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Frederick Gordts

@frederickgordts

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“Ça a débuté comme ça. Moi, j’avais jamais rien dit. Rien.” -Céline, Voyage au bout de la nuit.
Art, classical music, opera, words.
📖 @courtauld

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Courtauld GD S1E3 - “F/frieze(s)” (week 3) - Scroll images for more text

This week we looked at friezes and started getting into writing essays @courtauld

Laocoön (left), the Trojan priest, and Odysseus (right): Hellenistic art.

How to write an Art History Essay, part 1. Developing a paragraph.

ATTRIBUTED TO THE WHITEFACE/FRIGNANO PAINTER
Greek, Campanian, ca. 360-330 B.C., Hydria
@colnaghi1760 @friezeofficial @philes.h

Physical Histories: Westminster Abbey Chapter House. Using a blow-lamp to aid the penetration of wax into the surface of the paintings. This was a historical and controversial technique to preserve the wall paintings, which unfortunately did a lot of damage.

Tarek Atoui at Tate Modern Turbine Hall.
@tate

Quick jump over the Channel to @nativeauctions with this fantastic Dennis Oppenheim from 1973, “Recall”. Coloured pencil and collage on paper.

Periods.

Similarities: Seated Scribe (1480), and Seated Painter by Sinan Bay (15th century).

They drink wine from cans here 🇬🇧 (and it doesn’t even taste bad).
@tate

Foundations. Classical and Byzantine Art. Sarcophagus showing Endymion (top) and one showing Jonah. Read the Jonah story from left to right.

Verism. A highly realistic artistic style to highlight maturity and gravitas. Age brings experience.
Two unnamed (Roman) Republican men (30 BC).

Proper queueing for the 🇮🇹 embassy.
@thetagli @fondazionesandretto @apalazzogallery @herald_st @moshetabibnia @p420gallery @richardsaltoungallery @robilantgallery @rossiandrossi @dee_nosaur

Sit down at @ocula.art @jessica_mccormack

Fast track to home at @tate @stadkortrijk
“Light and Magic - the birth of photography” (until 21 Feb)

Worth the detour: Liz Larner at Camden Art Centre (until 17 Jan 2027)
@camdenartcentre

Marcel Broodthaers and Agnieszka Kurant @belmaczlondon

Camarasaurus supremus Skull with Embedded Allosaurus Tooth Approx. 155-145 million years old, Kimmeridgian-Tithonian, Late Jurassic Period, Morrison Formation, USA, Fossilised Bone
@friezeofficial @davidaaronarts taken in The Courtauld by @frederickgordts

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a day ago

Courtauld GD S1E2 - “Into the melting pot(s)” (week 2) - Scroll images for more text

Second proper week brought more art history old and new @courtauld

A Greek kylix (a wide-bowled drinking cup) showing Pentheus ripped apart by his mother (c 480BC).

Fra Mauro’s map of the world (c 1450 CE)

Visiting @sungtieu at @emalinofficial with @leopoldthun @leonie.wisowaty and Benedikt

… soon …

@thecourtauldian Issue 36 launch party at @thelexingtonlondon

Physical Histories about the White Tower/The Tower of London. An example par excellence of the royal Norman castle from the late 11th century.

Broadway market 🪴

Visual analysis of Un bar aux Folies Bergères by Edouard Manet (1882) at the Courtauld. Notice the dirty mirror, the empty gaze, the reflection on the right…

Adoration of the Magi by Gentile da Fabriano (1423). International Gothic style, naturalistic approach with varied facial expressions and three-dimensionality through the layering of larger figures on top of smaller ones.

5.5 hours of “joy” with Parsifal (Wagner) @royalballetandopera with @jakubhrusa_conductor and @chelsea_zurflueh @stanislasdebarbeyrac @christiangerhaher …

@magalireus at @tenderbooks

Best label this week @christiesinc about Mondriaan

Alex Margo Arden, curated by @vittoria.totale at @nicolettafioruccifoundation

@yinkashonibarestudio at @tate “The 90s: Art and Fashion” taken in The Courtauld by @frederickgordts

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8 days ago

Courtauld GD S1E1 - “Baptism by fire”(week 1) - Scroll images for more text.

Some random photos and observations from the first week @courtauld

The Trinity with Saints Mary Magdalen and John the Baptist by Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510)
➡️ God carries Jesus’ Cross as he looks resigned and a little disappointed in humankind

Lascaux cave painting showing “shaft scene”, circa 19000 years old.
➡️ Bison, bird on a stick, humanoid figure.

