Berlin’s Gemäldegalerie is uniquely distinguished by its large holdings of outstanding paintings from early Netherlandish and French painting. Among them are masterpieces such Jan van Eyck’s Madonna in the Church, the Bladelin Triptych by Rogier van der Weyden, the Montforte Altarpiece by Hugo van der Goes, and the ‘Butterfly Madonna’ (Virgin and Child with Angels) from Jean Malouel’s circle.

Now, through close exchange between art historians and conservators, an academic inventory catalogue is being compiled for this part of the collection for the first time. In addition to art historical discussions on individual objects, the research project is also focused on technical analysis, including X-radiography and infrared imaging as well as microscopy. The goal is to publish findings on the provenance, function, and allocation of the paintings as well as the genesis of the images, the development of motifs, and painterly techniques and processes in an inventory catalogue, which would then provide a basis for all further research.

Project directors: Dr. Katrin Dyballa, director; Dr. Stephan Kemperdick, custodian of early Netherlandish and early German painting
Project team: Dr. Babette Hartwieg, chief conservator; Sandra Stelzig, paintings conservator; Maria Reimelt, paintings conservator; Dr. Ute Stehr, paintings conservator; Beatrix Graf, paintings conservator; Christoph Schmidt, technical photographer; Rainer Wendler, conservator of wood
Project partner: Rathgen-Forschungslabor
Funded by: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (German Research Foundation); Ernst von Siemens Kunststiftung
Exhibitions: During the project the findings on a specific work or work group will be presented in a small exhibition. Following the project’s completion, all analysed works will be presented in a second, more comprehensive exhibition.
Publication: The research results will appear in an inventory catalogue published in book form.
Duration: 2015 to 2018