#ferrante imperato

[philoursmars]

Il y a une petite quinzaine, je suis allé avec Julien et Katie, au Louvre-Lens pour une expo temporaire : "Animaux Fantastiques". Une très belle expo ! Ici des dragons et une gargouille.

en alternance, nautile monté, argent - Allemagne, XVIIe s.

école de Toussaint Dubreuil - "Henri IV en Hercule"

en haut, prétendu dragon tué par Gilles de Chin, seigneur de Wasmes (en fait, crâne de crocodile momifié champsès) ; en bas, livre de Ferrante Imperato - Histoire Naturelle - Naples 1672

Louis Welden Hawkins - "Le Sphinx et la Chimère"

[visualpoett]

The Natural History Museum of Emperor Ferdinand III from Historia Naturale by Ferrante Imperato (1550-1631) pub. in 1672

Italian School

[biodivlibrary]

BHL Book Feature: Istoria Naturale

The Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History and The Field Museum are currently featuring exhibits displaying significant objects from their collections. The National Museum's Objects of Wonder exhibit will feature hundreds of rarely-displayed objects from the Smithsonian's collection. The Field Museum's Specimens: Unlocking the Secrets of Life will explore the stories behind a selection of significant objects from its collection of over 30 million specimens and artifacts.

BHL’s collection includes many #ObjectsofWonder, such as those featured in works celebrating early "wonder-rooms," or cabinets of curiosity. Our featured illustration comes from Dell'historia naturale di Ferrante Imperato (1599), which is the first published pictorial representation of a Renaissance cabinet of curiosity. Naples pharmacist Ferrante Imperato (1550-1625) cataloged his collection, which may have held as many as 35,000 plant, animal and mineral specimens!

Stay tuned this week for more books featuring Objects of Wonder. Not too long ago, we did a BHL Book Feature on Albertus Seba’s Cabinet of Curiosities, so be sure to check out those posts! Dell'historia naturale di Ferrante Imperato (1599) was digitized by @smithsonianlibraries.

[adrianomaini]

Ferrante Imperato Ferrante Imperato nacque, probabilmente a Napoli, intorno al 1525, come si ricava da un'affermazione del figlio Francesco, che in una opera scritta nel 1605 (

[naturalhistorymuseums]

have learned that it was a common practice in curiosity cabinets, apothecaries, also italian churches to suspend a taxidermy crocodile from the ceiling

cabinet of wonders of ferrante imperato

Santuario Madonna delle Lacrime Immacolate

Sanctuary of the Beata Vergine delle Grazie

old town hall of Brno, Czechia

the practice was common enough that it’s described in romeo and juliet when romeo goes to the apothecary yknow for poison reasons

[victoriaaosprantos]

A Revolução Francesa

Antes de falar sobre como a revolução francesa conseguiu institualizar o museu, vou contextualizar qual era o cenário europeu da época, no antigo regime, a arte francesa permite aos artistas produzirem e venderem suas obras, se forma a tradição do Salon. Um exemplo é o salon da Academia Régia de Pintura e de Escultura, destinado a conferir uma recompensa pública aos artistas protegidos pelo rei. Outro exemplo extremamente importante é do Palais du Luxemboug (1750-1779) que teve sua galeria aberta numa ala leste, que já na época era regido por critérios pedagógicos e estéticos de organização. 

O museu só toma forma quando há uma grande necessidade na “invenção” de um passado nacional. Durante a revolução francesa essa invenção se torna possível, o confisco de bens da Igreja, e da nobreza, e da coroa trouxe a tona uma nova reflexão dos membros da Assembléia, levando os a escolher quais bens deveriam ser conservados e quais deveriam ser destruídos. Com a afirmação dos direitos humanos e essa nova ideia de “bens”, a população leva a reivindicar o acesso às obras de arte, como um direito legítimo ao qual a República deve satisfazer. 

Ressalto que as transições de coleções privadas para museus públicos foi lenta, e só foi possível graças a transição de esfera privada para a pública. Os objetos científicos selecionados não eram ainda interpretados como integrantes de um patrimônio coletivo e nem estavam expostos ao público. Os príncipes e reis eram detentores dessas coleções, apesar de tudo, havia em contrapartida cada vez mais frequente uma “cultura da curiosidade”, características dos “GABINETES DE CURIOSIDADES” ou “CÂMARA DE ARTES E MARAVILHAS” (nos países germânicos Kunst und Wunderkammer).

