"Visions of Jerusalem" Exhibition Opens September 16

Les Enluminures is pleased to present Visions of Jerusalem: Medieval Christendom Imagines the City on a Hill. The exhibition explores the representation of the Holy City in the images and imaginations of the Latin West and the rich diversity of its representation in both word and picture. It is conceived to coincide with the major international exhibition at The Metropolitan Museum of Art, Jerusalem 1000-1400, Every People Under Heaven, which scrutinizes through a much broader lens the impact Jerusalem had on the many cultural traditions that hold it dear: Eastern, Western, African, Jewish, Muslim, Christian, each with multiple identities and denominations.

Far from inspiring a consistent Christian conception of the Holy City, we show how Jerusalem prompted a vast range of depictions by Western authors and artists. In a time before cameras, images of Jerusalem were less concerned with veracity than with the power of their associations. The versatility of the Holy Land allowed it to act not only as the mise en scène for the Church’s rich biblical-mystical tradition, but also as a virtual destination for spiritual pilgrims and a touchstone in medieval apocalyptic traditions, among others. These varying visions of Jerusalem exemplify the fascinating complexity of the city. In the medieval mind, Jerusalem was both heavenly and earthly. It was a physical location and a mental construction that offered a link to the past and a harbinger of the future.

Highlights of the exhibition include a miniature depicting the Agony in the Garden from the Holy Land Choir Book, the long lost first volume of the Bible of Louis de Harcourt, Patriarch of Jerusalem and Bishop of Bayeux, a beautifully illustrated early gothic copy of Peter of Poitiers’ geneaological scroll, and a deluxe book of hours with miniatures attributed to the Workshop of the Master François.

Place:                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  LES ENLUMINURES
23 East 73rd Street, 7th Floor, Penthouse, New York, NY 10021                                                                                                                                              Dates:
September16th through November 12th, 2016
Hours:
Tuesday to Saturday, 10am - 6pm
Contact information:
Adrienne Albright / +1 212 717 7273 / newyork@lesenluminures.com