Still somewhat hungover from the previous night, I thought I would see Eoin most of the way back to Paddington for his train, but divert to see a little exhibition I had been meaning to go to at the Wallace Collection.
Now when I say "little exhibition" I really mean it. Essentially it is an exhibition devoted to only one exhibit, Caravaggio's Victorious Cupid, which is on "special" loan from Berlin. Well it's not quite on its own. There are also two Roman marble statues, which are also in Berlin and were once also owned by Caravaggio's patron Vincenzo Giustiniani. The exhibition is augmented by sketches of other works (especially other cupids) and the area in which Caravaggio and his patron lived.
And given Caravaggio was renowned for his technique of painting in shadows, fittingly the rooms are dark with areas of intense illumination. It's very dramatic, manageable, informative, not too pretentious.
It was actually very nice just to have the one painting to look at. Normally I wander through hundreds and don't maybe absorb that much, or think too deeply about the painting before me as there are so many others just waiting next to it.
This painting is extraordinary for a number of reasons. First the realism. Second the symbolism of Love Conquers All. Cupid stands astride musical instruments, sketch books, architects tools, literature, music scripts, a globe (so the world) a crown (so earthly authority) a suit of armour (so war).
Cupid is neatly idealised. By which I mean cute cheeky face, but a rather chunky torso for a prepubescent boy. It was no surprise to read that Caravaggio was assumed to be gay, and that according to one seventeenth century writer, the model was his twelve year old servant and lover (although not clear that he was his lover when he was only 12). But does show you started work earlier in those days! The wings were also painted from a pair of real eagles' wings he had been given.
And apparently it was quite the thing back in the day to compare "modern" works like those of Caravaggio or Michelangelo, with ancient ones, like the two sculptures in the exhibition. The Cupid painting was kept behind a green curtain so that when Giustiniani was showing guests around his collection, he could open the curtains at the end with a flourish to reveal the star painting of his artworks.
If you haven't been to the Wallace Collection it is well worth it for the breadth and quality of what is on show, from grand rooms, to armouries and a great picture gallery upstairs packed with Rubens and Rembrandt, Dutch masters and French Rococo
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