Quick Fire: 5 Questions with Curator Karine Tsoumis
Dr. Karine Tsoumis, Curator at the Gardiner Museum, enlightens us on the connection between 16th-century maiolica and the domestic sphere, what excites her most about her research, and how today’s luxuries compare with those of Renaissance Venice.
You’re a specialist in 16th century Venetian art and culture—what interests you most about life from that time?
Much of my work has focused on the domestic space; how people lived, how objects were used to commemorate events or convey ideas about the family. In this context, I’ve been particularly interested in the lives of women, in terms of their experience, representation, and their role as consumers of objects. These questions converge in many ways in the study of maiolica.
The Feast of the Gods (Giovanni Bellini and Tiziano Vecelli), 1514 – 1529, oil on canvas, National Gallery of Art
If you could go back in time and take an object from Renaissance Venice to keep for yourself, what would you pick and why?
One of the most spectacular pieces of Venetian Renaissance maiolica is a large dish at the Wallace Collection in London signed by Jacomo da Pesaro. Its decoration rendered in white on a light bluish-grey ground gives the impression of lace. The ornament composed of elaborate interlace, floral patterns and classical motifs is highly refined and delicate, yet extremely subtle given the colour scheme. It’s one of those pieces that really have to be seen in person to be fully appreciated!
Dish, Workshop of Maestro Jacomo da Pesaro, 1542, Tin-glazed earthenware, painted, The Wallace Collection.
You’ve been leading research on the Gardiner’s permanent collection since 2012—what’s the most exciting thing you’ve discovered over the past five years?
I’ve been particularly interested in a holy water basin in the Gardiner’s maiolica collection dedicated to a nun from a noble Venetian family. Such objects were rarely produced in the medium of tin-glazed earthenware, if ever, so this example is unique. While I’ve been interested in how the piece relates stylistically to luxury objects imported from the Islamic world, including inlaid metalwork and ceramics, it has also raised important questions about the place of maiolica in the domestic sphere of the convent.
Container for holy water, Itlay, Veneto, perhaps Padua, dated 1570, Tin-glazed earthenware, Gift of George and Helen Gardiner, G83.1.0372
What are you reading right now?
A lot of material about Venetian trade with the Islamic world, and when I get home, any book that my three-year old daughter wants me to read to her!
Your upcoming lecture explores the material luxuries of Renaissance Venice, including ceramics, glass, metalwork, and textiles—what would you say are the 21st century equivalents of those goods?
Many of these goods involved the development and refinement of new technologies and were admired for their high level of craftsmanship. So I would say that any object that can, in today’s world, instill a sense of wonder and awe would parallel the impact made by these luxuries.
Plate with Hippomenes and Atalanta, Workshop of Domenego da Venezia, c.1555-1570, Italy, The Veneto, Venice, Gift of George and Helen Gardiner, G83.1.380
Dr. Karine Tsoumis, Curator at the Gardiner Museum, is a specialist in sixteenth-century Venetian art and culture, with a particular interest in material culture, the domestic space, and family history. Her upcoming lecture, Material Splendor in Renaissance Venice, will explore the place of ceramics among a vast range of luxuries including glass, metalwork and textiles in 16th century Venice. Learn more.