DUBAI: The Louvre Abu Dhabi has launched its latest exhibition, “Post-Impressionism: Beyond Appearances,” featuring works by some of the most celebrated artists of the influential movement — many on display in the region for the first time.
Vincent van Gogh, Paul Cezanne, Georges Seurat, Henri-Edmond Cross, Emile Bernard, Paul Serusier, Paul Gauguin and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, whose work helped shape the postimpressionist movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, are all represented.
Organized by Jean-Remi Touzet, curator of painting at Musee d’Orsay in Paris, and Jerome Farigoule, chief curator at the Louvre Abu Dhabi, the exhibition is being held in collaboration with the Musee d’Orsay and France Museums. It runs until Feb. 9.
The exhibition runs until Feb. 9. (Supplied)
Manuel Rabate, director of the Louvre Abu Dhabi, told Arab News: “This concentration is unique and created specifically for us. We held an exhibition on impressionism in 2022, but once again we’re able to bring a significant number of important paintings, drawings and prints to the region, granting access to a fundamental moment in art history.
“We first focused on impressionism, now our attention is on the constellation of artists that are framed within postimpressionism, which is not just one school, it is diverse.”
The exhibition also includes two paintings by Egyptian artist Georges Hanna Sabbagh: “The Artist and His Family at the Church of La Clarte” (1920), on loan from the Pompidou Center in Paris, and “The Family: The Sabbaghs in Paris” (1921), on loan from the Musee de Grenoble in France.
Vincent van Gogh, whose work helped shape the postimpressionist movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, is represented at the exhibition. (Supplied)
The works are accompanied by the actual palettes the artists used to create them.
“We aimed to make the exhibition extremely relevant to the region, whether by including artists like Sabbagh or by showcasing the artists’ palettes themselves,” Rabate said.
“With artists like Sabbagh you see the connection with our modernity.”
Visitors would be treated to “access to the artists’ works, like Van Gogh and Cezanne, which they may have only seen reproduced elsewhere. Here, you’ll be in the physical presence of them,” Rabate said.
“You may discover other artists as well. The surprise can take two forms: reconnecting with an old friend or discovering a new one. This exhibition will give guests access and inspiration.”
