Fra Angelico at the Musee Jacquemart-Andree

Last weekend we went to see the first exhibition of the works of Fra Angelico in ages. I am very partial to Brother Giovanni and nothing would prevent me from boarding the Eurostar train to Paris to see his paintings. The exhibition, 'Fra Angelico et les Maitres de la Lumiere', is at the lovely Musee Jacquemart-Andree on Boulevard Hausmann (the other end of the road to the big department stores). The museum is based in a grand old mansion house and has a lovely cafe that sells the most delicious pastries, but more about that another day.

The exhibition is a smash hit judging from the posters all over town and the queues outside for tickets. We'd booked tickets in advance but still had to take our place in the slow-moving queue as people were slowly let into the crowded exhibition. All was worth it to stand in a room and be surrounded on all sides by the magnificent works of Fra Angelico.

I first became aware of Fra Angelico when I was 16 and doing history of art at school. I loved the early Renaissance painters from around Europe but Fra Angelico was one of many. It wasn't until I saw his frescoes in San Marco in Florence that I saw his true greatness. It's important to see original paintings whenever you can - reproductions lose much of the colour and intensity of paintings and are a poor substitute for the originals. That's why I went to Paris.

The exhibition is a mix of the paintings of Fra Angelico and those artists who influenced him and those he influenced. I counted 23 paintings by the Angelic One and a glory they were to behold, most of which I've never seen before. Out of these I shall pick three highlights:

The Virgin and Child that is the face of the poster advertising the exhibition, glorious blues and golds with the fully realised faces of the Virgin and the child. It is the centrepiece of a small room with other depictions of the Virgin and Child but this is the one that caught me, with the child gazing out peacefully at the viewer. To be surrounded by Fra Angelico paintings is special feeling.

The triptych of 'The Ascension, The Last Judgement and Pentecost' with its bold and gorgeous colours, protected over the years in the vaults of the Vatican. The colours are unbelievably deep and rich and this photo doesn't give any hint as to how rich the painting really is. It has to be seen to be believed.

The 'Coronation of the Virigin; is from the Uffizi in Florence and I blogged about it earlier this year when I first saw it. It's on loan for this exhibition along with the 'Theabaed' from the Uffizi. This painting is gorgeous, dripping with gold and belief as Christ enthrones his mother in heaven with the choirs of angels and the great and good watching. I like Fra Angelico's crowds of people because they all look different, they look at each other and out of painting at you, they're you and me in the court of Heaven. This is a magnificent painting and you must, if you get the chance, see it in the flesh.


Fra Angelico was not a rigid stylist. He experimented with perspective, with foreshortening his characters to display different bodily movements and add reality to his paintings. At the same time he painted Heaven. He painted his sincere beliefs, his vision, his hopes and dreams and, as far as I'm concerned, he succeeded. I glimpse a tiny part of his vision when I see his paintings. He makes me share a small portion of his belief which reaches out to Heaven. He makes his belief real for me and that's the power of his paintings. That's what makes my sight blur with tears.

The exhibition runs until 16 January 2012 so there's plenty of time for you to order tickets. The catalogue is entirely in French with no English translation but it's full of glorious paintings. It also weighs a tonne. But a tonne is good when it's made up of Fra Angelico.