From the exhibition announcement:
This is the first complete exhibition formed from the art collection of the University of Notre Dame for exposition elsewhere. Although Notre Dame regularly displays a portion of its collection in the University Art Gallery, and often lends individual works to important exhibitions, few persons realize the size, range, and quality of its holdings. Only about one third of the portraits are included in this exhibition, and portraits form only a small part of the whole collection of some 1,200 items. In addition to paintings, there are drawings, tapestries, sculpture, ivories, porcelains, jewels, furniture, and ritual objects. Our attention was directed to the excellent paintings to be found at Notre Dame by the art historian Professor Erich Herzog, University of Frankfurt, who saw them during 1958-59 while he was visiting professor in the department of Art at the University of Chicago. Now, in cooperation with the departments of art at both universities, the Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago is privileged to bring a portion of the Notre Dame collection to the Quadrangles.
From Notre Dame’s ever growing collection, the Baroque portraits presented in this exhibition were chosen by the authors of the catalogue, Miss Bertha H. Wiles, Associate Professor of Art and Curator of the Max Epstein Archive; Mr. Francis H. Dowley, Associate Professor of Art; and Mrs. Richard B. Philbrick, Assistant Curator, Max Epstein Archive; together with Mr. Earl E. Rosenthal, Assistant Professor of Art, who had accompanied Professor Herzog on the exploratory trip to Notre Dame; all of the Department of Art; and by Francis Strain Biesel, Director of Exhibitions for the Renaissance Society.
Harold Haydon, President The Renaissance Society at the University of Chicago.
