UKC

Had a day in Hague and visited the Mauritshuis museum for a Vermeer exhibition (the girl with the earing) and other old Dutch masters, Rembrandt and the likes.

Just saying I was totally blown away by some of the paintings, the colours, composition, astounding. I'm no great culture vulture but this ticked my boxes.
Especially enjoyed pouring over those with anything natural history in, looking at what birds they had (and ate) comparing their vegetables with those of today - interesting history there.

In reply to Moley: National Art Gallery in Trafalger Square is well worth a visit.

In reply to Steve Perry:


Second this.

Saw some amazing Rembrandt and Van Dyke masterpieces there, some of them are almost photographic, amazing skin tones. I also saw some Van Eyke, a huge leap forward in artistic skill in my opinion, I think the Arnolfini Portrait is there, quiet amazing, especially considering it's nearly 600 years old.

Of course, there's plenty of other stuff there that's jaw dropping to see "in the flesh". The Tate is great too, especially if Joeseph Turner floats your boat. In fact, you could spend a week in London just getting visual overlaod around the many great galleries.

In reply to Moley:


Surprised you were not arrested for this Pollockesque reaction!

In reply to Moley:

Agreed, it can be awesome to see the real thing. I made an effort to go to a Millais exhibition at the Tate; I particularly wanted to see 'Mariana' and half expected to be underwhelmed. What actually happened was that I was blown away - it was stunningly beautiful and I spent I don't know how long just standing there captivated. Got around the entire exhibition but came back to 'Mariana' twice for more extending gawping. And 'Ophelia', to which I've always been rather indifferent, was stunning.

What struck me most was the depth and vividness of the colour. I expected that colours would be a little flat or dull, as I was used to seeing them with the backlit glow of a computer screen, but the colours were actually better in real life.

A Turner exhibition surprised me in a similar way. Great on the computer, awe-inspiring in the flesh.

If I get the chance, I'd love to see Sergant's 'Lady Agnew of Lochnaw':

http://pictify.saatchigallery.com/929472/sargent-lady-agnew-of-lochnaw-1892...

In reply to Moley:

I forgot to mention Vermeer. The light in those paintings was mind-blowing, it did things to my head.

In reply to Tony Naylor:

Yes, the girl with the earing, for instance. It appears through ones life on postcards, stamps, posters, tea towels, every bit of saleable tat in the world, it's another pretty old picture.
But seeing it in the museum, hung and lit perfectly it took on an other worldly aura ( hope I don't sound too dippy), something about it that made me stare, move around a bit, stare. She is alive.

Suppose that is greatness.

In reply to Moley:

I recall being quite stoned but being absolutely absorbed in Van Gogh's Portrait in Blue in the Musee D'Orsay when I was young.....the other great painting which bowled me over was Dali's Christ of StJohn on the Cross in Glasgow....a magical painting!

In reply to abr1966:

I was absorbed by just about every painting in the Musee D'Orsay (and I was straight ), but then I love Impressionism.

I remember seeing Dali's Metamorphosis of Narcissus at the National. As it was quite quiet I leaned over the rope as far as I could, I reckon I was not more than a foot away and I still couldn't see a single brush stroke. Would love to see his Christ of St John on the Cross.

In reply to Moley:

Well put, and I agree - 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' is captivating. But for me, it's the light in Vermeer's indoor scenes that blows my mind. It doesn't come across very well on a computer screen, but it's stunning when you see the real thing. 'The Geographer' is a good example:

http://www.johannes-vermeer.org/the-geographer.jsp

BTW, 'Girl with a Pearl Earring' is also the title of a novel by Tracy Chevalier which follows Vermeer and the girl and the painting. It's a cracking read.

In reply to Tony Naylor:

Don't forget the film too!