Spanish Drawings in the Hispanic Society of America

The Hispanic Society of America, founded in New York in 1904 by the erudite art patron Archer Milton Huntington (1870-1955) houses the finest and largest group of Spanish works of art and other items of cultural patrimony outside of Spain itself. Both the Society’s Library and Museum are reference points for the study and knowledge of Spanish art history. Until a few year sago only those actually visiting the Society’s building in New York could appreciate this enormously rich collection. Recently, however, a new loan policy has allowed its collections to be seen and admired in other museums. The present exhibition reflects this new strategy, presenting as it does a selection of drawings from the collection for the first time. The Society’s holdings of drawings are still being increased, evident in the recent acquisitions on display here, as well as the sizeable group of promised donations.

Drawings are small works of art in which artists express the most personal aspects of their creative endeavours as well as their initial ideas for projects. This alone makes them the worthy subject of temporary exhibitions. In addition, however, exhibitions of drawings are a particularly important vehicle for establishing the overall body of works by an artist. Knowledge derived from the study of an artist’s drawings as agroup allows us to analyse and define both his or her particular graphic style as well as the creative process behind the finished works. In this sense, the present exhibition has helped to significantly expand the oeuvre of some artists through the presentation of previously unpublished or reattributed drawings.

The exhibition is organised into four main chronological sections. The first features sixteenth-century drawings which reveal considerable Italian influence. It is followed by a highly important group of seventeenth-century drawings that includes works from the main centres of artistic activity in Spain – Seville and Madrid – while also focusing on individual figures such as Jusepe de Ribera. The eighteenth century is well represented, with works by the leading academic artists of the day and by others associated with the world of book illustration, an important field of creative activity at this time.

The final section is devoted to Goya, with ten drawings by him. They come principally from the artist’s various drawing albums and are exhibited for the first time. These sheets reveal the variety and richness to be found within the artist’s oeuvre.

Spanish Drawings in the Hispanic Society of America

Künstler: Pietro Torrigiano, Alonso Berruguete, Luis de Vargas, Pellegrino Tibaldi, Pablo de Cespedes, Blas de Prado, Angelino Medoro, Francisco Pacheco, Francisco de Herrera, Bartolome Esteban Murillo, Antonio del Castillo, Antonio Garcia Reinoso, Antonio Acisclo Palomino, Alonso Cano, Vicente Carducho, Francisco Rizi, Mateo Cerezo, Sebastian Herrera Barnuevo, Jose Antolínez, Juan Bautista Martinez del Mazo, Matias de Torres, Jose Jimenez Donoso, Claudio Coello, José de Ribera, Francisco Bayeu, Mariano Salvador Maella, Jose del Castillo, Antonio Carnicero, Jose Camaron, Rafael Ximeno y Planes, Francisco de Goya