Marble table inlaid with marble and other stones, Derbyshire, made for the 1862 London exhibition

© Victoria & Albert Museum 

This year's Annual Symposium will focus on pietre dure. Organised in association with the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection at the V&A, it will bring together an impressive line-up of international scholars, who will share fresh research from Britain, India, Italy, Spain, Russia and the United States, illustrating recent acquisitions for museum collections and exciting discoveries on the international art market. There will be a demonstration of pietre dure materials and techniques by Florentine-trained Thomas Greenaway. The event coincides both with new publication and exhibition projects from Washington D.C. and London and with the British Royal Collections Trust exhibition at the Queen’s Gallery Russia, Royalty and the Romanovs which includes Russian hardstones.

10.00-10.25     Registration and coffee/tea

10.25-10.30     Welcome by Dr Tessa Murdoch, Gilbert Research Curator, V&A and the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection 

First Session: Pietre Dure and the Art Market

10.30-11.00   Pietre Dure masterpieces deferred from Export 2016-17. Christopher Rowell, Chairman of the FHS, Senior Curator of Furniture, National Trust

11.00-11.30 Francesco Stefano di Lorena and the manufacture of Pietre Dure in Florence 1737 – 1765. Enrico Colle, Director of the Museo Stibbert, Florence

Second Session: New Research on British, Italian and Spanish workshops

Chair: Alice Minter, Curator of the The Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection at the V&A

11.30-12.00  Giacomo Raffaelli (1753-1836), a connoisseur of stones and sophisticated master of lapidary art. Anna Maria Massinelli, Accademia di Belle Arti, Brera (Milan)

12.00-12.30  Francesco Belloni (1772-1844), a ‘mosaic artist’ in Paris from the Directoire to Louis-Philippe: Works and new identifications. Jean-Dominique Augarde and Grégory Maugé, Art Historians

12.30-13.00 Pietre Dure in Britain and Malta in the 19^th century. Kate Hay, Assistant Curator, Furniture, Textiles & Fashion Department, V&A

13.00-14.00 LUNCH and opportunity to see the demonstration of pietre dure materials and techniques by Florentine-trained Thomas Greenaway

Third Session: New Research on Russian workshops

Chair: Philip Hewat Jaboor, Chairman of Masterpiece Fairs

14.00-14.30  Russian Imperial Furniture with Pietre dure from Peterhof 1840-1870 Ludmila Budrina, Associate Professor of the History of Art Department, Ural Federal University

14.30-15.00 Malachite furniture and furnishings. Paul Dyson, Independent Scholar

Fourth Session: Collecting Pietre Dure

Chair: Rebecca Wallis, Curator, National Trust

15.00-15.30  An Indian chess board. Susan Stronge, Acting Keeper, Asian Department, V&A

15.30-16.00 George IV and recycling of 17^th-century work. Rufus Bird, Surveyor of The Queen’s Works of Art

16.00-16.30 Marjorie Merriweather Post and Florentine commissions for Mar a Lago  Rachel Elwes, Co-Director Ben Elwes Fine Art

16.30-16.45     Q&A and summing up, chaired by Dr Tessa Murdoch, Gilbert Research Curator, V&A and the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection

16.45-17.00     Opportunity to see demonstration of pietre dure materials and techniques by Florentine-trained Thomas Greenaway

Tickets have now sold out. Please contact the Events Secretary to be placed on a waiting list. 

Pietre Dure Festival Weekend

To complement this year’s Annual Symposium on Pietre Dure, organised in association with the Rosalinde and Arthur Gilbert Collection at the V&A, three further events have been made available to attendees of the conference.

Friday 29 March 10:00- 16:30

Behind the scenes: Pietre Dure in the Gilbert Collection

The Gilbert Collection holds a selection of exceptional Pietre Dure objects which have barely been on display since their transfer from Somerset House. This study day will provide unparalleled, expert-led access to pieces, and will be divided in 2 sessions: In the morning, access to V&A storage, and in the afternoon, guided tour of the new Display of Pietre Dure objects in the Gilbert Galleries, South Kensington.  

Limited tickets for this small group session will be made available to attendees of the Furniture History Society’s Annual Symposium, on a first come first served basis.

Location: 10:00 – Blythe House. 14:30: Gilbert Galleries, The Victoria and Albert Museum.

This event is now full. 

Friday 29 March. 17:30 – 18:30

There will be a fantastic opportunity to attend a guided visit of the Russia Exhibition at the Queen's Gallery led by Caroline de Guitaut, Senior Curator of Decorative Arts, The Royal Collection. Limited tickets will be made available to attendees of the Furniture History Society’s Annual Symposium, on a first come first served basis.

Location: The Queen’s Gallery, Buckingham Palace. 

This event is now full. 

Sunday 31 March, 9:30 – 16:30

Hinton Ampner: The National Trust’s most comprehensive collection of Pietre Dure

Hinton Ampner in Hampshire holds a significant collection of Pietre Dure amassed by Ralph Dutton in the twentieth century. On this Curator led study visit we will examine key pieces, as well as exploring the grounds and the house.

The £30 fee covers travel to and from the house from the V&A, and the entrance fee.

Lunch is not provided, but the café onsite will be available.

Booking via the V&A Website through the following link:

https://www.vam.ac.uk/event/AnEEaynb/visit-to-hinton-ampner-pietre-dure-mar-2019

  Emperor Francesco Stefano’s Drawing Room in his Viennese Palace