The Enchanted Landscapes of Claude Lorrain at The Ashmolean

A Collection of Enchanted landscapes by Claude Lorrain at The Ashmolean :

Coming soon to the Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology in Oxford is an exhibition of paintings, drawings and prints by Claude Lorrain.

Titled, Claude Lorrain: The Enchanted Landscape, the exhibition will bring together from international collections, 140 works that were created at different points in the artist’s career. Lorrain is recognised as the ‘father’ of European landscape painting.

The Influence of Lorrain’s Landscapes

Claude Lorrain was born in France c1604 – his real name was Claude Gellée. He first visited Italy when he was 13 or 14, and settled in Rome for the rest of his life. The scenery of his great paintings was based on his studies of the ancient ruins and the countryside of the Tiber Valley and the Roman Campagna.

John Constable described Claude Lorrain as “the most perfect landscape painter the world ever saw”. The popularity of his work in Britain, which grew in the 18th and 19th centuries, was begun by British ‘Grand Tourists’ and has influenced the British countryside. Notable garden designers reproduced his ideal views in the parklands of great houses from Blenheim Palace and Stowe to Stourhead and Chatsworth. English country houses are well stocked with both original paintings by Lorrain and with copies.

Lorrain at the Ashmolean

The exhibition will also reveal an unconventional side to Lorrain that has previously been little known, including his eccentric graphic art and his experimental etchings.

Exhibition: The Enchanted Landscapes
When :   October 6, 2011 – January 8, 2012
Place  :   Special Exhibition Galleries, The Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology, Oxford, Beaumont Street, Oxford OX1 2PH
Tel       :  +44 1865 278002
Website: http://www.ashmolean.org
Opening Hrs: The Ashmolean is open 10 am –6 pm Tue–Sun and Bank Holiday Mons.
Admission : Claude Lorrain: The Enchanted Landscape – £9.

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