In conversation: intention and innovation in eighteenth-century display

Abstract

"At the beginning of the eighteenth century, a generation of collectors in France and the Holy Roman Empire developed new principles for the display of paintings, principles based on comparison triggered by the mixture of schools and periods; its aim was to encourage analysis and connoisseurship through comparison and conversation. The ground-breaking theories of Roger de Piles were central to this novel approach, and essential to its understanding. These principles were predominant until the 1780s. This book examines case studies in France, the German Empire and the UK that exemplify these new principles"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents

Pioneers of the New Principles. Lothar Franz Graf Schönborn at Pommersfelden, Schloss Weißenstein ; Eugen, Prince of Savoy at Vienna, Upper Belvedere ; Philippe II, Duc d'Orléans at Paris, Palais Royal ; Pierre Crozat at Paris, rue de Richelieu -- New Approaches by Private Collectors. Jeanne-Baptiste d'Albert, Comtesse de Verrue at Paris, rue du Cherche-Midi ; Jean de Jullienne at Paris, rue des Gobelins ; Français Berger at Paris, rue Saint-Marc ; Etienne-François, Duc de Choiseul at Paris, rue de Richelieu -- Rulers and Institutions. Elector Friedrich August II of Saxony/August III King of Poland at Dresden, Stallhof ; The Electors Palatine at Düsseldorf, Schloss, and at Mannheim, Schloss ; The French Royal Collection at Paris, Palais du Luxembourg ; The Académie Royal de Peinture et de Sculpture at the Salon, Paris, Palais du Louvre ; Abel-François Poisson de Vandières, Marquis de Marigny et de Menars at Paris, rue Saint-Thomas-du-Louvre ; Friedrich II, King of Prussia at Potsdam, Schloss Sanssouci and Bildergalerie -- The British Contribution. Sir Robert Walpole at Houghton Hall ; Thomas Coke, Earl of Leicester at Holkham Hall ; John Stuart, 3rd Warl of Bute at Luton Hoo -- On the Verge of the Museum Age. The Imperial Collection at Vienna, Upper Belvedere.