The Courtauld Legacy

The Courtauld family ran an empire of textile businesses from the 18th until the 20th century. It all began with George Courtauld who began George Courtauld & Co. in 1794, however, by 1816, the company’s finances had been hit hard and business was failing. The business passed to his son, Samuel Courtald, who transformed the business into one of the leading textile businesses in Great Britain. The Courtauld name became synonymous with silverware, crepe, silk and man-made textiles right up to the 1900’s, with Samuel Courtauld, the great-nephew of the Samuel Courtauld who transformed the family business, taking hold of the reins in 1908 and continuing the family’s success for another 38 years.

Image Courtesy : Oxyman

Even though Samuel is known for being a Courtauld, he forged a legacy of his own that still stands strong today. As an avid art collector, favouring French Impressionist and Post-Impressionist works, Samuel founded the Courtauld Institute of Art in 1932 which became linked to the University of London. It has become world-renowned for its studies on the history of art and art conservation and most of the world’s major museum directors are alumni of The Courtauld Institute of Art. Situated a short walk away from The Shaftesbury Marble Arch Suites, it offers simply one undergraduate course, which is a BA in the History of Art, and a range of Postgraduate studies such as Masters degrees in the History of Buddhist Art, Curating the Art Museum, Conservation of Wall Painting and the History of Art. The Courtauld Institute of Art is selective of its students due to the small classes to ensure that each participant is getting the very best instruction. Due to its prime position, there are many hotels in London city that are able to cater for those who wish to study at the Courtauld Institute.

When Samuel passed away, his art collection was vast and was donated to the institute after his death. There were so many pieces that Somerset House, which is directly behind the Institute, became the Courtauld Gallery, showcasing sculptures, drawings and paintings right through the ages, mainly highlighting the work of Post-Impressionist and French Impressionist artists. The gallery holds a staggering 26,000 drawings and prints and over 530 paintings which includes Manet’s exquisite a bar at the Folies-Bergère, Van Gogh’s Self-Portrait with Bandaged Ear and Renoir’s La Loge. There are many important pieces from some of the masters of art such as several landscapes by Claude Monet, Toulouse-Lautrec, Peter Paul Rubens, Edgar Degas, Seurat, Gauguin, Modigliani and Henri “le Douanier” Rousseau.

Here is a list of a small selection of artists whose work grace the walls of the gallery:-

•    Robert Campin
•    Vincent Van Gogh
•    William Beechey
•    Quentin Matsys
•    Thomas Gainsborough
•    Anthony Van Dyck
•    Peter Lely
•    Peter Paul Rubens
•    Paul Cezanne
•    Camille Pissarro
•    Pierre-Auguste Renoir
•    Giovanni Bellini
•    Sandro Botticelli
•    Giovanni Battista Tiepolo
•    Fra Angelico
•    John Constable
•    Vanessa Bell
•    J.M.W Turner
•    Duncan Grant

In 1952, the co-founder of the Courtauld Institute, also bequeathed his extensive art collection of British drawings and the Old Masters to the gallery. Sir Robert Witt’s treasures contained 3000 drawings and 20,000 prints and English watercolours. From 1958 until the present day, several benefactors donated priceless artwork to the gallery; Pamela Diamand gave pieces by Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant and Dr William Wycliffe Spooner bequeathed a whole host of masterpieces from the likes of John Constable, Thomas Gainsborough, Alexander and John Robert Cozens, Samuel Palmer and Paul Sandby, amongst many others.

One of the most important exhibits in the gallery is the Gambier-Parry Collection. Donated by his grandson Mark Gambier-Parry, Thomas Gambier-Parry was an avid art collector and his collection contained some incredibly important works from across the continent. His artistic treasures mainly contained 1500-1600 pieces but, as time progressed, his tastes evolved and his collection grew to include works from the 1300-1400’s. The most important items were paintings, pottery and sculptures from the Medieval period right up to the beginning of the Renaissance; there is also a whole collection of Islamic metalwork, Hispano-Moresque ware and Byzantine wooden crosses which originated from Mount Athos in the North of Greece.

Some of the paintings included in the collection are:-

•    Coronation of the Virgin by Lorenzo Monaco: Dating from 1413, this depicts the virgin being crowned amongst saints, Jesus and the Madonna in paradise. This was a very popular image to depict in the 15th century, especially in Italy. There are two other panels on display by Lorenzo.

•    Fiesole Altarpiece by Fra Angelico: Friar Fra Angelico painted this commissioned piece between 1424-1425 and was placed in the side altar, where it remains today. It features Madonna, who sits upon a throne, holding a child in her arms while surrounded by angels and the saints Peter of Verona, Barnabas, Thomas of Aquino and Dominic of Verona.

There are late Renaissance artworks by Sassoferrato, Francesco Solimena, Boucicaut Master and Il Garofalo and incredible marble reliefs of the Virgin and Child, the most prominent was created by Mino da Fiesole. Most of the collection can be viewed on the Courtauld Gallery website, where 324 items of the Thomas Gambier-Parry exhibition are on display.

The Courtauld family not only made their mark within the textiles industry for over 200 years, but also within the art world. The Courtauld Gallery and Institute of Art have global recognition and have produced some of the leading museum curators, artists and critics of our time. As well as the Tate Modern and The National Gallery, the Courtauld Gallery should most certainly be on your list of things to see.