European Art

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Ambassadors by Hans Holbein the Younger

The Ambassadors by Hans Holbein the Younger is one of those paintings that we know so well we tend to forget to look closer. It’s like the Mona...

Joanna Kaszubowska 6 January 2023

Painting

The Adoration of the Magi: Depictions in Christian Art

The Adoration of the Magi (or the Adoration of the Kings) is one of the two biblical accounts that convey the birth of Jesus Christ and describes the...

Maya M. Tola 5 January 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Breakfast of Birds by Gabriele Münter

Gabriele Münter (1877–1962) was a German Expressionist painter born in Berlin and most known for her landscapes and use of color. She developed a...

Heidi Werber 5 January 2023

Claude Monet, Magpie, 1868-69, Musée d'Orsay, Paris, France. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Magpie by Claude Monet

Magpie is a masterpiece by Claude Monet that captures the poetic play of light upon a winter landscape. It is a symphony of ivory and...

James W Singer 5 January 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump by Joseph Wright of Derby

An Experiment on a Bird in the Air Pump is not only a masterpiece from the Age of Enlightenment but also a monumental artistic achievement of Joseph...

Maya M. Tola 5 January 2023

Animals

The Goldfinch: Singing Across Time

See the lonely little bird, trapped in a situation over which it has no control. Chained, isolated. Sounds familiar? In these strange times we need...

Candy Bedworth 5 January 2023

Artist Stories

Die Brücke’s Magician: Otto Mueller

Is Die Brücke talked about enough? Its importance for the development of modern art cannot be denied. However, it got lost between various movements...

Magda Michalska 3 January 2023

Women Artists

Käthe Kollwitz: Germany’s Greatest Female Artist

Käthe Kollwitz (1867-1945) was one of Germany’s greatest artists. She holds the distinction of being the only woman artist to make it into Ernst...

Chris Dobson 3 January 2023

Expressionism

August Macke: Short and Colorful Life of a Promising Artist

August Macke was only 27 years old when he died in Champagne, France, on September 26, 1914. He was one of the many who fell fighting for their...

Gokce Dyson 3 January 2023

Animals

Franz Marc: The Painter Who Loved Horses

The German Expressionist movement had many faces. One of the most interesting ones was that of the painter Franz Marc. Marc looked to the natural...

Zuzanna Stańska 3 January 2023

Set of Jewelry from the Vulci tomb, ca. 500 BCE to 401 BCE (late Archaic period), The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY, United States. Ancient Art

All That Glitters: The Gold Jewelry of the Etruscans

The elusive Etruscans left behind a rich legacy of gold craftsmanship that was among the most advanced in the ancient Mediterranean world. While the...

Maya M. Tola 2 January 2023

Sean Scully, Passenger Light Light, 1998, Sammlung Klein, Nussdorf, Germany. MSU. Detail. Contemporary Art

Sean Scully: Artist of Abstract Stories

Sean Scully gradually deconstructs human figures and then completely eliminates them. Here you will learn more about Sean Scully’s paintings...

Petra Dragasevic 2 January 2023