EXHIBITION NGV INTERNATIONAL -  Melbourne’s Winter Masterpieces

 

Monets Garden, The Musee Marmottan Monet, Paris

 

 

THE FOLLOWING NOTES WERE MADE FROM THE EDUCATION LECTURE GIVEN AT THE NGV ON THE 1ST AUGUST 2013. THE LECTURE WAS RECORDED AND A WRITTEN FORMAT MADE BELOW.

 

 

As you enter the gallery you encounter Celeste Boursier-Mougenot’s installation as a tribute to the Monet’s waterlilies. The gallery had been redesigned to fit the exhibition, so the installation with the pond, involved movement and sound. Also the Café/ Gallery Kitchen has a French feel with the yellow and blue tones of Monet’s dining room. The yellow chairs, the copper pots from Monet’s kitchen. The whole exhibition permeated the gallery and beyond. The bluestone walls, the exhibition design and space with colours used throughout the gallery that were evident in Monet’s lifestyle and artworks.

 

Throughout the exhibition space there was very subtle lighting set at 150-200 lux so as not to damage the paintings.

Softly toned mauve walls on entry and in the first section of the exhibition space.

The entrance into the exhibition was through double doors greeted by Monets painting ‘Taking a walk near Argenteuil’ 1875, oil on canvas.

Then opening out left and right on either side of this painting. This room had lowered ceilings.

The artworks were hung in a traditional manner, with very ornate frames.

4 to 5 paintings on each wall mainly portraits.

Plinths protruding out of the wall, along the floor, to prevent the public from touching the paintings, with a metal didactic  (conveys information) protruding vertically from these wall plinths. Also, audio material was available to give the public information about each painting as they walked through the exhibition.

 

Beautiful textured artworks, particularly the waterlilies, broad brush stokes, subtle colours to display atmospheric conditions which is evident in Monet’s artworks.

 

2nd room - was a large open space much higher ceilings with subtle lights, mauve walls, wooden floors.

Most of the paintings have no glass, however, the seascape……..’Rough weather at Étretat’, 1883, oil on canvas had a glass cover. The painting has textured paint, with sand as Monet painted it ‘en plein air’, displayed atmospheric conditions and subtle colours. There was a division of composition with water in foreground and background displayed the sky and cliff.

Rugged coast around the Norman town of Étretat had been a favourite destination for painters for many years, in particular for Monet’s mentor Gustave Courbet.

This expansion of the sea seems indicative of the shrinking relevance of the figure in his work. Material analysis also reveals grains of sand in the paint layers, showing that he painted the work on the beach.

 

3rd room - delicate soft green colour, to compliment the Monet water lily series of works. Very ornate frames, very open space, very high ceilings, 150 lux, large open space with centrally located seats for the public to sit and view artworks, plinth barriers out from the wall.

 

Water Lillies  1914-1917, oil on canvas,12 x 6 feet, later works when Monet's eye sight was failing through age. Monet’s love of water endeared him to plants that thrived at the edge of his ponds. He enjoyed the arching, strappy leaves of the Hemerocallis (dayliliy) and its striking orange flower head on a tall waving stem. In general, Monet preferred single flowers of pure, uninflected colour. In the early 20th centuary Hemerocallis had not yet undergone diversification into elaborate and ruffled hybrid forms. In this painting limited to greens, oranges, purples and browns, a dramatic diagonal bisects the composition and marks the transition between land and water. Monet’s brush marks across the water’s surface are elongated to mimic the forms of the daylily foliage, and their hooked, purple lines animate the opaque pond. It is a beautifully textured painting, vibrant colours, water lillies down bottom left side and right top subtle shades of purple rough red tones and a lot more texture in this work with more vibrant colour painted quickly and very thick areas of some of the lillies. Broad brush strokes.

 

Then we move around to a large auditiorium with an audio and video of Monet’s house, studio and garden. With information and music playing in the background before you exit the exhibition.

 

 

Curator of NGV International: Sophie Mathieson

 

Responsible for a very large collection of paintings and sculptures. Working on large exhibitions.

Initially proposed as a set of photos from Museum.

Interpreting and shaping the show with exhibition designer.

The intention of the cuartor was to display the artworks chronologically and thematically.

Research on Monet so as to write catalogues on Monet.

Communicating the show to every area in the gallery......Media, education, etc.

Liase with every area of the gallery, discuss Monet from every possible angle.

The curator will give long lectures to audiences, short comments for tweets, convey some sort of engagement to any member of the public. The research side is infinite.

 

 

Exhibition Designer: Mark Patullo

 

Exhibition design, space, floors, lighting, signage, all needs to suit the artworks on exhibition.

Start working 12 months out. Concept development, design development

Documentation: drawings, construction, then oversee the construction of the show.

Show the curatorial vision..........How will the visitor experience the show?

Monets works provide inspiration for the colours on the walls.

We build scale models as a starting tool. Curatorial team work with us and move artworks around in a small scale version to see how the artworks will look.

Artworks, multimedia touch work screens with historical information, and a panoramic film in the auditorium at the end of the show.

 

 

Conservation: Catherine Earley

 

Conservation team from the lending gallery will ask the borrowing gallery for the temperature and relative humidity in the gallery, at the same time for the previous year. For example, if an exhibition is scheduled for July 2013 then the lending gallery will want to know the temperature and humidity for July 2012.

 

Consider safety and conservation of artworks. Plinths are at the base of the wall to keep the public away from the artworks. This may sometimes be a condition of the lending gallery as to ensure the safety of the artworks.

 

Documents accompany the artworks upon delivery, this is a legal document, often referred to as a condition report. The artwork is checked against the condition report as it is unpacked with a magnifying glass and torch to make sure it is accurate and no damage has occurred. These artworks are often checked with the lending and borrowing gallery experts.

 

At the finish of the exhibition the artwork is rechecked against an accompanying document that is sent back to the lending gallery. Here in Australia we work in a very similar manner to the European galleries. 

 

 

Marketing Coordinator: Antoinette Azzopardi

 

This is an extremely diverse role. We aim to promote the brand that is NGV. Promoting exhibitions. Work with all departments of the gallery. Organise ads, TV, newspaper, magazines and radio. Many things are considered communication and they need to be branded appropriately.

 

Considerations for a marketing campaign:

Who are we targeting for the exhibition ?

What are the key pieces?

why is the show being held?

who do we want to come?

What platforms do we reach our target audience:

Large range of platforms, accessible show, outdoor adverts, postcards, poster in herald sun, branded the Melbourne visit centre for tourist in fed square, a branded tram and V-line train to target regional visitors. Special cinema ad for the French film festival held in May.

Social media platforms: FB, twitter, instagram, vine and NGV blog page. NGV can communicate for free and reach a large audience on a daily basis.

Write strategy documents, press releases etc.

 

 

Media: Gemma Altmeier

 

Speech writing, work with all departments in NGV, partners, sponsors.

Media and Marketing are two separate departments.

Monets Garden is only in Victoria.

Interstate media briefings, travel to NZ to get tourists to the Exhibition.

We start working on this exhibition 6-8 months before opening. Have discussions with the Curator, conservation department, public programs department as to what their needs and requirements are, and also the Marketing team to make sure our stories are in sync. The Media and Marketing department are sending the same message to the public.