The Ashmolean Museum at the University of Oxford is urgently raising funds to purchase a painting of the Crucifixion by Renaissance master Fra Angelico, created in the 1420s. The museum has until 29 October to raise £4,481,000 to buy the painting, otherwise it will be sold to a private owner outside the United Kingdom.
The painting, titled The Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John the Evangelist and the Magdalen, has been part of a private British collection for over 200 years. So far, the museum has secured over £3.1 million, thanks to lead donations from major donors, a circle of over 25 supporters, and a significant grant from Art Fund.
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Fra Angelico is regarded as one of the key artists of the Italian Renaissance, yet there are no complete works by the artist in the United Kingdom. Both the National Gallery and the Courtauld Gallery only hold fragments of larger altarpieces by the master. If the Ashmolean’s fundraising campaign is successful, this early Crucifixion would join a later work by Fra Angelico and his assistants, a triptych of the Virgin and Child, already housed at the museum. The addition of The Crucifixion would make the Ashmolean the only museum in the UK where visitors could observe the development of Fra Angelico’s style over the course of his career, and would significantly enhance its collection of Early Italian religious works.
“This is an unrepeatable chance to save a powerfully engaging painting by one of the great painters of the Florentine Renaissance for the public,” says Dr. Xa Sturgis CBE, Director of the Ashmolean. “We are immensely grateful to all of those who have helped us make such a positive start to our campaign and sincerely hope that others will join us to secure this beautiful and moving work.”
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The Crucifixion is one of Fra Angelico’s earliest surviving panel paintings and the first version of the subject that he would revisit throughout his career. Discovered in a private UK collection and attributed to Fra Angelico in the 1990s, the piece exemplifies the emotional and religious intensity for which the artist was known. According to the 16th-century art historian Giorgio Vasari, Fra Angelico was so moved by the Crucifixion that he could not paint it without tears streaming down his face.
Fra Angelico Triptych. Ashmolean Museum, University of Oxford
Fra Angelico, born Guido di Pietro, became a Dominican friar by 1423, taking the name Fra Giovanni. His works are celebrated for their spiritual depth and technical mastery. Among his most famous creations are the luminous frescoes that adorn the convent of San Marco in Florence, where he spent much of his career.
The Ashmolean Museum’s campaign to save The Crucifixion represents a rare opportunity for the UK public to experience a complete work by one of the most significant artists of the Italian Renaissance. Should the museum fail to raise the necessary funds, the panel risks being lost to an overseas buyer, depriving both UK and international audiences of a deeply important piece of Renaissance art history.
Learn more about our campaign to save ‘The Crucifixion’ for the nation: https://t.co/EADQ7nUyTH
The Ashmolean Museum at the University of Oxford is urgently raising funds to purchase a painting of the Crucifixion by Renaissance master Fra Angelico, created in the 1420s. The museum has until 29 October to raise £4,481,000 to buy the painting, otherwise it will be sold to a private owner outside the United Kingdom.
The painting, titled The Crucifixion with the Virgin, Saint John the Evangelist and the Magdalen, has been part of a private British collection for over 200 years. So far, the museum has secured over £3.1 million, thanks to lead donations from major donors, a circle of over 25 supporters, and a significant grant from Art Fund.
Fra Angelico is regarded as one of the key artists of the Italian Renaissance, yet there are no complete works by the artist in the United Kingdom. Both the National Gallery and the Courtauld Gallery only hold fragments of larger altarpieces by the master. If the Ashmolean’s fundraising campaign is successful, this early Crucifixion would join a later work by Fra Angelico and his assistants, a triptych of the Virgin and Child, already housed at the museum. The addition of The Crucifixion would make the Ashmolean the only museum in the UK where visitors could observe the development of Fra Angelico’s style over the course of his career, and would significantly enhance its collection of Early Italian religious works.
“This is an unrepeatable chance to save a powerfully engaging painting by one of the great painters of the Florentine Renaissance for the public,” says Dr. Xa Sturgis CBE, Director of the Ashmolean. “We are immensely grateful to all of those who have helped us make such a positive start to our campaign and sincerely hope that others will join us to secure this beautiful and moving work.”
The Crucifixion is one of Fra Angelico’s earliest surviving panel paintings and the first version of the subject that he would revisit throughout his career. Discovered in a private UK collection and attributed to Fra Angelico in the 1990s, the piece exemplifies the emotional and religious intensity for which the artist was known. According to the 16th-century art historian Giorgio Vasari, Fra Angelico was so moved by the Crucifixion that he could not paint it without tears streaming down his face.
Fra Angelico, born Guido di Pietro, became a Dominican friar by 1423, taking the name Fra Giovanni. His works are celebrated for their spiritual depth and technical mastery. Among his most famous creations are the luminous frescoes that adorn the convent of San Marco in Florence, where he spent much of his career.
The Ashmolean Museum’s campaign to save The Crucifixion represents a rare opportunity for the UK public to experience a complete work by one of the most significant artists of the Italian Renaissance. Should the museum fail to raise the necessary funds, the panel risks being lost to an overseas buyer, depriving both UK and international audiences of a deeply important piece of Renaissance art history.
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