January 24, 2009

Masterpieces from Spain’s Prado museum went on display in microscopic detail on Google Earth, in what was hailed as a first for a major international museum.

“This technological advance will provide access to the works to anyone from anywhere in the world,” said Prado director Miguel Zugaza during an official presentation of the project.

Among the 14 canvases available for inspection online is Diego Velazquez’s ‘Las meninas’ depicting the Infanta Margarita and her courtiers, regarded as his greatest work and one of the best-known paintings at the two-centuries-old Prado.

Other works which art lovers can examine in detail from their computers are Francisco de Goya’s ‘El tres de Mayo’, Hieronymus Bosch’s triptych ‘The garden of earthly delights’ as well as painting by Rubens, Titian, Rembrandt and El Greco.

“This is the first time in the world that this is being done,” said the head of the Spanish branch of US Internet giant Google, Javier Rodriguez Zapatero.

The Google Earth images have a resolution of 14,000 megapixels, about 1,400 times greater than a picture taken on a standard 10 megapixel camera. They where stitched together from thousands of high-resolution photographs of the paintings.

They will then be able to scan the surface of the canvases as if using a magnifying glass, capturing brush strokes as well as other details which would be impossible to see if they visited the gallery in person.

The Prado displays some 1,400 paintings, mostly by Spanish masters. It is one of Madrid’s top tourist draws, attracting over two million visitors last year. — AFP

 

Sarkozy plans a museum of France’s history


By Angelique Chrisafis in Paris
 

French presidents have rushed to build a great cultural monument by which to be remembered, from Georges Pompidou’s art centre and Francois Mitterrand’s Louvre glass pyramid to Jacques Chirac’s museum of indigenous art. Now Nicolas Sarkozy wants his own project: a museum of the history of France.

The president, whose emphasis on French pride and ‘national identity’ has already caused controversy, declared this week that an all-encompassing history museum would reinforce ‘French identity’. His museum would not seek to create ‘an official history’, but a pluralistic approach, he told leading arts figures.

The museum would be built in a “symbolic place” yet to be decided, but Sarkozy’s declared passion for bold architecture and praise for Mitterrand suggests that he plans to leave a mark on the landscape.

Sarkozy first mooted his idea for a French history museum when he took office. A report was commissioned by the curator Herve Lemoine, who suggested that the museum could be located at Les Invalides, the vast complex that houses Napoleon’s tomb and various museums including the army museum. But the Elysee has not acted on the proposals.

Sarkozy is not the first French leader to have grand plans for his nation’s history. In 1837 Louis-Philippe, the last king of France, set aside part of the palace of Versailles as a tribute to the ‘great glories’ of the nation, with paintings telling the story of French history, including the crusades and great wars.

The historian Henry Rousso is concerned by the president’s concept of national identity and France’s pride in its history. “A national history museum could have a tendency to stress ‘us’ and ‘them’. A history museum at the beginning of the 21st century should be more orientated towards an international community and shared history,” he said.

Alain Decaux, a historian famous for his television programmes, told French radio: “I don’t see the use, quite simply, because Paris is one immense museum of the history of France.” — Dawn/Guardian News Service

 

Putin shows off new talent in Russian charity auction

Vladimir Putin has a reputation for being something of a tough man, but now the former judo champion, KGB officer and current Russian leader has started to show his softer side by turning his hand to art.

A painting by the former president and current prime minister was sold off in a charity auction in his hometown of Saint Petersburg.

His piece ‘Uzor’ (Embroidery) was among 28 works of art created by celebrities from the arts world and well-known politicians.

The picture shows a yellow window with embroidered curtains flapping in the wind, which looks out over a frosty, icy landscape.

“Vladimir Putin painted his piece in a quarter of an hour. He did it all by himself without any help,” said Nadezhda Anfalova, a painter and curator of the exhibition.

The auction is loosely based on the story ‘The night before Christmas’ by Russian writer Nikolai Gogol.

Proceeds from the auctions will be shared between two local children’s hospitals and a rundown church that requires restoration work.

Saint Petersburg Governor Valentina Matvienko, opera singer Anna Netrebko and the ballet dancer Ulyana Lopatkina also contributed to the auction. — AFP