Hidden Lives of Masterpieces
While Understanding Art: Hidden Lives of Masterpieces (Athena, 6/18) sounds like a pedantic affair the result is actually the opposite. Not exactly threading on CSI territory yet with an unmistakable taste for mystery and forensic investigation this five-part British series (259-minutes on 2 DVDs) shows you the paintings of five great artists in a manner not readily available to the average bear.
Shot over a period of five years (2006 – 2025), filmmakers Stan Neumann and Juliette Garcias attended a yearly pow-wow at the Musée du Louvre where art experts viewed the work of a single artist. Only for this unique event the canvases are removed from their frames and set, studio-style, on an easel. The graphic design of the five episodes is modeled after the art of Saul Bass.
The five artists under the scope are Raphael, Rembrandt, Poussin, Watteau, and Leonardo. Some of documentation covers restoration techniques, and the wide range of modern tools like UVF light or X-rays or microscopy or even chromatography to see into the painting. In some cases the art on display has been painted over a pre-existing paining. Then there’s the delicate art of revealing forgeries.
The episode that really takes on a procedural tone revolves around Poussin’s The Flight Into Egypt (c. 1658). The painting was bought by brothers in the 1980s who suspected it was a Poussin and yet the seller thought otherwise and it sold for 1.6-million-Francs with a starting bid of 80K-Francs. Then a lengthy court case ensued with the result that the painting was returned to the owner who eventually sold it to a museum for millions more. Fascinating, yes educational, and never boring Hidden Lives of Masterpieces should occupy a place on your shelf and your mind.
— Michael Bergeron
