Medieval and Renaissance Galleries now open at V&A

The Victoria and Albert Museum in London opened the redesigned Medieval and Renaissance Galleries this week.

Rachel Campbell-Johnston at The Times Online has posted an article and video introducing the exhibition, and the excellent Londonist has photos showing the bright and airy galleries. The Guardian site has another video.

The £31m refurb' is "triumphant" according to Jonathan Jones of The Guardian in his review:

"Renaissance art is not just a thing of beauty, but of self-expression. It is strange, it is disconcerting, it is all the things we, today, want art to be. You can see that in Donatello and throughout these wonderful new galleries"

Both Jones and Richard Dorment in his article at The Telegraph agree that the V&A holds the best collection of Italian Renaissance sculpture outside Italy. Dorment is also mightily impressed by the new galleries:

"The whole project, designed by architects MUMA in collaboration with the V&A’s curators is a triumph."

And....it's free.

PS. I hope they still have room for the Great Bed of Ware.

Exhibition time

A couple of must-see London autumn exhibitions for today's post. Firstly Holbein in England at Tate Briatin starts on Thursday 28th. Highlights include "the" portrait of Henry VIII reunited with those of Jane Seymour and his son Edward (VI). Here's another link to the same exhibition on ArtKnowledgeNews. There is an excellent article about the exhibition by Tom Teodorczuk in tonight's Evening Standard, and here's a link.

Secondly, At Home in Renaissance Italy at the V&A, which has its own very nice web microsite, complete with renaissance e-cards to send to your friends.
This quote from the V&A site gives a flavour:
"Many of the paintings, sculpture and decorative art objects we now associate with this period began their lives within the home. The exhibition places outstanding art and domestic objects within their original contexts. Together they highlight the rhythms and rituals of Renaissance living - from entertainment and cooking, to marriage and collecting.
With rich displays of paintings, furnishings and cherished family possessions from the palazzi of Tuscany and the Veneto, At Home in Renaissance Italy presents an entirely fresh look at the Renaissance."
It runs from 5th October.