1.  La Gallerie du Palais du Luxembourg. Paris: Duchange, 1710.

2. Kunst und Wunderkammer di Ferrante Imperato

[learninganthropocene]

Ferrante Imperato, Dell’Historia Naturale, Naples,1599

[cooperhewitt]

REBECA MÉNDEZ GUEST CURATES “SELECTS” EXHIBITION AT COOPER HEWITT

As guest curator of the next exhibition in Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum’s acclaimed “Selects” series, artist and designer Rebeca Méndez investigates the interaction of humanity, nature, design and science. Drawn from the diverse collections of Cooper Hewitt, the Smithsonian’s National Museum of Natural History and Smithsonian Libraries, “Rebeca Méndez Selects” is the 17th installation in the series in which designers, artists, architects and public figures are invited to guest curate an exhibition. It is on view Oct. 5 through July 10, 2019, in the Nancy and Edwin Marks Collection Gallery.

“Within the design world, Rebeca is an impassioned voice for environmental awareness through a multidisciplinary body of work rooted in her identity and elevated with her knowledge of science, history and visual culture,” said Caroline Baumann, director of Cooper Hewitt. “For this ambitious installation, Rebeca has assembled objects, from an extraordinary Resplendant Quetzal specimen to an autonomous flying microrobot about half the size of a paperclip, to illuminate design’s interplay with the natural world.”

“Rebeca Méndez Selects” spans five centuries and examines the spectrum of human interactions with birds, from observation and study to extraction and eradication. Among nearly 80 objects on view are 30 specimens representative of the birds that ruler Moctezuma II collected in his extensive private aviaries in Tenochtitlan, the city-state that served as the center of the Aztec empire in the 16th century. Following the capture of Tenochtitlan by Hernán Cortés and his soldiers, the aviary was burned. From the vantage of this calamitous moment of cultural contact, Méndez’s installation probes how Europeans amassed material wealth at the expense of the environmental resources of the Americas.  The exhibition’s digital experience enables visitors to listen to birdcalls that would have resounded through the aviary, and to view historical codices.

Explorers’ accounts ignited exotic visions of the Americas that for two centuries manifested as allegorical depictions of the region as a semi-nude indigenous woman adorned with feathers or accompanied by a bird, as in America Figure ca. 1760, manufactured by Meissen Porcelain Factory. Materials and resources extracted from the Americas, including birds mounted in lifelike poses, supplied Kunstkammers (cabinets of curiosities) like the one documented in Dell’historia natvrale di Ferrante Imperato Napolitano libri XXVIII.

In contrast to the indiscriminate bird collectors of the past, ornithologists today are driven by conservation, education and research. A photograph of Smithsonian forensic ornithologist Roxie Collie Laybourne (1910–2003) among drawers of bird specimens evokes both the Kunstkammer and Laybourne’s life-saving work consulting on airplane-design modifications in response to bird strikes.

The study of birds spurs innovative design experiments. The Smithsonian’s first curator of birds Robert Ridgway (1850–1929) standardized the names of colors that ornithologists used to describe birds, work that is foundational to the color systems that designers and manufacturers employ today. Contemporary designers experiment with a range of techniques and materials to capture avian characteristics. Overlapping rows of hammered, flattened steel nails in a 1983 necklace designed by Tone Vigeland resemble feathers; the digitally printed textile Auden, 2009, designed by Rodarte and produced by Knoll Luxe shimmers like plumage.

In addition, Méndez’s video “CircumSolar Migration I” focuses on the nesting and breeding season of the arctic tern, a species that travels from the Arctic to the Antarctic to complete the longest recorded migration of any creature on Earth. The work serves as a meditation on human movement and survival in an era of ecological disaster and social unrest.

“As humans, we cannot continue to think of ourselves as outside the planetary equation,” Méndez said. “If we desire the survival of our own species, then we must change our ways and become more attuned with the natural world and other life-forms. Design can help us do this by creating narratives that help us understand the world and our place in it. ”

“Rebeca Méndez Selects” is made possible by the Marks Family Foundation Endowment Fund.

PUBLIC PROGRAMMING

Méndez will lead a master-class workshop Oct. 17, 1–4 p.m., in which she will present recent projects and introduce the CounterForce Lab, a research and fieldwork studio based at UCLA’s Design Media Arts and the School of the Arts and Architecture. Méndez will also join in conversation with Associate Curator of Latino Design Christina De León Jan. 31, 6:30–8 p.m, to discuss the process of researching and organizing the exhibition.

