Johann Heinrich Wilhelm Tischbein, illustration for the Roman de Renart, photo Johannes von Mallinkcrodt

I was surprised to find crowds queuing in the small entrance of Hôtel Turgot which hosts Fondation Custodia, in the middle of school vacations, when the whole of Paris was empty. It was due to the exceptional quality of the two drawings exhibitions taking place there right now. « Drawings for paintings in the Age of Rembrandt » and « A quest for line », the Hinrich Siveking collection.

Philipp Otto Runge, “Two ears of wheat”, circa 1808, photo Johanes von Mallinckrodt, London

This shows that quality is always recognized by the public. And Fondation Custodia, which used to be called Centre culturel néerlandais (Dutch cultural center), has always had a reputation for excellence in drawings of which it owns a large collection.

It can therefore be part of the very chic club of major museums who hosted the actual show on “the Age of Rembrandt”, the National Gallery in Washington, the Metropolitan museum, the Rijksmuseum, the Fox Art Center in Boston, the Albertina in Vienna, the British museum and the Ashmolean in Oxford !

Rembrandt Harmensz van Rijn, St John the Baptist preaching, Berlin, Gemäldegalerie.

It is quite stunning to see how these 17 th century artists, who only painted indoors in their studios, could catch landscapes and large outdoor sceneries, in such a realistic way. 25 paintings and 100 drawings show us the fascinating progression of each painter at work, with many pencil studies before the large canvas can be achieved … Aelbert Cuyp, Willem van de Velde, Pierre Saenredam and Jacob van Ruisdael… surround Rembrandt and his “St John the Baptist preaching”, an amazing painting.

Pieter Saenredam, The choir of St Bavon church in Haarlem, 1636

Often the drawing is more stunning than the actual painting, its subtlety and refinement are more charming to the eye.  And far from flashy and superficial exhibitions with big names, this show of studies and paintings is a work of love and erudition, that we owe to fervent drawing collectors and the director of the Custodia Foundation, Gert Luijten.

Cornelis Saftleven, Sleeping Hunter, 1642, collection Maida and George Abrams, Boston

The second show in the basement is just as stunning : it shows the private collection of German art historian Hinrich Sieveking, a specialist of Goethe, who bought his first drawing for a few DM when he was a little boy. He is well known in Paris for having curated in 2008, the spectacular “L’âge d’or du Romantisme allemand ” with Daniel Marchesseau at Musée de la Vie Romantique.

Dirck Hals, Study for a sitting man smoking a pipe and two legs, 1622-1627, Rijksmuseum Amsterdam

From 16 th to 19 th century, he gives us a fabulous panorama of German drawings from Tischbein’s animals to Hamburg’s 19 th century portraits. Again a lifelong love story with drawings. Drawing collectors are a little like readers of poetry, they concentrate on  smallness and detail. Grand modesty….

(Fondation Custodia, 121 rue de Lille, 12 pm to 6 pm, until May 7)