Frits Lugt began collecting beautiful things at a tender age. At age eight his shell collection proved worthy of purchase by the Department of Natural History at the Amsterdam Royal Zoo, and things escalated from there. He is best known for his contribution to the cataloging and collection of prints and drawings, and the personal collection of some 6,000 master drawings and 30,000 prints. Some of these are currently on show in the special exhibitions gallery in The Frick Collection, New York.
Watteau and Boucher sketches grace the first room, depicting elegantly dressed ladies swathed in drapery. The linear repetition and rhythmic stroke of line work in chalk sketches is roomy and yet explicit in defining forms. The closer the eye comes to the papered surface the more abstract, and yet when pulling back the forms are complex and articulated. I particularly love a little chalk sketch of a shell, with thick parallel rendering strokes to define the curve of the form. The drapes of a silk skirt in Francois Boucher’s sketch of a woman from behind are expressive and lithe, whilst conveying the refined surface of the taffeta.
There are little sketches of the Italian countryside and vignettes of outdoor scenes. The drawings are raw, freehand and candid markings from the sketchbooks of these select master artists.
Watteau to Degas: French Drawings from the Frits Lugt Collection is open to the public until January 10, 2010
