Gareth Harris/Text; Ponderosa/Compilation
The surging news has learned that in 2024, the National Gallery of The United Kingdom is about to celebrate its 200th anniversary, and the art museum that has existed in Trafalgar Square for nearly two centuries has attracted much attention. Gabriele Finaldi, the current director, who helmed the museum seven years ago, faces a variety of questions, such as the challenge of funding, the place of traditional art galleries (museums) in modern society, and how to regroup in the wake of COVID-19.
In a recent interview, he argued that no matter what era "vibrant artistic traditions solve the major problems facing every society and every generation." ”
Raphael, St. Catherine of Alexandria, 1507–1508, in the collection of the National Gallery
Gabriel Fennardi was appointed Director of the National Gallery in 2015, after 13 years as Associate Director of Collections and Research at the Museo del Prado, Spain, and before that (1992–2002) as Curator of Italian and Spanish Painting at the National Gallery.
In 2019, the number of visitors to the National Gallery reached 6 million, which filled part of the funding gap of the museum (like all major public institutions, the National Gallery had to rely on some commercial revenue), but in 2020, the new crown hit, destroying this tourist-driven fund-raising model, and the operating data of the past two years confirmed the bleak reality.
Gabriel Fennardi, Director of the National Gallery
Fennard hopes to reach a third of the number of visitors this year in 2019, adding that "we are starting to see the arrival of foreign tourists", noting that "foreign tourists" are mainly from European countries such as Italy, Spain, France and so on. "By 2020, the visiting data is basically 35% (UK)/65% (overseas). Visitors from the UK and the EU are now returning, but visitors from Asia and the US remain absent. ”
"Working to increase revenue" is one of the daunting tasks facing the National Gallery at the moment, thanks to the UK Government's Cultural Renewal Fund, which has increased the government's funding for the National Gallery from £24.7 million in 2020 to £29.3 million in 2021. At the same time, the goal is to achieve 50% self-financing by 2022/23. "Before COVID-19, the goal of self-financing was achieved, but now it needs to be re-established." Fennardy said.
National Gallery of Art
Some areas are becoming off-limits to cultural institutions, such as the National Gallery of Art in the UNITED Kingdom removing the Sackler family surname from the sponsorship wall in May 2022 (members of the Sackler family have contributed to the opium scourge through the development and marketing of the opium painkiller OxyContin, and well-known institutions such as the British Museum and the Metropolitan Museum are severing ties with the Sackler family).
The reputation of a public institution is crucial to its development. Who are the people we work with? What is the public expecting of us? What do employees expect from the organization? These issues have highlighted in recent years, and we need to be confident that we are working with the right partners and that the partners believe we are the right fit for them as well.
A woman sings during an anti-race march in front of the National Gallery in Trafalgar Square, London, on June 12, 2020.
How to look at the National Gallery, and what the open-air square outside its portico represents, is a complex debate. But Finnardy never shy away from the real and even political issues that the museum needs to deal with, especially after the "Black Life" protests, highlighting that "museums cannot ignore social concerns." Finnard mentioned the "Philip Gaston: Now" exhibition, which was postponed by four museums because of racial issues, "the context of the institution is very important." The National Gallery is a large federal institution, and I think the staff in the museum will be afraid to take the risk, but sometimes it is necessary to be bold and accept it. Although the trustee does not want the institution to be at a disadvantage. But I think it takes courage and persistence in the projects that we identify with, and confidence in the artist. ”
An art gallery that displays and houses late European artists should not be overlooked. "Calling it an 'art gallery of dead white men' has certain limitations, because I think what I see in the museum is a vibrant artistic tradition that solves the big problems facing every society and every generation."
Kaihind Willie, Overture, 2021
At the just-concluded exhibition of works by American artist Kehinde Wiley, young black visitors are poring over works such as the six-screen film installation Overture (2021); Lucien Freud's retrospective" "New Perspectives," which will be launched in the fall, will span more than 70 years and showcase his life's work. While the two exhibitions don't seem to be in the same context, and even Freud is a bit out of place now, Fenerdi points out that "he did artistic exploration of man as a form, a narrative artist who integrated into European painting." At the same time, it also raises a new question: How long can the collection of various collections and create a sensational exhibition model last? At present, the loan application period has been extended from the standard 16 weeks to 6 months, and it is often museums with long-term cooperation that can achieve lending. "It's a challenge, but at the same time, we have to continue to do a smart, appropriate, ambitious exhibition project."
Poster of the exhibition "Freud, New Perspectives"
Because of the financial pressures facing museums, it becomes important whether visitors are willing to pay for exhibitions and events. In 2020, when the National Gallery announced online access to a curator's tour of Artemisia Gentileschi for £8, it sparked public accusations of elitism. Ticket prices for major exhibitions are also climbing (£26 for the weekend ticket for the Raphael Show) has also been questioned. In response, Finnardy responded: First of all, the National Gallery of Art is ticket-free, and the stunning works of art on display constitute a blockbuster exhibition in itself; Secondly, most of the exhibitions are still free, and the fees are only some expensive special exhibitions.
Raphael self-portrait
"Raphael Exhibition" exhibition site
The blockbuster Raphael Exhibition is currently on display at the Wilkins Building (designed in the 1830s), the museum's historic center. As part of the commemoration of the 200th anniversary, the Sainsbury Wing, which opened in 1991, will be completely renovated, and in the future it will host temporary exhibitions.
Selldorf Architects designs a rendering of the wing hall of the new Sainsbury Wing.
The art newspaper reported that the removal of the permanent exhibition of the collection in order to accommodate the temporary exhibition disturbed the integrity of the museum, but there was also a good side. "You notice different works and find similarities that were overlooked in the past," Fennardi said. "I've always wondered, for example, why Vigie Lebrun's Self-Portrait in a Straw Hat and her diary about seeing Rubens' Portrait of Luxena Lendn in Brussels, both of which are at the National Gallery but never shown side by side."
Rubens, Suzanne Lending, circa 1622-1625, National Gallery collection
Elizabeth Louise Vigi Lebrun, Self-Portrait in a Straw Hat, 1782, Collection of the National Gallery
Selldorf Architects' design and renovation also includes the research center of William Wilkins House, the 200th anniversary of the museum's event lineup identifies the installation and concept artist Jeremy Deller, and the exhibition includes 14th-century Siena art, "National Treasure", a series of 12 exhibitions in 12 regions of the United Kingdom, which will bring masterpieces of art closer to the public. "We want to share the artwork with everybody, it's the National Gallery for everybody," Fennardi said. Soon, all eyes will be on the two-hundred-year-old legacy that the museum has shaped. ”
(Note: This article is compiled from the July issue of Apollo Magazine, originally titled "How Gabriel Fennardi Shaped the Future of the National Gallery of Art")
Editor-in-Charge: Weihua Gu
Proofreader: Ding Xiao