Princely Treasures: European Masterpieces 1600-1800 from the Victoria and Albert Museum showcases eighty objects from the magnificent collections of European decorative art of the 17th and 18th centuries, from the miniature to the monumental. It encompasses many different materials and techniques, including painting and sculpture, ceramics and glass, metalwork and furniture, textiles and dress, prints and drawings. Themes encapsulating important aspects of courtly life in Europe include princely patronage, the importance of war, the role of religion, the peaceful arts of the domestic interior, and the splendor of personal adornment.

Objects included in the exhibition were acquired and used by European men and women of power, wealth and taste. Many were made by Europe’s finest artists and craftsmen, using precious materials from around the world. They come from all corners of the continent – from Britain and France, Italy and Germany, Russia and Spain, Austria and Belgium, Holland and Sweden. A few, made specifically for the European market in Asia, demonstrate Europe’s great appetite for exploration, as well as its establishment of significant trading links and empires.

Princely Patronage presents key figures from the princely courts who were the great patrons of the arts in Europe between 1600 and 1800.

Power and Glory explores how military power was celebrated and representations of war were used to decorate objects commissioned for courtly use, from armour and weapons to tapestries and paintings.

Religious Splendour reveals the nature of objects made for worship, commissioned by secular or ecclesiastical patrons for public or private devotional use.

Display in the Interior presents furniture, textiles and ceramics made for use in palaces and noble residences, either for decorative or social purposes.

Fashion and Personal Adornment reveals the care and attention aristocratic men and women took to dress in fashionable style from head to toe.

This is a unique opportunity to view these treasures, some of which are traveling for the first time since their acquisition by the V&A. The exhibition showcases the highlights of the Victoria and Albert Museum’s European collections, which will be redisplayed in an elegant and newly refurbished suite of galleries, opening after 2014. V&A Publishing will produce a richly illustrated book to accompany the exhibition.

Exhibition organized by the Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Website: http://www.okcmoa.com/see/exhibitions/princely-treasures/

Categories: Exhibits, Historical