Moralized Bible. God creating the cosmos.
Paris 1220-1230
➡️ No, the perfect circle He is creating is not the earth!

Oh CRAAP! Use it to check if a source of information is relevant and credible.
➡️ We were treated to a quote by Edmund Burke: “Reading without reflecting is like eating without digesting.”

Account of New Spain by Hernan Cortes (1524). Temixtitan, the Aztec capital city in the Valley of Mexico
➡️ Odd 360 deg. perspective but look at the details!

Michelangelo’s Sistine Chapel frescoes (1508-1512). This is a detail of the prophet Daniel.
➡️ Reading about the most recent restoration (1980-1994) and comparing articles and readings. Colalucci vs James Beck anyone?

Uncovering layers in Banqueting House in London.
➡️ It houses a ceiling painting by Rubens which was commissioned in 1629 by Charles 1. Banqueting House can be visited! Who needs Bayeux now? :)

Raphael, Philosophy (1509-11) in the Vatican. Previously known as the School of Athens.
➡️ Raphael himself is in the fresco, next to Ptolemy and Zoroaster. This was common back then. taken in The Courtauld by @frederickgordts

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16 days ago

In het net verschenen septembernummer van het Vriendenmagazine van De Nationale Opera & Ballet schreef ik een stuk over de geënsceneerde operaversie van de Johannes-Passion, die, na Salzburg, in november naar Amsterdam komt. Geregisseerd door Sacha Waltz, onder leiding van Leonardo García-Alarcon en met o.a. Andreas Wolf, David Fischer, Florian Boesch, Jessica Niles, Paul-Antoine Bénos-Djian en Matthew Newlin. Uniek is dat het Koor van De Nationale Opera en het koor van de Nederlandse Bachvereniging samenwerken. Ik ging in gesprek met sopraan Tigran Matinyan en alt Michaela Riener over de Passie(s), polyfonie, retoriek en Bach natuurlijk.

In the recently published September issue of the Friends Magazine of De Nationale Opera & Ballet, I wrote a piece about the staged opera version of the Johannes-Passion, which is coming to Amsterdam in November (after Salzburg). Directed by Sacha Waltz, conducted by Leonardo García-Alarcon, and featuring Andreas Wolf, David Fischer, Florian Boesch, Jessica Niles, Paul-Antoine Bénos-Djian, and Matthew Newlin, among others. It is special that the Choir of De Nationale Opera and the Choir of the Netherlands Bach Society are collaborating. I talked to soprano Tigran Matinyan and alto Michaela Riener about the Passion(s), polyphony, rhetoric, and Bach, of course.

@nationaleoperaballet #bach #johannespassion @bachvereniging @leonardogarciaalarcon @sashawaltzandguests #tigranmatinyan👑 @michaela_riener @andreaswolfbass #davidfischer #florianboesch @jessica_niles_ @paulantoine.benos.djian @matthewnewlin taken in Dutch National Opera and Ballet by @frederickgordts

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2 months ago

WHAT DID YOU PASS ON TO ME
« retour au Bailli »

Thanks to all who attended the opening yesterday. What an enormous (hot) crowd! 🔥

Next to the historic publications and archive, the exhibition shows works by 12 artists:
2 & 4. Delphine Deguislage @dolfin_d
3. Lili Dujourie
5 & 11. Nokukhanya Langa @nokukhanyalanga
6 & 9. Nel Aerts @nel_aerts
7. Shervin/e Sheikh Rezaei @shervinsheikhrezaei
8 & 16. Francesca Comune @francesca.comune_
10. Melissa Gordon @melissajohannegordon
12. Naama Tsabar @naamatsabar
13. Fran Van Coppenolle @fran_vancoppenolle
14 & 18. Sophie Nys
15. Celine Vahsen @celinevahsen
17. Margarita Maximova @margarita__maximova

The exhibition runs until 27.06.2026. Open Thursday-Saturday 14:00-18:00 or by appointment.

🗓️ A number of talks will be announced very soon.