ABOUT REBECA MÉNDEZ

Rebeca Méndez was born in México City in 1962. She received her Bachelor of Fine Arts (1984) and Master of Fine Arts (1996) from Art Center College of Design, Pasadena, California. In 1996 she founded Rebeca Méndez Design, a multidisciplinary design studio in Los Angeles. Her design research and practice is in brand strategy and design, architectural immersive spaces, experience design and book design. She is a recipient of the 2012 National Design Award for Communication Design and the Medal of AIGA. Her work has been exhibited extensively throughout the United States, Latin America and Europe. She is currently a professor in the department of Design Media Arts and Director of the CounterForce Lab at University of California, Los Angeles.

about cooper Hewitt, smithsonian design museum

Cooper Hewitt is America’s design museum. Inclusive, innovative and experimental, the museum’s dynamic exhibitions, education programs, master’s program, publications and online resources inspire, educate and empower people through design. An integral part of the Smithsonian Institution—the world’s largest museum and research complex—Cooper Hewitt is located on New York City’s Museum Mile in the historic, landmark Carnegie Mansion. Steward of one of the world’s most diverse and comprehensive design collections—over 210,000 objects that range from an ancient Egyptian faience cup dating to about 1100 BCE to contemporary 3D-printed objects and digital code—Cooper Hewitt welcomes everyone to discover the importance of design and its power to change the world. Cooper Hewitt knits digital into experiences to enhance ideas, extend reach beyond museum walls, and enable greater access, personalization, experimentation and connection. In 2018, the London Design Biennale awarded a medal to Cooper Hewitt for its presentation “Face Values,” an immersive installation that explores the pervasive but often hidden role of facial-detection technology in contemporary society.

Cooper Hewitt is located at 2 East 91st Street at Fifth Avenue in New York City. Hours are Sunday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. The Arthur Ross Terrace and Garden, accessible without an admissions ticket, opens at 8 a.m., Monday through Friday. The Tarallucci e Vino café is open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., Saturday, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m., and Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. The museum is closed on Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. Public transit routes include the Lexington Avenue 4, 5 and 6 subways (86th or 96th Street stations), the Second Avenue Q subway (96th Street station), and the Fifth and Madison Avenue buses. Adult admission, $16 in advance via tickets.cooperhewitt.org, $18 at door; seniors, $10 in advance via tickets.cooperhewitt.org, $12 at door; students, $7 in advance via tickets.cooperhewitt.org, $9 at door. Cooper Hewitt members and children younger than age 18 are admitted free. Pay What You Wish every Saturday, 6 to 9 p.m. The museum is fully accessible.

For further information, call (212) 849-8400, visit Cooper Hewitt’s website at www.cooperhewitt.org and follow the museum on http://www.twitter.com/cooperhewitt, https://ift.tt/1xPp14n and https://ift.tt/1ywLPpg.

#

Featured images:

Necklace; 1983; Designed by Tone Vigeland (Norwegian, born 1938); Hammered steel nails, raised gold, silver, mother-of-pearl; Museum purchase from Decorative Arts Association Acquisition Funds and General Acquisition Endowment, 1984-83-1

Histoire naturelle des oiseaux de paradis et des rolliers: suivie de celle des toucans et des barbus, Volume 2, 1806; Written by François Levaillant (French, 1753–1824); Illustrated by Jacques Barraband (French, 1767–1809); 57 x 86 cm (22 7/16 x 33 7/8 in.); Smithsonian Libraries, QL674.L65 1806

Photos: © Smithsonian Institution

from Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum https://ift.tt/2xlRFOw via IFTTT

[danielagtrz]

Fold-out engraving from Ferrante Imperato's Dell'Historia Naturale (Naples 1599), the earliest illustration of a natural history cabinet.

A cabinet of curiosities - or wunderkammer - stored and exhibited a wide variety of objects and artifacts, with a particular leaning towards the rare, eclectic and esoteric. Through the selection of objects, they told a particular story about the world and its history.

