New York (January 19, 2023)—This summer, The Frick Collection will debut a site-specific pastel mural by Swiss-born artist Nicolas Party (b. 1980), executed in the Italian Galleries at the museum’s temporary home, Frick Madison. The work will be created in response to Rosalba Carriera’s Portrait of a Man in Pilgrim’s Costume (above), a spectacular eighteenth-century pastel bequeathed to the Frick in 2020 by Alexis Gregory, the founder of Vendome Press. This is the second installation to be inspired by a volume from the Frick’s popular Diptych Series, each volume of which focuses on a single work from the collection, pairing an illuminating essay by a curator with a contribution from a contemporary cultural figure. Party’s mural will be the centerpiece of an upcoming diptych, Rosalba Carriera’s Man in Pilgrim’s Costume, to be co-authored by Party and Xavier F. Salomon, the Frick’s Deputy Director and Peter Jay Sharp Chief Curator.
Comments Salomon, “Nicolas Party is the preeminent artist working with pastels today, making him the perfect candidate to respond to Carriera’s captivating portrait. Given his impressive history of similar works and his love for Old Master pastel artists like Rosalba, we are eager to see what he creates. We are fortunate to have this amazing opportunity to collaborate with Nicolas on this groundbreaking project, which continues the Frick’s exciting collaboration with contemporary artists.”
Adds Party, “The Frick Collection is my favorite museum in New York City. I have found it fascinating to revisit its masterpieces at Frick Madison in a modernist environment. I love seeing the Fragonard panels and other familiar objects up close and in a different context. It is a privilege to collaborate with the Frick on this project, and I am excited to see my work surrounded by such exquisite company.”
The installation includes Party’s mural and two new related works also executed by Party, which will be on view on the third floor of Frick Madison into next winter. An illustrated publication, featuring images of the installation, will be available in mid-summer.
