Day 420 - Tiepolo and Gandolfi

August 8, 2025

I had to detour through the Islamic galleries to reach my destination and was abashed and disconcerted to note how unfamiliar they seemed.  Yes, I explored these several years ago, but still.... I would like to think the galleries have been rearranged, and that that explains my confusion. En route to gallery 643, though, I paused to look at a wonderful print of a beached whale surrounded by curious onlookers made by a Dutch artist in the first decade of the 17th century. It's the largest of several treatments of this subject and interesting, though on reflection not surprising, to note that the citizens of early modern Europe were as fascinated by these huge creatures as we are today. It's yet another reminder of how many treasures are to be found in the museum.

According to the wall signage, the oil paintings in Gallery 643 include both preparatory sketches and finished works. Featuring lots of clouds, putti, and other figures in the sky, the works depict Biblical and mythological scenes, scenes from classical literature, and scenes described as "allegorical" - but allegorical of what?  Many are by Tiepolo, and the wall signs are helpful in explaining that the allegories celebrate the power and prestige of the individuals who commissioned the works. Tiepolo worked for patrons all over Europe, including Spain, and one of today's selections, painted in the1760s, bears the title, "The Apotheosis of the Spanish Monarchy." Set in an oval frame measuring perhaps 32 inches high and 26 inches across at the maximum points, it shows Spain as a woman . She is accompanied by lions  representing Leon, an old woman beside a castle representing Castile, and Hercules, the country's traditional protector, with a column reprsenting Gibraltar. Other allegorical figures indicate  the continents. The image is a design for a small room beside the Spanish throne room, and while I can't say I like the painting much - it's too grandiose and abstract for me - it does an effective job of conveying the sweep of Spain's rule.

One painting I do like is a small oil, about 24 inches high and 18 inches wide, by Ubaldo Gandolfi, yet another Italian painter I've never heard of, whose dates are 1728-1781. I suspect I like it because I instantly recognize the subject, the execution of Saint John the Baptist. The bearded saint kneels, awaiting the blow of the brawny swordsman beside him.I'm not sure who the figure in the sky is - God?  The swirling clouds and touches of red add to tthe sense of violent energy. That said, this isn't a painting I'd want in my home, even if I were Catholic.

The introductory wall sign is entitled "Tiepolo and Multiracial Europe." This is a huge stretch, in my book.. Most of the works don't include people of color at all, and of those that do, the representations are highly conventional - the three Magi, personifications of the continents, etc. Despite the strained political correctness of the signage, it's interesting to learn that enslaved and freed Blacks made up a significant part of Venice's guild of gondoliers.