An exhibition entirely dedicated to Antonio Canova's Pauline in Possagno.

The exhibition Pauline. History of a Masterpiece, at the Museo Gypsotheca Antonio Canova in Possagno from March 19 to May 30, 2021. This initiative inaugurates the preparatory celebrations for the Canova anniversaries of 2022, the year in which in fact the bicentenary of the death of Antonio Canova (Possano, 1757 - Rome, 1822), one of the greatest artists of all ages and who was born in the small town of Treviso in 1757.

The museum wants to retrace the history of the work by dedicating to it an exhibition that intends to enhance the path taken by Canova to reach the realization of the final masterpiece, in the stylistic and compositional choices, focusing interest on the graphic, pictorial and plastic works that preceded the work itself, retrace the historical events of the plaster model that belongs to our heritage that have followed one another over time, from its genesis to the present day, and finally open a discussion on the subject of plaster restoration.

“The exhibition,” said Moira Mascotto, director of the Gypsotheca Antonio Canova Museum and curator of the exhibition, “was conceived shortly after the damage suffered by Canova’s masterpiece last July. In addition to wanting to celebrate the work and the completion of restoration work, the intent is to make people think about the need to safeguard the entire artistic heritage, the historical memory of every civilization. This is the first exhibition organized by the museum after a difficult period related to the pandemic and intends to inaugurate the rich program related to the celebrations of the two hundredth anniversary of Canova’s death.”

In order to enhance the path taken by Canova, the curator made use of the testimony of some works belonging to Possagno’s heritage and permanently displayed in the exhibition rooms of Casa Canova, “studies” that converged in the final choices adopted by the Artist for the realization of Pauline. Significant evidence of tempera paintings such as Dancers and Nymphs with Cupids and Muses, or plastic works such as Hebe and the Three Dancers, the famous Ideal Heads and some female busts of the Bonaparte family, to which are added some oil paintings made by Canova in his youth, the Venus with Faun and Venus with Mirror, of 16th-century Venetian tradition, in which the female body lay comfortably on its side, also preserved and permanently exhibited at the Possagno Museum. In the second part of the project, which deals with the historical events of the Canovian plaster, the aim is to recount, through precious archival documents belonging to the Possagno heritage, the transportation by sea of the plaster from the port of Civitavecchia first to Venice, through the ’use of wooden crates, and then up to Possagno through ox-drawn wagons, to be subsequently exhibited, starting in 1836, in the Gypsotheca built at the behest of Giovanni Battista Sartori and designed by the Venetian architect Francesco Lazzari.

Also on display will be the first catalogs of the Gypsotheca, which testify to the original arrangement, and some historical volumes containing interesting passages pertaining to the work. Also witnessed will be the events of the Great War, during which the work in question was severely outraged, and documented by the photographic campaign conducted in those years by Stefano and Siro Serafin. Other plaster casts that were heavily damaged during the war event will be exhibited in this section, such as Najade, Hebe, Venus coming out of the bath, Dancer with her finger on her chin, and an Ideal Head: these works, in addition to being a significant testimony to the damage suffered by the museum reality during World War I, will serve as leverage for reflection on the damage/restoration relationship, a particularly felt and topical theme. The exhibition also questions which is the best way: whether conservative or integrative restoration. While these works have not been restored, Pauline ’s plaster in 2003 was integrated with the help of modern technologies applied to cultural heritage.

The analysis will close with recent news events, during which the plaster was again damaged by a visitor during a visit to the museum while he was having his picture taken ... lying on the work.

To supplement and accompany the tour, a printed catalog will be produced in which several essays pertinent to the exhibition will be included. In particular, the creative path of the work will be discussed, the history of the plaster model will be told, and a new historical reading of the famous, as well as contrasted, figure of Pauline Bonaparte will be developed.

During the opening period of the exhibition, streaming meetings will be held in which the themes analyzed in the catalog will be developed, giving the various speakers a chance to focus on their research topics. And thereafter, work days will be organized with the theme of restoration.

“The closure of the bright rooms of the Gypsotheca,” said Vittorio Sgarbi, chairman of the board of directors of the Canova Foundation, “have generated such melancholy that we regret the hot summer days when a clumsy Austrian tourist broke Pauline’s fingers, mistaking the sculpture for a small sofa: we and the whole world saw that ridiculous spectacle in the camera recording. That terrible mistake, which the man without elegance or charm (as opposed to the work) believed was unseen, made people talk about Canova for days, even increasing the flow of visitors to the Museum. It was a reprehensible but not fatal act, for in the history of Pauline’s plaster there are numerous restorations, some of which were later removed to bring the work back to bareness. Also in this the idea that must prevail is the one in Canova dominates and that is perfection, order and harmony: the opposite of the fragment, according to the vision of the Artist who with the statue had intended to subtract from time and transfer into myth the minute body of Pauline, with a sensitivity to classical archetypes.”

“Possagno is viscerally linked to Canova and his works, which is why everything about it deeply touches our community’s sensitivity and sense of belonging. It is therefore on behalf of the entire population that I want to thank the President, the board of Fondazione Canova, the Director and the Superintendence for conducting this restoration in the best possible way, returning Paolina to all of us in her full splendor,” said Valerio Favero, Mayor of Possagno and Vice President of Fondazione Canova.

For all information you can visit the official website of the Antonio Canova Gypsotheca Museum.

Pictured: Antonio Canova, Paolina Borghese as Venus Vincitrice (1804-1808; plaster; Possagno, Museo Gypsotheca Antonio Canova). Ph. credit: Lino Zanesco

An exhibition entirely dedicated to Antonio Canova's Pauline in Possagno.

Warning: the translation into English of the original Italian article was created using automatic tools. We undertake to review all articles, but we do not guarantee the total absence of inaccuracies in the translation due to the program. You can find the original by clicking on the ITA button. If you find any mistake,please contact us.