Can you hear a painting?

July 17 2015

Video: National Gallery

The National Gallery's new 'Soundscapes' exhibition - in which musicians have been invited to create sounds for paintings - has not exactly been met with praise by critics. Which is not surprising, when even the trailer (above) is dull and pointless. Here's Laura Cummings in The Observer:

Soundscapes is the worst idea the National Gallery has come up with in almost 200 years. It is feeble, pusillanimous, apologetic and, even in its resolute wrong-headedness, lacks all ambition.

Ouch. It's no suprise to find - via an interview in The Sunday Times - that this is the exhibition outgoing director Nicholas Penny has 'had least to do with' during his time in charge. 

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