Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Stories

Meet Mona Lisa’s Twin!

Mona Lisa is the most famous painting in the world. But did you know that she has a twin? Covered with multiple layers of dark and cracked varnish,...

Zuzanna Stańska 14 September 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Abbey in the Oakwood by Caspar David Friedrich

Sadness and desolation fill this scene like an oppressive melancholy. The sun is dying behind the horizon as fog enshrouds the ground. Skeletal trees...

James W Singer 5 September 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Leonidas at Thermopylae by Jacques-Louis David

Whether you are within an academic environment or at a coffee shop, when the term “Neoclassicism” and its huge influence on the visual...

Erol Degirmenci 30 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

The Boxer at Rest – Defeated Hellenistic Athlete

Coming face-to-face with a piece of art you’ve loved for years is a thrilling, exciting and oftentimes overwhelming experience. Such was the...

Nadine Waldmann 25 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Journey of Blue Boy by Thomas Gainsborough

Originally titled A Portrait of a Young Gentleman, this iconic painting by Thomas Gainsborough was first presented at the Royal Academy exhibition of...

Maya M. Tola 23 August 2022

Alma Thomas, Tiptoe Through the Tulips, 1969, acrylic on canvas, National Gallery of Art, Washington DC, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Tiptoe Through the Tulips by Alma Thomas

The style of Alma Thomas has been compared to Byzantine mosaics and the Pointillism of Georges Seurat. However, it firmly belongs to the Washington...

James W Singer 17 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Roses of Heliogabalus by Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema

Lust, Gluttony, and Sloth. Three of the Seven Deadly Sins are depicted in Sir Lawrence Alma-Tadema’s The Roses of Heliogabalus. Many other sins are...

James W Singer 16 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Madonna and Child with Two Angels by Fra Filippo Lippi

On the surface, Fra Filippo Lippi’s Madonna and Child with Two Angels appears to be another typical Renaissance painting of the Virgin Mary and the...

James W Singer 15 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Madonna of Port Lligat by Salvador Dalí

Salvador Dalí’s The Madonna of Port Lligat is an image of Mary holding baby Jesus in her lap. Seems simple, but it has layers upon layers of...

Isla Phillips-Ewen 15 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: A Glass Compote with Peaches, Jasmine Flowers, Quinces and a Grasshopper by Fede Galizia

Fede Galizia’s beautiful A Glass Compote with Peaches, Jasmine Flowers, Quinces and a Grasshopper is one of Italy’s first-ever still life...

Alexandra Kiely 14 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Still Life by Henri Fantin-Latour

The greatest happiness can be found in the simple pleasures of daily life. Such simplicities could include the taste of fresh fruit, the smell of...

James W Singer 14 August 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Tughra of Sultan Süleiman the Magnificent

During the 16th and 17th centuries, The Ottoman Empire reached the height of its powers and extended into several continents, crossing nations and...

James W Singer 7 August 2022