Painting

Henry Fuseli, The Nightmare, 1781, The Detroit Institute of Arts, Detroit, MI, USA. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Nightmare by Henry Fuseli

What a horror spectacle! Some dark, irrational forces must be at play here. Henry Fuseli painted The Nightmare in 1781. It is probably his most...

Ruxi Rusu 31 October 2025

Romanticism

6 Shades of Romantic Creepiness in Caspar David Friedrich’s Paintings

Caspar David Friedrich was a master of romantic atmosphere. Gothic ruins, contemplative figures silhouetted against skies and morning mists were his...

Zuzanna Stańska 31 October 2025

Bizarre

Creepy Art History: 10 Bugs and Critters Hiding in Paintings

Creepy-crawlies: bugs, lizards, and insects. You either love them or hate them. But one place you may have thought they wouldn’t appear is in fine...

Kristin Urban 31 October 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Zeuxis Selecting Models for Helen of Troy by Angelica Kauffman

We’re all Angelicamad here! To celebrate the history painter extraordinaire Angelica Kauffman, let’s discuss her take on one of antiquity’s...

Gabrielle Stecher 30 October 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi by Angelica Kauffman

Cornelia, Mother of the Gracchi by Angelica Kauffman shows a pretty Roman woman and her three children. But it’s much more than that. It has an...

Alexandra Kiely 30 October 2025

Neoclassicism

Angelica Kauffman in 10 Paintings

Angelica Kauffman (1741–1807) was a Swiss Neoclassical painter. Despite the prevalent misogyny in the 18th-century art world, Kauffman gained fame,...

Jimena Escoto 30 October 2025

Angelica Kauffman. Angelica Kauffman, Self-Portrait Hesitating Between Painting and Music, 1794, Nostell Priory, West Yorkshire, UK. Women Artists

Masterpiece Story: Self-Portrait of the Artist Hesitating Between the Arts of Music and Painting by Angelica Kauffman

Angelica Kauffman was internationally acclaimed during her lifetime as a history and portrait painter. As one of the few women who managed to compete...

Catriona Miller 30 October 2025

Neoclassicism

Angelica Kauffman—Paintings by the Queen of Neoclassical Art

Swiss painter Angelica Kauffman (1741–1807) was one of the greats amongst the Neoclassical artists. Through her portraits and history paintings,...

Alexandra Kiely 30 October 2025

Painting

11 Famous Funeral Paintings of Western Art

Funeral practices are deeply ingrained in all cultures. Varied traditions around the globe reflect widespread beliefs and values. On this day when we...

Zuzanna Stańska 29 October 2025

Expressionism

Edvard Munch and His 7 Portrayals of Death

“Illness, madness, and death were the black angels that watched over my cradle and have since followed me through life,” Munch wrote in his...

Zuzanna Stańska 29 October 2025

Oosterwijck Painting

Maria van Oosterwijck in 5 Paintings

Maria van Oosterwijck was a talented but often overlooked artist of the Dutch Golden Age. She turned simple flowers into small stories about life,...

Jimena Aullet 27 October 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Sleeping Venus by Giorgione and Titian

Giorgione and Titian’s Sleeping Venus is a masterpiece of the Venetian Renaissance school of painting. It explores sensual nudity through a...

James W Singer 26 October 2025