ONE of the greatest 19th Century French artistic masterpieces will be on display in Coventry this autumn.
Paul Cézanne’s Montagne Sainte-Victoire with Large Pine is being loaned to the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum by The Courtauld Gallery, Somerset House, London, until January next year.
Cézanne was a French artist, credited with laying the foundations for the transition from 19th Century art to the 20th Century.
Experts say he was a major influence on the likes of Picasso and Matisse.
The painting is one of his most celebrated and is part of a collection of work he produced of the mountain in southern France.
He is hailed as a major figure in the Post Impressionist French movement which sought to depict nature in abstract light and colour.
The painting will be complemented in a new exhibition by some of the Herbert’s finest landscape works including Ebbw Vale by LS Lowry; The Stackyard by Paul Nash; Landscape with Tank by Prunella Clough and Evening Cornwall by David Bomberg.
Collector, philanthropist and founder of The Courtauld Gallery, Samuel Courtauld, established textile businesses across the UK in regions including Coventry, Preston, and Belfast – and this connection has brought back one of the jewels in this collection for the city to enjoy.
Cultural and creative director of the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum Francis Ranford welcomed the loan of this renowned artwork on behalf of the city of Coventry.
She said: “We are thrilled to bring Montagne Sainte-Victoire with Large Pine to the Herbert and it is a wonderful opportunity for people to see this masterpiece outside of London.
“We have a great relationship with The Courtauld Gallery and the loan has come about through those existing links, one which reflects the family’s connections to Coventry.
“To complement the artwork, we will be displaying it with many other great landscape paintings from our own collection and we are positive the exhibition will attract people from across the region.”
Admission to view the painting is free.
