On Saturday, the Legion of Honor will open a new exhibition entitledThe Mourners: Tomb Sculptures from the Court of Burgundy. The show was a 2011 winner of the Association of Art Museum Curators award for outstanding small exhibitions.
The exhibition features thirty-seven devotional figures that recreate the mourners in a royal funeral procession.
On loan from the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, these small statues have never before been seen in their entirety outside of France. The figures were commissioned for the elaborate tomb of the second Duke of Burgundy, and carved between 1443 and 1456/57.
Crafted with astonishing detail, the alabaster sculptures exemplify the most important artistic innovations of the late Middle Ages. Each individual figure has a different expression—some wring their hands or dry their tears, hide their faces in the folds of their robes or appear lost in reverent contemplation.
The sculptures are typically displayed as a group, beneath life-sized effigies of the duke and his wife, Margaret of Bavaria, resting upon a slab of black marble. But for this traveling exhibition, the figures will be displayed individually. A special website at themourners.org gives viewers a chance to view each sculpture up close, with 360 degree views.
The Mourners: Tomb Sculptures from the Court of Burgundy opens this Saturday at the Legion of Honor and runs through December 31, 2011.
Sarah B.
The Mourners on display at their home in the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon.
ooh, can’t wait to go! I did my graduate degree in medieval history. Surely seems to me that the Legion has been hosting some superbly interesting shows in the last couple of years. Their “companion” show to the first Impressionist/Musee d’Orsay exhibition was so delicious that i went 3x (and kept taking friends). The niches they are exploring…and doing such a great job of it…
This makes me appreciate living in the richmond district so much! Simply incredible!