Edgar Degas, (1834–1917), "Head of a Soldier,” circa 1859, watercolor, gouache and red chalk wash over graphite, Fondation Custodia, Paris.
:As its major fall exhibition, the Frick Collection is presenting "Watteau to Degas: French Drawings from the Frits Lugt Collection," featuring more than 60 works on paper from the holdings of the Fondation Custodia, Paris.
It includes drawings and watercolors by well-known masters of the French School, including Antoine Watteau, Edgar Degas, François Boucher, Jacques-Louis David, Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres, Eugène Delacroix, and Jean-Honoré Fragonard, as well as by important figures who may be less familiar to the general public.
This is the first public exhibition to focus on French Eighteenth and Nineteenth Century works on paper from the holdings of Johannes Frederik Lugt (1884–1970), a self-taught art historian and noted collector. His name is well known to those in the field, and with his pioneering publications very much in use still, he continues to be cited today. The exhibit will remain on view through January 10.
Pierre-Paul Prud'hon (1758–1823), "The Cellist,” half-length, three-quarter back view, turned toward the left, 1777–78, pen and black ink, gray wash over graphite, Fondation Custodia, Paris.
Initially specializing in Dutch and Flemish drawings and prints from his native Netherlands, Lugt later began to acquire works from all over Western Europe, with a great strength developed in the area represented in this exhibition.
In 1947, Lugt established the Fondation Custodia, Paris, to care for and to add to his collections; it now holds more than 7,000 drawings and 30,000 prints, as well as paintings, books and artists' letters.
The exhibition was organized by the Frick's Associate Director and Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator Colin B. Bailey and Senior Curator Susan Grace Galassi and is accompanied by a catalog and selection of public programs.
After its debut at the Frick, the exhibition will travel to the Institut Néerlanddais, Paris, February 11–April 11.
The Frick Collection is at 1 East 70th Street. For more information,
www.frick.org
or 212-288-0700.
