Gaudium Magnum’s Van Dyck in Genoa

This spring, the Gaudium Magnum Foundation participates in the international exhibition Van Dyck, the European: The Journey of a Genius from Antwerp to Genoa and London, presented at the Palazzo Ducale in Genoa until 19 July 2026. Organised by the Municipality of Genoa and the Palazzo Ducale Foundation for Culture, the exhibition is curated by Anna Orlando and Katlijne Van der Stighelen and examines Anthony van Dyck’s artistic trajectory across Antwerp, Genoa, and London.

For the exhibition, the Foundation has loaned Portrait of a Family (traditionally identified as the Cornelis de Vos Family), an early work that reveals Van Dyck’s exceptional ability to combine social representation with psychological immediacy. Painted during the formative years of the artist’s career, the composition demonstrates his emerging independence from Rubens through its fluid brushwork, dynamic structure, and heightened sense of intimacy between the figures.

Presented within the section dedicated to themes of family and social identity, the painting enters into dialogue with works from major European museums and collections, including loans from institutions such as the Louvre, the Prado, and the National Gallery. The exhibition brings together more than fifty autograph paintings by Van Dyck alongside drawings, books, and historical artefacts that reconstruct the artistic and cultural networks surrounding the painter’s career.

Installed throughout the Doge’s Apartment and Chapel of the Palazzo Ducale, the exhibition proposes a broader reflection on portraiture, cultural exchange, patronage, and artistic mobility in early modern Europe.

The Foundation’s participation in this project forms part of its ongoing commitment to the study, circulation, and public presentation of works from the Collection, while contributing to international collaborations between private collections, museums, and cultural institutions.