Tracey Emin and Andy Warhol to feature in 'provocative' National Gallery exhibition on sin

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Robert Dex @RobDexES10 December 2019

It is traditionally seen as home to the old masters of classical painting, but the National Gallery is moving into contemporary art with a landmark show on sin.

Neon work by Tracey Emin and a pair of Andy Warhol posters will adorn the walls of the gallery alongside pieces by Brueghel, Velázquez and Hogarth.

Dr Joost Joustra, who is curating the show, said he hoped visitors to the exhibition would be “intrigued” by the idea.

He said: “Sin for me is a topic that obviously underlies a lot of religion and religious thinking, especially in Christianity, and at the same time it’s quite a relatable thing, it’s quite a provocative thing. One of the things I’d like to do with the exhibition is prompt people to think about their own sins and their ideas about sin and what that means in their own lives. I hope there is a bit of introspection and self-reflection in a way.”

Among the works going on display is The Garden Of Eden by Flemish painter Jan Brueghel the Elder, borrowed from a collector in Hong Kong.

Pieces going on show from the gallery’s own collection include a painting by Italian artist Bronzino called An Allegory With Venus And Cupid showing the Roman goddess of love kissing her son on the lips. Also on show will be Hogarth’s satirical series Marriage A-La-Mode, which depicts an arranged aristocratic wedding that ends in adultery and murder.

The Warhol work, called Repent And Sin No More!, is one of a series of black and white copies of newspaper adverts created by the pop artist in the Eighties. Emin’s work, which Dr Joustra described as being like “a confession”, spells out the phrase “It was just a kiss” in neon letters.

He said the works were all bound together by the theme of sin, adding: “I think in a way it shows that it’s universal and that maybe it hasn’t changed that much but artists have always found creative ways of showing it and engaging with it.” The show, which runs from April to July next year, is followed by the unveiling of a 10ft-high picture of the astronomer Copernicus painted by Polish artist Jan Matejko.

The work, on loan from a university in Krakow, has never been seen in the UK and shows the astronomer kneeling on a rooftop against a starry sky.

It was painted to mark the 400th anniversary of the birth of the astronomer who proposed that the Sun, rather than the Earth, was at the centre of the universe. It will form part of a show dedicated to the artist, widely regarded as the national painter of Poland.

London's best art galleries - In pictures

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