and Thomas Hope.
Over the four centuries covered, the people influencing style are seen to change over time, in the early sixteenth century the Church prior to the Reformation and the British Monarchy dominated taste, but as time passed first the aristocracy, then also the middle class begin to have a greater and greater influence on taste. This mirrors rising national wealth and power, as British trade spread around the globe followed by the founding and expansion of the British Empire.
There are five complete rooms from demolished buildings displayed in the galleries, these are: The parlour from the Old Palace Bromley-by-Bow dated 1606 with carved Renaissance-style oak panelling, overmantel and richly decorated plaster ceiling: the parlour from 2 Henrietta Street London dated 1727–28 designed by James Gibbs with an elaborate ceiling and fireplace; the Norfolk House Music Room, St James Square London dated 1756, designed by Matthew Brettingham and Giovanni Battista Borra, the white panelling and ceiling have carved and gilded Rococo decoration with matching mirrors; the Strawberry Room from Lee Priory Kent, dated 1783–94 designed by James Wyatt in a Gothick style: the Ante-room from The Grove Harborne, Birmingham 1877–78 designed by John Henry Chamberlain in High-Victorian Neo-Gothic style. Further there are displays of parts of rooms: the Hayes Grange c1585–c1620 is an early example for Britain of the correct use of the classical orders, only the end wall and part of the ceiling is displayed due to the size of the room. There are parts of two Robert Adam designed rooms on show, a section of a wall from the Glass Drawing Room from Northumberland House dated 1773–1775, the main panels consist of glass back by red foil, the pilasters glass backed with green foil and covered by elaborate carvings of gilded wood, and there is a neo-classical painting inset above the door, the other room comes from the Adelphi Buildings c1772, demolished in 1936, only the ceiling and fireplace survive.
Some of the more notable works displayed in the galleries include: Pietro Torrigiani's coloured terracotta bust of Henry VII dated 1509–11; Henry VIII's writing box dated 1525 made from walnut and oak, lined with leather and painted and gilded with king's coat of arms; A spinet dated 1570–1580 for Elizabeth I: the Great Bed of Ware, dated 1590–1600, an elaborately carved four poster with head board inlaid with marquetry, said to sleep tweleve people; Bernini's bust of Thomas Baker dated c1638: the state bed from Melville House dated 1700, over 4.6 metres high with hangings of crimson Italian velvet and Chinese silk linings; the Mortlake tapestry dated to the mid-seventeenth century part of a series covering the story Venus (mythology) and Vulcan; a unique set of silverware is the Macclesfield Wine Set, dated 1719–1720, it consists of a large wine cooler, cistern and fountain the last for washing wine glasses, the work of Anthony Nelme, this is the only complete set known to survive; the life size sculpture of George Frederick Handel dated 1738 by Louis-François Roubiliac ; the Duchess of Manchester's cabinet dated 1776, designed by Robert Adam and incorporating Pietra Dura plaques made by Baccio Cappelli: there are two sculptures by Canova that are displayed alternately, The Three Graces dated 1815–17, when this is on display at The National Galleries of Scotland, then The Sleeping Nymph dated 1822 is displayed instead. The painting of Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds, dated 1823 by John Constable: the sculpture of Bashaw dated 1831–34, this is a life like sculpture of the Earl of Dudley's dog made from coloured marble, the dog has a paw on a writhing snake equally life like, the sculptor was Matthew Cotes Wyatt; A Carpet and tapestry by William Morris; the Sideboard dated 1867–70 of ebonized mahogany and silver-plated metal work by Edward William Godwin, furniture by Charles Rennie Mackintosh.
Ceramics
This is the largest and most comprehensive collection in the world, covering the entire globe, every populated continent is represented. Well represented in the collection is Meissen porcelain, this factory being the first in Europe to discover the Chinese method of making porcelain, amongst the finest examples is the Meissen Vulture dating from 1730. Examples from the Manufacture nationale de Sèvres are extensive, especially the 18th and 19th centuries. The collection of 18th century British porcelain is the largest and finest in the world, examples from every factory are represented, the collection of Chelsea porcelain and Worcester Porcelain being especially fine. All the major nineteenth century British factories are also represented. Many famous potters, such as Josiah Wedgwood and Bernard Leach are represented in the collection. A major boost to the collections was the Salting Bequest made in 1909, which covered amongst other areas Chinese and Japanese ceramics.
Contemporary
These galleries are dedicated to temporary exhibits showcasing both trends from recent decades and the latest in design and fashion.
