A Cabinet of Curiosities

A collector’s cabinet is a treasure trove; a dragon’s hoard of precious, often small, objects and artefacts carefully arranged to the idiosyncratic taste and delight of the collector. These museums in miniature each emerge from an unstifled interest in one’s environment and from the sheer joy found in the act of collection.

Our exhibition seeks to tantalise that acquisitive, encyclopaedic spirit.

In any single Cabinet the objects to be sought, acquired, and displayed can vary wildly, though traditionally they fall into one of these categories:

Artificialia comprises crafted objects to display the genius of man: musical instruments, pottery, and of course works of art.

Naturalia and Curiosa refers to the natural world: animal specimens and ‘monsters’ as well as minerals and fossils.

Ethnographica to encompass exotic items from the wider world.

Scientifica, as the name implies, refers to scientific instruments such as globes, telescopes, maps, or architectural plans.

In our exhibition the entire display is focussed on the first of these criteria. Specifically: paintings. But so often these ‘works of man’ themselves celebrate the Naturalia, the genius of man, or something too eccentric to easily categorise. A miniature portrait of a toad. A girl peering through a cracked window. A hybrid plant half-citron and half-Seville orange. A painting from Sir Joseph Banks’ expedition to Scotland. ‘A Cabinet of Curiosities’ brings together a collection of paintings united only by their appeal to the imagination of the curious and to the lovers of the unique.

We look forward to welcoming you to our exhibition!