From News Desk
A new exhibition opening at The Met Cloisters this fall will explore the often-overlooked themes of sexuality and gender in art from the medieval past, a time when most artistic production served religious purposes. Featuring more than 50 works – from gold jewelry and ivory sculptures to stained glass, illuminated manuscripts, woven textiles; and more – Spectrum of Desire – Love, Sex and Gender in the Middle Ages will showcase the rich visual language of longing in the arts of western Europe from the 13th to the 15th century, drawing from both The Met’s extraordinary collection and exceptional loans from lenders.
The exhibition is made possible by the Michel David-Weill Fund and Kathryn A Ploss.
“Firmly grounded in decades of scholarship, Spectrum of Desire illuminates the complex ways that people in medieval Europe imagined how to live and love,” said Max Hollein, The Met’s Marina Kellen French Director and Chief Executive Officer. “The exceptionally spectacular works of art featured in the exhibition tell us how desire and the visual arts were deeply entwined in ways that are incredibly powerful—and sometimes quite surprising.”
From the 13th through 15th century, Western Europe witnessed profound changes in the ways that sex, ideas of the family and relationships were regulated, yet it was also a time of surprising openness: ideas about the power of erotic unions, gender expression and identity were frequently in flux. This exhibition examines the broad spectrum of desires in the Middle Ages and shows how art shaped these experiences and feelings. Among the objects the exhibition showcases are those related to medieval marriage and courtship, including exquisitely carved ivory writing tablets – sometimes depicting risqué themes – which were likely used for the exchange of messages between lovers. Other works present complex views of gender and identity, such as a remarkable painting of Saint Jerome in a woman’s dress, or allude to same-sex desire, as in a delicate boxwood carving of Eve and a female-headed serpent. Exceptional loans include the Rothschild Canticles, a rarely displayed devotional manuscript from Yale University’s Beinecke Library that depicts some of the earliest images of Christian mystical union.
Melanie Holcomb, The Met’s Curator and Manager of Collection Strategy, Department of Medieval Art and The Cloisters said, “Though we might think of the Middle Ages as a repressive era, this exhibition shows that artists explored ideas of sex and gender in fascinating and visually beautiful ways.”
Nancy Thebaut, Exhibition Co-Curator and Associate Professor in the History of Art, University of Oxford said, “Spectrum of Desire builds upon decades of work by scholars who have pioneered and refined the study of gender and sexuality in medieval Europe. We are excited to share their important work, as well as our own findings, with visitors.”
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