A painting of Amedeo Modigliani by André Romijn and some beautiful lithos are on view in the Portrait Painting Gallery in Barga.

‘Nulla in mundo pax sincera’ is a sacred motet (RV630) composed by Antonio Vivaldi in 1735 to an anonymous Latin text. In 18th-century, a motet was defined as a sacred vocal work with a non-litugical Latin verse. The title of this motet can be translated as ‘In this world there is no honest peace’ or ‘There is no true peace in this world without bitterness’. Vivaldi’s motets were intended as show pieces for one of the female musicians of the Figlie di Coro of the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice. This piece was created for a soprano of exceptionally high range (from E above middle C to the B a twelfth higher) and is one of the most interesting of Vivaldi’s early motets for the Pietà.

Those four paintings refering to the four parts of ‘Nulla in mundo pax sincera’. The text of this motet reflects in my opinion the world we are living today. But as this motet was written in 1735 and based on an anonymous Latin text, which could even be older, one may ask oneselves whether humankind has made much progress. Food for thought!

In the art, a Madonna is a representation of Mary, mother of Jesus. The Madonna is the central image for both Catholic and Orthodox churches. A Madonna painting is usually representing Mary alone, or with her child Jesus.

As part of improving painting techniques it was common practice to copy from the 'Old Masters'.

Some sculptures to be on sale in The Portrait Painting Gallery.

From 7th April 2023 onwards, the Portrait Painting Gallery welcomes you with a special expostion 'There’s no place like home - Dutch Domesticity around 1900'. Eight impressive photogravures of the Dutch artist Jozef Israëls and seven selected works by Ferdinand Schmutzer will be the core of this exposition, which gives you a glimp of daily scenes in the houses of families in Volendam and elsewhere in the Netherlands, more than hundred years ago.

Discover how Volendam became a magnet for artists in search of beauty and authenticity, visit KUNSTHUIS André in Middelburg to see those artworks created by artists who has visited Volendam in the past.