A Taste for the Renaissance: a dialogue between collections

Exhibition Catalogue A Taste for the Renaissance: a dialogue between collections, presented at the Hôtel de la Marine, Paris (27 march – 10 june 2024).

Presenting masterpieces from the collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, alongside those of The Al Thani Collection, Paris, the exhibition highlights the complex interconnections of the Renaissance world, a golden age of exploration and discovery which witnessed an exchange of materials and ideas across both Europe and distant lands. For the first time since its opening, all four galleries of The Al Thani Collection will be renewed.

Coupled with a revived appreciation for the ideals of antiquity and aesthetics, wealthy patrons commissioned significant works of art which have since been prized by many of history's most notable collectors.

With more than 130 works of art on display, the exhibition comprises sculpture, metalwork, jewellery, glass, textiles, books, manuscripts, paintings, works on paper and exotica, many of which have never previously been shown in Paris.

This includes works by Antico, Lucas Cranach the Younger, François Clouet, Vittore Crivelli, Donatello, Nicholas Hilliard, Hans Holbein the Younger and Leonardo da Vinci, together with treasures and objets d'art created for noble and royal patrons by many of the most accomplished artists of the period.