Catherine the Great

Hermitage Amsterdam

NOW CLOSED

The Musée cantonal des Beaux-Arts de Lausanne is presenting the first museum exhibition in Switzerland of the work of Piero Manzoni (1933–1963). Centred on the Achromes – the white monochromes the artist worked on during his brief career (1957– 1963) – the exhibition comprises 70 outstanding works ranging from the famous wrinkled canvases to the final polystyrene pieces, not to mention his few sculptures and works on paper (detail; 1780–90), Fyodor Rokotov after Alexander Roslin. © State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg

Self-polished Diamond of the Hermitage

Two hundred and fifty years after Catherine the Great founded the Hermitage, the Hermitage Amsterdam presents her life story in a sumptuous exhibition on Europe’s longest-reigning empress. Her name has always been surrounded with stories and superlatives, often about her private life and court intrigues. Some of these stories belong to the realm of myth, but others are perfectly true. Read more.

Preview the exhibition below | The top five exhibitions opening this week

Portrait of Catherine the Great (1780–90), Fyodor Rokotov after Alexander Roslin. © State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg

Portrait of Catherine the Great on Horseback

Military costume of Empress Catherine the Great, modelled after the uniform of the Horse Guard Regiment Russia, 1786 (frock) / 1789 (cape)

Military costume of Empress Catherine the Great, modelled after the uniform of the Horse Guard Regiment, Russia, (dress: 1786; cape:1789). © State Hermitage Museum, St Petersburg