Representing the Collector. An Approach towards the Analysis of temporary Loan Exhibitions around 1900. (original) (raw)

Abstract

Inside the exhibition (Rome, Oct. 2020) RAHN (Rome Art History Network) VIII Doctoral Study Day Private art collections have always been used as a means of personal representation and social distinction. As decorative elements of the luxurious furnishing of the homes of aristocrats and upper-class entrepreneurs, especially Old Master art works became the favoured objects of private collecting in Wilhelmine Germany. It was at the same time, that the presentation of temporary Loan Exhibitions, organised by collectors’ clubs and museum associations, flourished. These exhibitions were curated by museum professionals like Wilhelm Bode or Max J. Friedländer and put privately owned art works on display, which until then had almost never been publicly accessible. The proposed paper not only intends to ask for the multifaced cultural, political and social reasons, why some of the most famous Berlin art collectors as well as several members of the Prussian royal family repeatedly relinquished from the luxury of their art treasures to make those exhibitions possible. Following Umberto Ecos’ semiotic approach and Pierre Bourdieus’ sociocultural theories, it will furthermore examine how – in some cases – these prestigious artworks have been put on show (mis en scène) in order to transfer their representational function as signs of their owners’ taste, knowledge and wealth from the private sphere of their homes into the public context of a temporary exhibition. Supported by historical photographs and archival reports, the paper analyses, in what manner some exhibits were presented more prominently within the all-over display than others and discusses, whether the owners of such highlighted artworks or collections would stand out among their fellow loaners and could therefore expect (increased) social appreciation.

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