Isabelle Kent | University of Cambridge (original) (raw)
Books by Isabelle Kent
The art of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) captured the British imagination in the eighteen... more The art of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) captured the British imagination in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Wealthy collectors competed for the choicest pictures, artists imitated his styles and adopted his subjects, and much ink was spilled in praise of the painter. While Murillo’s popularity waned in the twentieth century, his legacy lives on in the great public collections of British and Irish museums – unrivalled outside of Spain.
This book explores the collectors, connoisseurs, travellers and artists who brought Murillo’s art to prominence in the British Isles. Twelve distinguished academics and curators examine in rich detail how the taste for this artist grew and changed over the course of two centuries. They reassess collectors from Robert Walpole and Lawrence Dundas to John Meade, William Eden and Alfred Beit in light of the great value they placed on the Spaniard’s works, and consider in depth early scholarship by Richard Ford and William Stirling Maxwell. The complex networks of diplomats, travellers and expats in Madrid and Seville are scrutinised by scholars whose complementary approaches highlight the great interest in Murillo’s art in the period. Using a wealth of archival material, much of it unpublished, the authors have cast new light on these individuals, their collections and their relationship with an artist who helped shape British tastes for over a century.
ISBN 978-84-15245-96-4
Articles and Chapters by Isabelle Kent
The Burlington Magazine, 2022
In October 2021 the only museum in Britain devoted to Spanish art opened in Bishop Auckland, Coun... more In October 2021 the only museum in Britain devoted to Spanish art opened in Bishop Auckland, County Durham. Part of the Auckland Project, which uses art, faith and heritage to fuel longterm regeneration, the museum offers an impressive if idiosyncratic representation of Spain in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland, 2020
Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 133 31/8/20 16:14 Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 134 31/8/20 16:14 7... more Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 133 31/8/20 16:14 Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 134 31/8/20 16:14 7 Remigio Ugo Pane records five editions of Don Quixote published in Dublin before 1800, none of which had illustrations. This list is even slimmer for other Spanish texts. Ugo Pane (1944). The edition in the painting may instead come from a seventeenthcentury French edition translated into English; McManus (2004). My thanks to Philip McEvansoneya for his insights in this matter.
Painting Freedom: Indian Modernism and its Three Rebels, 2021
Reviews by Isabelle Kent
The Burlington Magazine, 2020
Hispanic Research Journal, 2020
Conference Papers by Isabelle Kent
Transgression and Liminality in Iberian and Latin American Art: Emerging Researchers Symposium. D... more Transgression and Liminality in Iberian and Latin American Art: Emerging Researchers Symposium. Durham University, Zurbarán Centre for Spanish and Latin American Art (7-8 July 2022)
This paper was presented at the National Gallery conference "Poetry in Paint: Titian's Late Mytho... more This paper was presented at the National Gallery conference "Poetry in Paint: Titian's Late Mythologies" (3, 10 & 17 November) organised to commemorate the exhibition Titian: Love Desire and Death.
Paper delivered 28 Feb 2020, at Murillo Study Day, National Gallery of Ireland. The conference wa... more Paper delivered 28 Feb 2020, at Murillo Study Day, National Gallery of Ireland. The conference was in celebration of the opening of the exhibition 'Murillo: the Prodigal Son Restored'.
This paper was delivered at the conference 'Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland' on 14 May ... more This paper was delivered at the conference 'Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland' on 14 May 2018.
Lectures by Isabelle Kent
This lecture was delivered at the long running seminar series 'Seminars in the History of Collect... more This lecture was delivered at the long running seminar series 'Seminars in the History of Collecting', The Wallace Collection, 30 September 2019.
Conferences Organised by Isabelle Kent
University of Cambridge, 2024
The art of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) captured the British imagination in the eighteen... more The art of Bartolomé Esteban Murillo (1617–1682) captured the British imagination in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Wealthy collectors competed for the choicest pictures, artists imitated his styles and adopted his subjects, and much ink was spilled in praise of the painter. While Murillo’s popularity waned in the twentieth century, his legacy lives on in the great public collections of British and Irish museums – unrivalled outside of Spain.
This book explores the collectors, connoisseurs, travellers and artists who brought Murillo’s art to prominence in the British Isles. Twelve distinguished academics and curators examine in rich detail how the taste for this artist grew and changed over the course of two centuries. They reassess collectors from Robert Walpole and Lawrence Dundas to John Meade, William Eden and Alfred Beit in light of the great value they placed on the Spaniard’s works, and consider in depth early scholarship by Richard Ford and William Stirling Maxwell. The complex networks of diplomats, travellers and expats in Madrid and Seville are scrutinised by scholars whose complementary approaches highlight the great interest in Murillo’s art in the period. Using a wealth of archival material, much of it unpublished, the authors have cast new light on these individuals, their collections and their relationship with an artist who helped shape British tastes for over a century.
ISBN 978-84-15245-96-4
The Burlington Magazine, 2022
In October 2021 the only museum in Britain devoted to Spanish art opened in Bishop Auckland, Coun... more In October 2021 the only museum in Britain devoted to Spanish art opened in Bishop Auckland, County Durham. Part of the Auckland Project, which uses art, faith and heritage to fuel longterm regeneration, the museum offers an impressive if idiosyncratic representation of Spain in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland, 2020
Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 133 31/8/20 16:14 Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 134 31/8/20 16:14 7... more Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 133 31/8/20 16:14 Collecting Murillo (2as).indb 134 31/8/20 16:14 7 Remigio Ugo Pane records five editions of Don Quixote published in Dublin before 1800, none of which had illustrations. This list is even slimmer for other Spanish texts. Ugo Pane (1944). The edition in the painting may instead come from a seventeenthcentury French edition translated into English; McManus (2004). My thanks to Philip McEvansoneya for his insights in this matter.
Painting Freedom: Indian Modernism and its Three Rebels, 2021
Transgression and Liminality in Iberian and Latin American Art: Emerging Researchers Symposium. D... more Transgression and Liminality in Iberian and Latin American Art: Emerging Researchers Symposium. Durham University, Zurbarán Centre for Spanish and Latin American Art (7-8 July 2022)
This paper was presented at the National Gallery conference "Poetry in Paint: Titian's Late Mytho... more This paper was presented at the National Gallery conference "Poetry in Paint: Titian's Late Mythologies" (3, 10 & 17 November) organised to commemorate the exhibition Titian: Love Desire and Death.
Paper delivered 28 Feb 2020, at Murillo Study Day, National Gallery of Ireland. The conference wa... more Paper delivered 28 Feb 2020, at Murillo Study Day, National Gallery of Ireland. The conference was in celebration of the opening of the exhibition 'Murillo: the Prodigal Son Restored'.
This paper was delivered at the conference 'Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland' on 14 May ... more This paper was delivered at the conference 'Collecting Murillo in Britain and Ireland' on 14 May 2018.
This lecture was delivered at the long running seminar series 'Seminars in the History of Collect... more This lecture was delivered at the long running seminar series 'Seminars in the History of Collecting', The Wallace Collection, 30 September 2019.