Curated by @frederickgordts @giuliablasig @cltnwd_ @nicoledeeorourke

Endless thanks to Godart Bakkers, Micheline Scwajzer, Marie-Puck and Gabriel Broodthaers, Maria Gilissen, Elena Conradi, Charlie Usher, Jan Mot, Greta Meert, Roger D’Hondt, Paul Maenz, Gerd DeVries, Anny de Decker, Koen Brams, Anne Marie Rona, Virginie Devillez, Elias Leytens for most archive material, Bart Spillemaeckers, Laura Gonzalez Palacios, Philippe De Gobert, Dvir, Barbé.
@galerieconradi @jan.mot.brussels @galeriegretameert @tavolo_1973 @gabriel.broodthaers @virginiedevillez @chiquitaroom @dvir_gallery @barbegallery

Photos by @frederickgordts (1, 18, 19), Philippe De Gobert (11) and @matthias_mayz_yzebaert (all others). taken in Brussels, Belgium by @frederickgordts

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5 months ago

WHAT DID YOU PASS ON TO ME
« retour au bailli »
26.05.2026 - 27.06.2026

works
AERTS COMUNE VAN COPPENOLLE DEGUISLAGE DUJOURIE GORDON LANGA MAXIMOVA NYS SHEIKH REZAEI TSABAR VAHSEN

historical publications and references
ACCONCI ANDRE ART & LANGUAGE BEUYS BROODTHAERS BUREN FLAVIN KAWARA KOSUTH LEWITT MANZONI NAUMAN PANAMARENKO PENCK WEINER and more...

vernissage | opening
26.05.2026 18:00-21:00
galeries “le bailli” avenue louise 195(6/7) 1050 bruxelles

26.05.2026 - 27.06.2026
thu-sat 14:00-18:00

all welcome for the vernissage -
limited edition invitations xx/100 by post soon

curated by
@frederickgordts @giuliablasig @cltnwd_ @nicoledeeorourke

(c) photo: “PAUL MAENZ. JAHRESBERICHT 1973. KÖLN & BRÜSSEL” page 86.

@nel_aerts @francesca.comune_ @fran_vancoppenolle @dolfin_d @nokukhanyalanga @margarita__maximova @shervinsheikhrezaei @naamatsabar @celinevahsen #lilidujourie #sophienys #melissagordon taken in Brussels, Belgium by @frederickgordts

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5 months ago

Soon at Le Bailli…

“Before I had ever been in Belgium, I knew some Belgians. Other than Hercule Poirot, whose Belgianness I’d barely noticed in the novels of Agatha Christie, they were mostly members of the international avant-garde art world: Herman and Nicole Daled, Fernand Spillemaeckers, Marcel Broodthaers and Maria Gilissen. I had also been receiving information about the activities of the Wide White Space, Plus Kern, X-One, and MTL galleries for some years - at my request. And I’d heard jokes about the benefit of trans-Europe superhighways allowing people to pass through Belgium without stopping, and stories of Belgian collectors - their arriving at the Cologne Kunstmarkt with hats, gloves, and shopping lists of international artists’ names, and their chartering a plane to New York City to try and buy ‘a Jan Dibbets’ from Leo Castelli. And I’d heard of Dutch and German and Belgian galleries renting spaces in 𝗕𝗿𝘂𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗹𝘀’ 𝗟𝗲 𝗕𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗶 […] treating them as a sort of shop-window or suburban shopping-centre for their activities. […] So much for the impressions of Belgium I received abroad. They were not irrelevant to those I received on my first trip — a thirty-six hour Brussels quickie for the exhibition and opening festivities of ‘Carl Andre/Marcel Broodthaers/Daniel Buren/Victor Burgin/Gilbert & George/On Kawara/Gerhard Richter’ at the Palais de Beaux-Arts (Paleis voor Schone Kunsten) in January 1974. That trip really blew my mind...”.
(from Studio International, Oct 1974, “Incredible” Belgium: Impressions, author: Barbara Reise)
#conceptualart #postconceptualart

@nicoledeeorourke @giuliablasig @cltnwd_ @frederickgordts taken in Brussels, Belgium by @frederickgordts

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6 months ago

In juni is een nieuwe productie van “Simon Boccanegra” van Giuseppe Verdi te zien bij @nationaleoperaballet. Deze opera uit 1857 vertelt het verhaal van Simon Boccanegra, die zijn geliefde én dochter verliest en wordt uitgeroepen tot leider van een instabiel Genua. In mijn artikel in het Vriendenmagazine van @nationaleoperaballet interview ik Verdi-bariton George Petean, die de hoofdrol vertolkt in deze productie van Jetske Mijnssen, met Federico Lombardi als Amelia Grimaldi, Georg Zeppenfeld als Jacopo Fiesco, Joshua Guerrero als Gabriele Adorno, Germán Olvera als Paolo Albiani en Jasurbek Khaydarov als Pietro. Dirigent Fabio Luisi leidt het Koninklijk Concertgebouworkest. Première 4 juni 2026!

