Up close to the classics

Enthusiasts of Renaissance art in Beijing can get up close to the classics at the Central Academy of Fine Arts' Cafa Art Museum, where a major exhibition is on until Jan 23.

On view are 121 portraits, drafts, graphics, lambskin illustrations, architectural layouts and pattern designs, on loan from the Louvre in Paris.

Some of the works have not been previously seen outside the Louvre.

Works by Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo and Raphael, the three most influential figures of the Renaissance are included.

Also on show are a series of unsigned prints, created in Florence. Although they are not attributed to anyone they "still hold an important place in Western art history", says Catherine Loisel, chief curator of the drawings and prints department at the Louvre.

"We have invested much time and energy to realize this show over the past year," says museum director Wang Huangsheng.

The Renaissance movement, from the 14th to the 17th century, witnessed a revival of the arts, society and politics. It has long been held as a classic source of inspiration for Chinese oil painters and print makers since the early 20th century.

Even today, copies of works by ancient masters are still models for art majors at the academy, Wang says.

The exhibition serves as a "timely complementary factor" to Internal Voyage: 60 Years of Chinese Sketches, a large-scale show that was initiated last December and is now on tour at art schools across the country. It looks at how sketching, a typical discipline of Western art, has become part of the art education system of New China, according to Wang.

Critics are saying the Renaissance art show reveals the Western passion for art of this period, a role model for the emerging Chinese nouveau riche who are now showing a strong interest in art collecting.

All the exhibits are from the collection of Baron Edmond Benjamin James de Rothschild (1845-1934).

A French-born member of the Rothschild banking family, he pursued artistic and philanthropic interests throughout his life.

Over time, he built a mammoth collection of engravings, drawings and sculptures. His family donated them all to the Louvre in 1935, according to his final wishes.

The exhibition marks the first cooperation between the Central Academy of Fine Arts, China's top institution for art education, and the Louvre.

"Over the past years, we have been making efforts to reach out and share part of our treasures with viewers from around the world by holding exhibitions such as this one," said Herve Barbaret, general administrator of Louvre Museum, at the show's opening.

A major exhibition featuring Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) art works from the Forbidden City will be held at the Louvre next year, to strengthen cultural understanding between Chinese and French people, he added.