CONTENTS May 2013
EDITORIAL
Editors' Letter: Public outrage
Apollo is published in London, one of the world’s great art capitals and home to extraordinary, thrilling exhibitions such as last year’s ‘Bronze’ at the Royal Academy
CONTEMPORARY ART
Around the Galleries
Brussels plays host to a trio of outstanding fairs at the Place du Grand Sablon in early June, and the ever popular Carré Rive Gauche – now in its 36th year – returns to the Left Bank in Paris.
ARCHITECTURE
Architecture
The work of John Nash has often been overshadowed by that of his contemporary, John Soane. But his pragmatism, as well as his experiments with the picturesque, make him one of the most significant of all British architects.
Collectors’ Focus
As the market in pre-Columbian art shifts from New York to Paris prices have soared, demonstrated by the record-breaking sale of the Barbier-Mueller collection in March. With prices in the ascendancy, there are opportunities here for collectors.
The Art Market : Maket Preview
New York’s spring season of Impressionist, modern and contemporary sales dominates the market this month.
Houghton Revisited
Houghton Hall is a remarkable survival – a stately home that has remained largely unaltered since it was commissioned by Sir Robert Walpole in the 18th century. Lord Cholmondeley talks to Apollo about the history of the estate and his commitment to its future.
Hall of Fame
The temporary return of Sir Robert Walpole’s outstanding picture collection to Houghton Hall has posed unique challenges to exhibition organisers. The process of securing loans and reconstructing Walpole’s hang has given rise to numerous surprises
The Art of Diplomacy
Velázquez’s portrait of Francesco I d’Este is one of the highlights of the Galleria Estense in Modena. It has now been loaned to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York to raise awareness of the damage caused by the 2012 earthquake in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy
Unreal City
During the interwar years, architectural sculpture in London became the focus of fierce debates about the merits of realism and abstraction
A Question of Style
15th-century English alabaster carvings have often been described misleadingly as ‘Nottingham alabasters’. More careful scrutiny of the social and intellectual contexts of their production would furnish us with a greater sense of their cultural significance – and their rich artistry
Vasari’s Michelangelo
Vasari’s life of Michelangelo has often been criticised for its self-interest.
Books in tow
R.B. Kitaj’s debt to literary culture is more visible than ever in this fine retrospective, writes Aaron Rosen
Pliny and the Artistic Culture of the Italian Renaissance
Sarah McHam
Yale University Press, £45
ISBN 9780300186031
The Paintings of Dirck van Baburen: Catalogue Raisonné
Wayne Franits
John Benjamins Publishing Company, €340
ISBN 9789027249654
Paris 1650–1900: Decorative Arts in the Rijksmuseum
Reinier Baarsen
Yale University Press, £175
ISBN 9780300191295
Fashion, Devotion and Contemplation: The Status and Functions of Italian Renaissance Plaquettes
Marika Leino
Peter Lang, £50
ISBN 9783039110681
Crafting allure
Sheila McTighe enjoys an exhibition that puts Barocci’s innovative processes on display
Sacred and profane
Despite its compact size, this overview of Titian’s artistic career includes numerous surprises, writes Peter Humfrey
Too vividly represented
Kristen Treen on how artists and photographers responded to the carnage of the American Civil War
Hidden in plain sight
The sculpture of Charles Wheeler deserves greater recognition, writes Robert Upstone