[extendingmuseum]

01—la collezione di Athanasius Kircher a Roma, litografia da Giorgio de Sepibus, Romani Collegii Musaeum Celeberrimum, Roma, 1678 

02—sezione della casa–museo di Sir John Soane a Londra, 1808–1823

03—wunderkammer di Manfredo Settala a Milano, litografia da Paolo Maria Terzago,Museo o Galeria—adunta dal sapere, e dallo studio del sig. Canonical Manfredo Settala, 1666 

04—la collezione di Ferrante Imperato a Napoli, litografia da Ferrante Imperato, Dell’historia Naturale, Venezia, 1599

05—galleria di Francesco Calzolari a Verona, litografia da Benedetto Ceruti e Andrea Chiocco,Musaeum Franc. Calceolarii jun. Veronensis, Verona, 1622

06—Lorenzo Legati, Museo Cospiano annesso a quello del famoso Ulisse Aldrovandi..., Bologna, 1677

[lsmithpca]

CHANGING DIRECTION - CABINET OF CURIOSITIES

As mentioned in my evaluation of research, I am planning on changing my idea slightly to create my own cabinet of curiosities. In this regard, I have done a bit of background research into the history and purpose of such cabinets. I found that a ‘cabinet of curiosities - or wunderkammer - stored and exhibited a wide variety of objects and artifacts, with a particular leaning towards the rare, eclectic and esoteric. Through the selection of objects, they told a particular story about the world and its history’ (Google Arts & Culture, n.d.). The cabinets usually featured items such as antiques, stuffed animals, dried insects, skeletons and works of art in them; amongst many other things. The collections were organised into 4 categories which were:

Artificialia - objects created or modified by human (antiques, works of art);

Naturalia - creatures and natural objects (with a particular interest in monsters);

Exotica -  exotic plants and animals; and

Scientifica - collections of scientific instruments.

Wunderkammer’s originally appeared in the European Renaissance period and are an ancestor of the modern-day Museum. The popularity of the cabinets began to fall in the 19th century and they were in turn replaced by private collections held in official institutions; eventually ending up as the museums we know today.

Interior of Ferrante Imperato's cabinet of curiosities from Historia Naturale di Ferrante Imperato, originally published in Naples in 1599. (Google Arts & Culture, n.d.).

My plan is to purchase a suitable cabinet which reflects my story and the personal nature of the items which will be displayed. Unfortunately, I do not have a cabinet of my own to use so will have to find one that suits my concept. The cabinet will need to be relatively small, without glass display cupboards as I want it to be very private in its appearance so as to make it feel as personal as possible to the viewer. I also want the cabinet to be of something similar to what I would find in my grandparents house due to the stability they have provided me with throughout my life; demonstrating them as the foundation for my existence which will be characterised by the items held inside. The items inside the cabinet will be samples of the collections of items that I have accumulated over time, with sentimental items and photographs also playing a large part. Photographs showing the types of items and their composition within the cabinet will feature in my sketchbook in due course.

References:

Google Arts & Culture. (n.d.). The Cabinet of Curiosities - Google Arts & Culture. [online] Available at: https://artsandculture.google.com/theme/4QKSkqTAGnJ2LQ [Accessed 18 May 2019].

[likovnielementi]

Fold-out engraving from Ferrante Imperato's Dell'Historia Naturale (Naples 1599), the earliest illustration of a natural history room or 'Kunstkammer'

[adrianomaini]

Un caposaldo nella transizione verso la Scienza Nuova L'"Historia Naturale" di Ferrante Imperato è un caposaldo dei processi di transizione tra vecchia scienza e nuove postulazioni = ma non costituì comunque un'eccezione e anche per altri scritti ed autori la varietà delle tematiche, certe influenze paracelsiane connesse ad operazioni alchemiche ed interagenti con una notevole capacità cognitiva e di osservazione naturalistica sono come detto alla radice di reiterati contenziosi e di fiere polemiche = oltre a tutto ciòa causa del mistero che aleggiava intorno ai loro laboratori, con lo scorrere del tempo ed il crescere di superstizioni, la professione di "Speziale" o Farmacista insieme a quella di "Erborista" (talora i due termini erano associati nell'indicare un unico operatore sanitario, anche se ciò non costituiva una costante = molti erano gli "Erboristi" che dietro compenso procuravano ai "Farmacisti" le piante officinali) in certi periodi fu guardata spesso con sfiducia e sospetto più che spregio, specialmente riferendosi agli antichi…

[collasgarba]

L’ ARGILLA GRIGIASTRA DELLE TERRE BIANCHE, come quella dell' ALMABLANCA, risulta possedere, se trattata in soluzione acquosa, proprietà dermatoprotettive e rinfrescanti, giovevoli nella terapia sintomatica dell'ergotismo

[pabloaez]

Gabinete de curiosidades. The Wunderkammer of Ferrante Imperato in Naples.   

[magictransistor]

Ferrante Imperato, Dell'Historia Naturale (Naples), 1599.