RELEASE | Defining British Art, Loan Exhibition: A Month-Long Public Exhibition of Five Centuries of British Art - London, 17th June - 15th July 2016
Christie’s 250th Anniversary Celebrations will be launched with
Defining British Art LOAN EXHIBITION A Month-Long Public Exhibition of Five Centuries of British Art London, 17 June to 15 July 2016 Great British Masterpieces sold over a period of 250 years by Christie’s, including works by Holbein, Stubbs, Landseer, Turner, Burne-Jones, Rossetti, Mackintosh, Lowry, Freud & Auerbach London – Sold by Christie’s in 1788, the circle of Hans Holbein II’s outstanding Portrait of King Henry VIII (illustrated left) is among the highlights on loan for the landmark Defining British Art: Loan Exhibition, open to the public from Friday 17 June to Friday 15 July 2016 in London. Monarch of the Glen by Sir Edwin Landseer (illustrated centre), Proserpine by Dante Gabriel Rossetti (illustrated right), Huntsmen setting out from Southill by George Stubbs and Fun Fair at Daisy Nook by L.S. Lowry are just four of the masterpieces previously sold at Christie’s that will be reunited for one month only to mark the launch of Christie’s 250th anniversary celebrations. As the companion exhibition to the Defining British Art: Evening Sale on 30 June 2016, this exhibition will bring together works by some of the greatest British artists, many solover the last 250 years at Christie’s, as well as works by international artists inspired by visits to Britain over the ages, the highlight of which is a view of St. James’s by Canaletto. Ever since James Christie first opened his doors for business in 1766, in St James’s London, where the headquarters remain today, Christie’s has championed British art and artists, with both Reynolds and Gainsborough among the regular visitors to Christie’s salerooms. The greatest masterpieces are those that define the artist; paintings and sculpture that reflect the quintessential nature of that artist’s lasting legacy. Christie’s Defining British Art: Loan Exhibition and Defining British Art: Evening Sale will present works which exemplify this. Please find the full press release attached, for images please contact Emily Burke (contact details below) or Lauren Clarke (laurenclarke@christies.com).