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Vincent Van Gogh, Untitled, Still Life: Ginger Pot and Onions, 1885, oil on canvas. McMaster Museum of Art, McMaster University. Gift of Herman Levy, Esq., O.B.E., 1984
EXHIBITIONS
The Unvarnished Truth: Exploring the Material History of Paintings
7 January–9 April 2017
Bader Gallery

Winter Season Launch: 19 January 2017

Curated by Nenagh Hathaway, Ihor Holubizky, and Brandi Lee MacDonald

The Unvarnished Truth: Exploring the Material History of Paintings investigates Old Master and modern paintings through stylistic and scientific examination to reconsider their physical history. A multidisciplinary project organized from the collections of the McMaster University Museum of Art, it draws upon the expertise of researchers in a variety of disciplines—including anthropology, conservation, and applied radiation science, among others—to document the material structure of these works and to refine the narratives of their origins. The show includes paintings by such artists as Vincent Van Gogh and Alexander Mikhailovich Rodchenko, and from the Workshop of Peter Paul Rubens.

Aert van der Neer, Untitled, A Frozen Waterway with Villagers Playing Kolf and Skating and a Horsedrawn Sleigh, mid-17th century, oil on panel. McMaster Museum of Art, McMaster University. Levy Bequest Purchase, 1993

Aert van der Neer, Untitled, A Frozen Waterway with Villagers Playing Kolf and Skating and a Horsedrawn Sleigh, mid-17th century, oil on panel. McMaster Museum of Art, McMaster University. Levy Bequest Purchase, 1993

UV illumination of Aert van der Neer’s Untitled, A Frozen Waterway with Villagers Playing Kolf and Skating and a Horsedrawn Sleigh

UV illumination of Aert van der Neer’s Untitled, A Frozen Waterway with Villagers Playing Kolf and Skating and a Horsedrawn Sleigh

The Unvarnished Truth: Exploring the Material History of Paintings is organized and circulated by the McMaster Museum of Art. The MMA gratefully acknowledges the support of the Museums Assistance Program, Canadian Heritage and the Ontario Arts Council. The Agnes gratefully acknowledges the support of the George Taylor Richardson Memorial Fund, Queen’s University, and the Museums Assistance Program, Canadian Heritage.

Footnotes
Image Credits

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