Fashion and jewellery
The costume collection is the most comprehensive in Britain, it covers the last four centuries and the latest in couture is added to the collection. Some of the oldest items in the collection are medieval vestments especially Opus Anglicanum. The jewellery collection with over 6,000 items, covers, amongst other periods, Ancient Egypt, Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, Elizabethan jewels, and on to the present day. Some of the finest pieces are by Cartier and Peter Carl Fabergé. A new jewellery gallery is due to open in 2008.
Furniture and furnishings
Covers Britain, Europe and America from the Middle Ages to the present. The collection contains over 14,000 items that include tapestries, carpets, complete rooms, musical instruments as well as furniture. The Jones Collection covering French 18th century art and furnishings was left to the museum in 1882, then valued at £250,000. The work of Frank Lloyd Wright is represented by the Kaufmann Office designed and constructed between 1934 and 1937 for the owner of a Pittsburgh department store; not currently on display due to the closure of the Cole Wing for redevelopment as the new education centre — as well as other furniture and furnishings. One of the highlights of the collection is the four Devonshire Hunting Tapestries, very rare medieval tapestries depicting the hunting of various animals, not just their age but their size make these unique. The most important musical instrument in the collection is a violin by Antonio Stradivari dated 1699.
Glass
Covers four thousand years of glass making, and has over 6,000 items covering Britain, Europe, America and Asia. The stained glass collection is possible the finest in the world, covering the medieval to modern periods, and covering Europe as well as Britain, some of the most outstanding stained glass comes from the Sainte Chapelle. One of the most spectacular items in the collection is the chandelier by Dale Chihuly in the rotunda at the museum's main entrance.
Periods and styles
These galleries cover an entire period in western design, covering all areas of the museum's collections relevant to that period, these are: Medieval and Renaissance; Baroque and Rococo; 18th century; 19th century; 20th century.
Metalwork
Covers decorative ironwork both wrought and cast, silverware, arms and armour, pewter, brassware and enamels. There are over 10,000 objects made from silver or gold in the collection. The display is divided into secular and sacred covering both Christian and Jewish liturgical vessels. Silversmiths whose work is represented in the collection include Paul de Lamerie and Paul Storr. Also the master of wrought ironwork Jean Tijou is represented by both examples of his work and designs on paper. One of the largest items is the Hereford Screen, designed by Sir George Gilbert Scott for the chancel in Hereford Cathedral, from which it was removed in 1967.
Paintings and drawings
Includes 2,000 British and European oil paintings; British water colours, pastels and miniatures for which the museum holds the national collection; and includes the Raphael Cartoons, the seven surviving (there were ten) full scale designs for tapestries in the Sistine Chapel, the subject matter being events from the Gospels, specifically the Acts of the Apostles. Nineteenth century British artists are well represented, John Constable and J.M.W. Turner are represented by oil paintings, water colours and drawings. One of the most unusual objects on display is Thomas Gainsborough's experimental showbox with its back-lit landscapes, which he painted on glass, this allowed them to be changed like slides. Other artists represented are William Blake, Sir Edwin Henry Landseer and Millais. In 1857 John Sheepshanks gifted 233 paintings mainly by contemporary British artists and a similar number of drawings to the museum with the intention of forming a 'A National Gallery of British Art' a roll since taken on by Tate Britain. Another major Victorian benefactor was Constantine Alexander Ionides, who left 82 paintings to the museum including works by: Botticelli, Tintoretto, Delacroix, Degas, Jean-François Millet, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, Burne-Jones. Miniaturists represented in the collection include Nicholas Hilliard and Isaac Oliver. Drawings in the collection include work by Durer, Angelica Kauffmann, John Flaxman and Samuel Palmer.
Photography
The collection contains over 500,000 images dating from the advent of photography. The gallery displays a series of changing exhibits and is closed when between exhibitions to allow re-display.
Prints and books
The museum houses the National Art Library, containing over 750,000 books, mainly covering the fine and decorative arts covering all areas and periods of the museum's collections, there are special collections covering illuminated manuscripts, rare books and artists' letters and archives. One of the great treasures in the library is the Codex Forster, which is a Leonardo da Vinci note book, bequeathed with over 18,000 books to the museum in 1876 by John Forster. The Revd Alexander Dyce was another benefactor of the library, leaving over 14,000 books to the museum in 1869 amongst the books he collected are early editions in Greek and Latin of the poets and playwrights Aeschylus, Aristotle, Homer, Livy, Ovid, Pindar, Sophocles and Virgil, more recent authors include Giovanni Boccaccio, Dante, Racine, Rabelais and Molière. Writers whose papers are in the library are as diverse as Charles Dickens and Beatrix Potter. The print collection has over 500,000 items, covering posters, greetings cards, as well as prints from the renaissance to the present.
