Off to breakfast this morning at the Courtauld Gallery to see their excellent exhibition of Cezannes and to hear an introductory talk by Dr Stephanie Buck, Curator of Drawings and Dr Ernst Vegelin, Head of the Gallery. Samuel Courtauld put together the largest collection of Cezannes in the world, larger than the Louvre and the National Gallery, partly because Mr Courtauld believed in the artist when few others did, and in the one room are 25 paintings, watercolours and drawings.
When Samuel Courtauld died in 1921 he left £50,000 a year (the equivalent to about £20m a year now) to the National Gallery to collect paintings. In fact the first Cezanne they purchased was after Courtauld's death. He was a remarkable collector and benefactor. If you work in the vicinity - anywhere between Trafalgar Square and Fleet Street - you'll have a wonderful 45 minute lunch break, and if you don't, it's still worth the longer journey.
When Samuel Courtauld died in 1921 he left £50,000 a year (the equivalent to about £20m a year now) to the National Gallery to collect paintings. In fact the first Cezanne they purchased was after Courtauld's death. He was a remarkable collector and benefactor. If you work in the vicinity - anywhere between Trafalgar Square and Fleet Street - you'll have a wonderful 45 minute lunch break, and if you don't, it's still worth the longer journey.
1 Comments:
I shall give it a go next week when I am in London -thanks for the tip - its great that you share this kind thing with us!
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