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Clark Welcomes Masterpieces from the Prado
By Stephen Dravis, iBerkshires Staff
08:58PM / Saturday, June 11, 2016
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'Marriage of Peleus and Thetis,' by Flemish artist Jacob Jordaens, is among the Old Masters on display at the Clark in 'Splendor, Myth, and Vision: Nudes from the Prado.'

WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. — In 16th and 17th century Spain, many of the masterworks of Titian and Reubens were available only to the privileged few.

Starting Saturday, visitors to the Clark Art Institute have the privilege of seeing several of their important works, on loan for the summer from the Museo Nacional del Prado in Madrid.

"Splendor, Myth, and Vision: Nudes from the Prado," on view through Oct. 10, explores the relationship between Flemish master Peter Paul Rubens, his predecessor, the Italian Tiziano Vecelli (Titian) and their respective patrons, Spanish monarchs Philip IV and Philip II.

The relationship between Rubens and Titian is obvious. The former emulated, learned from and sought to improve upon the work of the latter.

Politically, it's complicated.

That is because, as the show's title indicates, the artwork in question celebrates the human body in ways that by 21st century standards might seem quaint but were downright scandalous in Spain during the Middle Ages.

"Their passion for collecting would conflict with their public role as Catholic monarchs," explained Lara Yeager-Crasselt, the Clark's interim curator of paintings and sculpture.

Yeager on Thursday led a media preview of the exhibit along with interim senior curator Kathleen Morris and Miguel Falomir, the deputy director of the Prado.

Falomir accompanied the 28 Old Master paintings on loan from his institution — 24 of which have never visited the United States.

"Actually, this exhibition is something the Clark has worked on since 2009, when we first entered discussions with the Museo Nacional del Prado about doing an exchange," Morris said.


'Fortuna' by Peter Paul Rubens.

When the Clark sent its Renoirs to the Prado in 2010, it was one of the most successful special exhibitions in the history of the museum's nearly two-century existence, and it laid the groundwork for this summer's show, Morris said.

In addition to Titian and Rubens, "Splendor," includes works by Jacopo Tintoretto, Diego Velazquez and other artists of the period.

Given the subject matter, the works were not displayed publicly in their own time. Rather, Philip II and Philip IV kept them hidden in private rooms known as salas reservadas. The Prado itself continued that practice when it first received the nudes in its collection in the early 19th century.

It is worth noting that the works — many of which are sensual or even erotic — are far from pornographic. On the contrary, their source material includes stories from history, mythology and the Bible.

"The images were a way of exploring sensuality and having it be connected to themes of morality and lessons," Morris said.

That fact did not win over all critics.

In the late 18th century, Spanish kings Charles III and Charles IV each thought about destroying the "offensive" works.

"Charles III is the typical Enlightenment king who is supposed to have an open mind, so you can see that history is often a little more complicated than you think," Falomir said.

Falomir said Spanish artist Anton Raphael Mengs was the one who convinced Charles III that the paintings were worth preserving — and locking away in the academy, where art students could use them to study the human form.

"So we all owe Mengs a debt of gratitude," Morris said.

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