The Road to the Baroque — Masterpieces from the Capodimonte Museum

EVENT DESCRIPTION

Characterised by the dramatic contrast of light and dark, exaggerated movement and pronounced figures’ facial expressions, historians coined the term Baroque to define 17th century Italian art which focuses on high tension and realistic representations of emotions. Baroque artists were arguably the originators of immersive experiences. Their paintings are compelling and strikingly real, often immersing the audience in the scene.

Collaborating with the Hong Kong Museum of Art, the Capodimonte Museum has its debut exhibition in Hong Kong, featuring 40 late Renaissance works of the northern and central Italy and Neapolitan Baroque masterpieces from the Capodimonte Museum that have never previously been shown in Hong Kong. These works come from the two major nuclei – the Farnese Collection and the Bourbon Collection of the museum. The showcase includes religion, saints, mythology, still life and landscape paintings of legendary masters, such as Titian, Annibale Carracci and Artemisia Gentileschi, to present the stylistic characteristics and artistic accomplishments of Italy Neapolitan art in the 16th and 17th centuries.

To complement the exhibition, Professor Johnny Poon, Associate Vice-President (Interdisciplinary Research) and Founding Dean of the School of Creative Arts of Hong Kong Baptist University designs Baroque music and soundscapes for selected paintings. These aural elements add a new dimension to art appreciation and help open the door to Baroque art. The HKMoA has also invited three local artists to provide artistic responses with various creative media to the works of the Baroque masters. Their efforts have enriched the exhibition with a Hong Kong perspective, allowing the audience to enjoy an art experience that connects the past and the present.

New media artist Kingsley Ng draws inspiration from the Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi’s autobiographical painting and juxtaposes Galileo Galilei’s laws of pendulum with dramatic Baroque chiaroscuro to express the impact of modern science on Baroque art. In this immersive space, the audience can feel the tension between light and shadow, and stillness and movement; Visual artist Chow Chun-fai reinterprets Baroque characters with photography installations, introducing elements of local culture to Baroque art for a dazzling fusion of East and West and the past and the present; With great imagination, illustrator missquai works with the HKMoA curatorial team to present some of the tales, significance and techniques of the Baroque period through stories and games. The illustrations provide the audience with a fun-packed journey through art.