Overview: 33 Italian and northern baroque paintings were lent for a special exhibition by the John and Mable Ringling Museum of Art, to mark 40 years of ownership by the state of Florida. The collection was formed chiefly in the 1920s by the circus owner John Ringling, who intended his museum to become the state art museum of Florida.

Organization: The exhibition was directed by Anthony Janson, chief curator of the Ringling Museum. It was coordinated at the Gallery by Sydney Freedberg and Beverly Louise Brown.