Andrew Lambirth

Diana on show

Metamorphosis (sponsored by Credit Suisse) is more than an exhibition, it is wider in its manifestations and implications. The Sainsbury Wing galleries are full of interesting works of art, but the Metamorphosis festival — for that is what it surely is — extends to the Royal Opera House and beyond, through dance and poetry. Unfortunately, there are only limited performances by the Royal Ballet, but these will be filmed and thus available for viewing, and the poetry is published in a handy illustrated paperback (price £8.99), with a learned but accessible introduction by the director of the National Gallery, Nicholas Penny.

The theme of the festival is Titian, and we are celebrating the NG’s recent acquisition (jointly with the National Galleries of Scotland) of ‘Diana and Callisto’, the third great Diana painting to join the national collection. ‘The Death of Actaeon’ was purchased by special appeal in 1972, and ‘Diana and Actaeon’ in 2009. All three are now on show together in the first room of this new exhibition, and very splendid they look too.

The idea behind the festival is to demonstrate Titian’s continuing relevance, and all the work — in gallery, opera house and book — has been directly inspired by these three paintings. The curator responsible is Minna Moore Ede, and she must take the credit for initiating a remarkable series of artistic responses to the great art of the past. The achievement of Titian is timeless, but it’s good to be reminded of this in such a positive and public way.

This collaboration between the National Gallery and the Royal Opera House has resulted in three contemporary visual artists (Chris Ofili, Conrad Shawcross and Mark Wallinger) being commissioned to produce work which will then be translated into a trio of ballets by leading choreographers and composers.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Keep reading with a free trial

Subscribe and get your first month of online and app access for free. After that it’s just £1 a week.

There’s no commitment, you can cancel any time.

Or

Unlock more articles

REGISTER

Comments

Don't miss out

Join the conversation with other Spectator readers. Subscribe to leave a comment.

Already a subscriber? Log in