MAMA to show Paris Impressionists

MAMA has secured a major exhibition of Paris Impressionists and will gather five Degas bronze statues from around Australia for a free exhibition at the new art museum.

Paris comes to MAMA this December with a stunning exhibition of more than 150 prints, posters, drawings and monotypes by the Impressionist masters, Lautrec, Degas and Daumier drawn from the collection of the National Gallery of Australia (NGA).

Impressions of Paris: Lautrec, Degas, Daumier will be on show at MAMA from 11 December 2015 to 31 January 2016. The exhibition examines the role of each artist in the development of 19th Century art in France—their influence and their originality.

This special exhibition of works on paper will be further complemented by five bronze sculptures of ballet dancers by Degas, which are on loan to MAMA from the collections of the NGA, Art Gallery of NSW and Queensland Art Gallery.

MAMA Director Jacqui Hemsley said the exhibition marked an important milestone for the new contemporary art museum.

"For the first time in this region we have facilities which meet the conservation and exhibition standards required by leading Australian and international galleries to present such important works of art."

The exhibition will look at the major contribution to French art made by three key figures: Honoré-Victorin Daumier (1808–1879), Edgar Degas (1834–1917) and Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec (1864–1901). A generation apart, each was a consummate draughtsman whose innovative compositions and embrace of modern subject matter played a significant role in artistic developments in France over the 19th Century.

AlburyCity Mayor Cr Henk van de Ven said the Impressions of Paris exhibition was great news for MAMA and for the city.

"The upcoming exhibitions Impressions of Paris and Marilyn: Celebrating an American Icon are proof that MAMA will reposition Albury as a major cultural destination and draw people to our city."