Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge in Early Modern Europe, Exhibition, Through December 10th

I have just been alerted to a pretty great looking exhibition on through December 10th at the Arthur M. Sackler Museum at Harvard. Entitled "Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge in Early Modern Europe," the exhibition features not only prints but also flap anatomies (!!!), books, maps, and scientific instruments, all intended to explore "the role of celebrated artists in the scientific inquiries of the 16th century."

Full information follows, from the exhibition website:

Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge in Early Modern Europe
Sep 6 2011 — Dec 10 2011
Arthur M. Sackler Museum

Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge examines how celebrated Northern Renaissance artists contributed to the scientific investigations of the 16th century. The exhibition and its accompanying catalogue challenge the perception of artists as illustrators in the service of scientists. Artists’ printed images served as both instruments for research and agents in the dissemination of knowledge. The exhibition, displaying prints, books, maps, and such instruments as sundials, globes, astrolabes, and armillary spheres, looks at relationships between their producers and their production, as well as among the objects themselves. The story of 16th-century technology is enhanced by technology of the 21st, with interactive computers in the galleries, an interactive module on the website, and an iPhone/iPad application in iTunes (check back here soon for an update on availability).

Curated by Susan Dackerman, Carl A. Weyerhaeuser Curator of Prints, Division of European and American Art, Harvard Art Museums. Organized in collaboration with the Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL.

Opening Panel Discussion and Reception: September 6, 2011, 5–8pm.
Symposium: December 2, 2011, 5–8pm (evening program), and December 3, 2011, 8:30am–6:30pm (day program).

For more special programming related to the exhibition, such as tours, talks, concerts, and Family Days, see the Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge section of our calendar.

Admission note: During Prints and the Pursuit of Knowledge, admission to the Sackler Museum galleries will be free on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday, 3–5pm.

Travel dates:
– September 6–December 10, 2011
Harvard Art Museums
Arthur M. Sackler Museum, Cambridge, MA
– January 17–April 8, 2012
Mary and Leigh Block Museum of Art
Northwestern University, Evanston, IL

The exhibition and its accompanying catalogue are made possible by funding from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Mrs. Arthur K. Solomon, Lionel and Vivian Spiro, Walter and Virgilia Klein, Julian and Hope Edison, Novartis on behalf of Dr. Steven E. Hyman, the Samuel H. Kress Foundation, Barbara and the late Robert Wheaton, the Goldman Sachs Foundation, and an anonymous donor. Additional support is provided by the Harvard Art Museums’ endowment funds: the Alexander S., Robert L., and Bruce A. Beal Exhibition Fund; Anthony and Celeste Meier Exhibitions Fund; Charlotte F. and Irving W. Rabb Exhibition Fund; and Melvin R. Seiden and Janine Luke Fund for Publications and Exhibitions.

You can find out more by clicking here; you can find out about--an order a copy of!--the catalog by clicking here.

Thanks to Daniel Margocsy, who helped put it together, for passing this along!

Images all drawn the exhibition page; full info including captions can be found by clicking here.