Director Ian Wardropper Publishes First Book Dedicated to the Frick’s Remarkable French Enamels Collection

Limoges enamels, named after the town in central France in which they were was produced, are one of the most distinctive art forms of the French Renaissance. Director Ian Wardropper has authored the first book dedicated fully to the important collection of Limoges enamels housed at The Frick Collection. Reflective of the jewel-like character of these exquisite objects, the publication shows the broad range of applications to which this brilliant but delicate medium was applied in fifteenth-, sixteenth- and early seventeenth-century France: from secular objects, such as portraits, caskets and tableware, to objects of religious association, such as devotional triptychs. Featured in the publication are major examples by some of the leading masters of the art, including Jean I and Nardon Pénicaud, Léonard Limousin, Pierre Reymond, and the Master of the Large Foreheads. In addition to full-page images of 43 key pieces from this collection—each accompanied by a brief commentary and illustrated with new photography—the volume includes an illustrated essay by Wardropper on the wider artistic significance, stylistic qualities, and consummate craftsmanship of the collection, its history, and re-display at the Frick, together with an illustrated glossary of terms by Associate Conservator Julia Day