Masterpieces from the Borghese Gallery brought together in Paris for the first time – L’Express

Bringing together on non-Italian walls emblematic pieces from the Borghese Gallery in Rome has never been done before. This is therefore a unique opportunity to feast your eyes at the Jacquemart-André Museum, which is marking its reopening after a year of work, with this dazzling procession of Renaissance and Baroque jewels.

Bernini, Botticelli, Caravaggio, Raphael, Rubens, Titian… What a lot! At the origin of this prestigious collection, Scipione Borghese, nephew of Pope Paul V who made him a cardinal in 1605, gave himself over without limits to his frenzy of acquisitions. The privileged position of the prelate in the papal galaxy is a strong argument for appropriating, sometimes under duress, the most beautiful examples of painting and statuary of his time. Focus on three of these masterpieces shown in Paris until January 5, 2025.

Bernini, ““Self-portrait in mature age” (around 1638-1640)

The Italian artist is barely 40 years old when he is depicted in three-quarter view, his emaciated face showing slight signs of aging. Here, Bernini focused on physiognomy, sketching the background and the clothes with a few quick brushstrokes that give the whole an unfinished appearance. Spotted in adolescence by Scipio who took him under his wing, the Baroque prodigy, heir to Michelangelo according to Paul V, is especially recognized for his sculptures, including Neptune and the Dolphin.

Of his abundant pictorial corpus (he is said to have produced more than 150 paintings between the 1620s and 1640s), only a dozen canvases attributed to Bernini have come down to us – most of them portraits and self-portraits of modest format, far from the history painting which was then popular with the public.Self-portrait in middle age There is a particular visibility since it served as the effigy for the 50,000 lire notes before the advent of the euro.

Caravaggio, “Boy with fruit basket (around 1596)

It is one of the first masterpieces to join the Borghese collection, as early as 1607, the fruit of the muscular seizure by Paul V’s close guard of a hundred pieces in the studio of the cavalier d’Arpin, the very place where the young Caravaggio officiated as a small hand at the beginning. A good catch for the cardinal, probably the sponsor of the expropriation.

In this 70 cm high painting, all of Caravaggio is already there, with his striking realism, even to the point of rendering the withering of the leaves and the ripening of the fruit, the sensuality of the composition which sees the model, mouth half-open, pressing the wicker basket against him, and the famous chiaroscuro dear to the painter casting a harsh light on the bare shoulder of Mario Minniti, the 16-year-old adolescent who posed for the master in the making.

Dominique, “Sibyl” (1617)

The greed of Cardinal Borghese, who, when it comes to art, knows no bounds, is also exercised at the expense of Domenico Zampieri, known as Domenichino, whom the prelate will not hesitate to imprison to force him to work for him. This Sibylamong the twelve priestesses of Apollo with divinatory virtues in Greek mythology, is recognizable by her heavy twisted turban.

To the subject commonly treated in the 17th century, the painter adds two unusual elements: a musical instrument and a roll of sheet music. An intrusion dictated by the common passion for the seven notes maintained by the maestro and its sponsor. Highly appreciated at the time, as evidenced by the numerous copies that were made, this large format remains a centerpiece of the invaluable collection of the greedy cardinal.