“OUTSTANDING AND PRECIOUS”, UNUSUAL AND PRICELESS”, KUNSTKAMMERN AND THE CULTURE OF COLLECTING                                                                          

This lecture will explore the beginnings of a collecting culture in Europe as well as the motivations and conceptual framework which came to govern the organisation of art and artefacts in the Kunst- and Wunderkammern. From small, ornate tabletop cabinets crafted from rare woods and inlays to sequences of opulent rooms in princely palaces, European collectors brought together diverse objects, often of an exotic provenance to impress upon visitors the collector’s erudition, wealth and power.

ALBERT GODETZKY’s research concentrates on Northern European art of the early modern period. He is currently Associate Lecturer at the Courtauld Institute where he received his PhD with a thesis on ‘Haarlem Mannerism’. Before joining the Courtauld, Albert was Visiting Lecturer at The Victoria & Albert Museum and the Harry M. Weinrebe Curatorial Fellow at the National Gallery, London, where he contributed to exhibitions including Rembrandt: The Late Works and Vermeer and Music: The Art of Love and Leisure. Albert also works as a cultural advisor to several international corporate institutions and private individuals, drawing on his experience in the field and using education to widen understanding of and participation in the study of art history.