Sculpture
This is the most comprehensive collection of post classical sculpture in the world, the collection covers the period from about 400 CE to 1914. This covers amongst other periods Byzantine and Anglo Saxon ivory sculptures, British and French medieval statues and carvings, the Renaissance, Baroque, Neo-Classical, Victorian and Art Nouveau periods. All uses of sculpture are represented, from tomb and memorial, to portrait, allegorical, religious, mythical, statues for gardens including fountains, as well as architectural decorations. Materials used include, marble, alabaster, stone, terracotta, wood, ivory, gesso, plaster, bronze, lead and ceramics.
The collection of Italian Renaissance, Baroque and Neo-classical sculpture (both original and in cast form) is unequalled outside of Italy. It includes Canova's The Three Graces, which the museum jointly owns with National Galleries of Scotland. Italian sculptors whose work is held by the museum include: Giovanni Pisano, Donatello, Antonio Rossellino, Antonio Lombardo (sculptor), Andrea della Robbia, Michelozzo di Bartolomeo, Michelangelo (represented by a freehand wax model and casts of his most famous sculptures), Alessandro Algardi, Bartolomeo Ammanati, Giambologna, Bernini, Canova and Carlo Marochetti, The largest item from Italy is the Chancel Chapel from Santa Chiara Florence dated 1493–1500, designed by Giuliano da Sangallo it is 11.1 metres in height by 5.4 metres square, it includes a grand sculpted tabernacle by Antonio Rossellino and coloured terracotta decoration.
Rodin is represented by over 20 works in the museum collection, making it one of the largest collections of the sculptor's work outside France; these were gifted to the museum by the sculptor in 1914, as acknowledgement of Britain's support of France in World War I. Other French sculptors with work in the collection are Hubert Le Sueur, Michel Clodion, Jean-Antoine Houdon and Jules Dalou.
Sculptors both British and Europeans who were based in Britain and whose work is in the collection include: Nicholas Stone, John Michael Rysbrack, Louis-Francois Roubiliac, Peter Scheemakers, Thomas Banks, Joseph Nollekens, Joseph Wilton, John Flaxman, John Gibson, Lord Leighton, Alfred Stevens, Thomas Brock , Alfred Gilbert, George Frampton, Eric Gill.
Smaller scale works are displayed in the Gilbert Bayes gallery, covering medieval especially English alabaster sculpture, bronzes, wooden sculptures and has demonstrations of various techniques such as bronze casting using lost wax casting.
One of the largest objects in the collection is the Hertogenbosch Roodloft, from Holland, dated 1610–13 this is as much a work of architecture as sculpture, 10.4 metres wide, 7.8 metres high, the architectural framework is of various coloured marbles including columns, arches and balustrade, against which are statues and bas-reliefs and other carvings in white marble.
Exhibitions
The V&A holds some of the most impressive exhibitions on art in London, this is in part because of the large galleries devoted to temporary exhibitions. A typical year will see over a dozen different exhibitions being staged covering all areas of the collections. Some of the larger exhibitions of recent years have been:
- Art Deco: 27 March – 20 July 2003
- Gothic Art for England 1400–1547: 9 October 2003 – 18 January 2004
- Encounters The Meeting of Asia and Europe 1500-1800: 23 September – 5 December 2004
- International Arts and Crafts: 17 March – 24 July 2005
- Modernism Designing a New World: 6 April 2006 – 23 July 2006
Directors
| Director | Served |
|---|---|
| Sir Henry Cole | 1852 – 1873 |
| Sir Philip Cunliffe Owen | 1874 – 1893 |
| John Henry Middleton | 1893 – 1896 |
| Sir Caspar Purdon Clarke | 1896 – 1905 |
| Arthur Banks Skinner | 1905 – 1909 |
| Sir Cecil Harcourt Smith | 1909 – 1924 |
| Sir Eric MacLagan | 1924 – 1945 |
| Sir Leigh Ashton | 1945 – 1955 |
| Sir Trenchard Cox | 1956 – 1966 |
| Sir John Pope-Hennessy | 1967 – 1973 |
| Sir Roy Strong | 1973 – 1987 |
| Dame Elizabeth Esteve-Coll | 1987 – 1995 |
| Dr Alan Borg | 1995 – 2001 |
| Mark Jones | 2001 – present |
References
- ^ Royal Engineers Museum Royal Engineers' role in the museum's construction
- ^ Website with image of Spiral and BBC story on axing of Spiral extension
External links
- Victoria and Albert Museum official site
- Victoria and Albert Museum at the Survey of London online:
- V&A Flickr group