In June, a new production of Giuseppe Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra” will be at @nationaleoperaballet. This 1857 opera tells the story of Simon Boccanegra, who loses both his beloved and his daughter and is proclaimed leader of an unstable Genoa. In my article in the magazine of @nationaleoperaballet, I interviewed Verdi baritone George Petean, who plays the lead role in this production by Jetske Mijnssen, with Federico Lombardi as Amelia Grimaldi, Georg Zeppenfeld as Jacopo Fiesco, Joshua Guerrero as Gabriele Adorno, Germán Olvera as Paolo Albiani, and Jasurbek Khaydarov as Pietro. Conductor Fabio Luisi leads the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra. Premieres June 4, 2026!

@nationaleoperaballet @fabioluisiconductor #jetskemijnssen @laura.roling @the_jedi_baritone @federica_lombardi_s #georgzeppenfeld @iamjoshuaguerrero @germanolverabaritone @jasurkhaydarovbass @concertgebouworkest @hollandfestival hollandfestival #giuseppeverdi #nationaleoperaballet #simonboccanegra by @frederickgordts

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6 months ago

De wereld van de klassieke muziek en kunst is rijk. Dat maakt onze gast Frederick Gordts nogmaals duidelijk bij De Liefhebber. Hij gidst ons langs prachtige muziekstukken.

Benieuwd naar zijn muziekkeuzes?
Beluister nu deze aflevering en nog veel meer op VRT MAX 🎧. by @frederickgordts

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7 months ago

A walk in the park at St James’s Square ☀️
Until 3 March, featuring:
1️⃣ George Rickey: Four Open Rectangles Diagonal Joined Gyratory II (1988) [under installation while recording]
2️⃣ Richard Long: Luserna Stone Circle (1991)
3️⃣ Eduardo Paolozzi: Towards a New Laocoön (1963)
4️⃣ César: La Victoire de Villetaneuse (1966)
5️⃣ Eugene Dodeigne: Le Méchant (1968)
6️⃣ Bernar Venet: Deux Arcs de 216,5° (1989)
7️⃣ Tony Cragg: Subcommittee (1991)
8️⃣ Barry Flanagan: The Bowler (1990)
… and bonus inside at Christie’s
9️⃣ Henry Moore: Goslar Warrior (1973-74) with our 🇧🇪 garden backdrop

Thanks to @christiesinc @pevandergraaf @astrid.centner @ellielachs #zitagibson #oliviercamu and so many more taken in St James's Square by @frederickgordts

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8 months ago

“Modern Visionaries” - our dearest grandparents’ Josette (“Moty”) and Roger (“Boempa”) Vanthournout collection is soon to be dispersed 🖼️ 😔

From surrealism over expressionism to post-war avant garde and some contemporary… it was our playground.

#renemagritte #pablopicasso #fernandkhnopff #pauldelvaux #manray… Paul Delvaux, Henry Moore, Lucio Fontana, Yayoi Kusama. Lynn Chadwick, Gustave de Smet and so many more.

Check out the preview in Brussels (until tomorrow), Hong Kong (3-6 Feb), New York (10-13 Feb) and Paris (18-20 Feb) followed by the full viewing in London from 25 Feb until the auctions on 5 and 6 March in London @christiesinc

https://tinyurl.com/vanthou by @frederickgordts

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9 months ago

In het nieuwe Vriendenmagazine van @nationaleoperaballet schreef ik de intro (“Ouverture”) over @michelvanderaa en zijn nieuwe filmopera Theory of Flames voor het Opera Forward Festival én een langer stuk over Jasmin White @jazziejanae als Juno in de opera Semele van Händel die op 17 januari in première gaat in een regie van @clausguth - en later naar @metopera reist. Gaat dat zien!

In the new issue of the Vriendenmagazine of @nationaleoperaballet, I wrote the introductory piece about @michelvanderaa and his “Theory of Flames” for the Opera Forward Festival, and a longer article about Jasmin White @jazziejanae and starring as Juno in Handel’s opera Semele, which premieres on 17th January, directed by @clausguth. It travels to @metopera later. Don’t miss it!

@nationaleoperaballet @ypcoperaballet @mymuseandme #nationaleoperaballet #stopera by @frederickgordts

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9 months ago