Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Woman with a Parrot by Gustave Courbet

Gustave Courbet, the enfant terrible of French 19th-century art, did everything he could to save himself in the memory of the contemporary art...

Zuzanna Stańska 14 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Truth Coming Out of Her Well by Jean-Léon Gérôme

A fair-skinned woman, nude. Mouth open in either shock, rage, or maybe even disgust, as she emerges from a well. One leg is already draped over the...

Kristin Urban 14 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Our Ancient Gods by Saturnino Herrán

Saturnino Herrán’s Our Ancient Gods is a masterful painting of Mexican Modernism from the early 20th century. It evokes the strength, dignity, and...

James W Singer 14 July 2024

Rembrandt van Rijn, Saskia van Uylenburgh as Flora Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Saskia as Flora by Rembrandt

Rembrandt van Rijn married Saskia van Uylenburgh in 1634. They were together for only eight years before she died after childbirth, probably from...

Catriona Miller 12 July 2024

Baroque

15 Things You Didn’t Know About the Night Watch by Rembrandt

The Night Watch painted by Rembrandt van Rijn is a monumental canvas displayed today in the “Gallery of Honour” of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam,...

Zuzanna Stańska, Nicole Ganbold 12 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Acapulco Chair

The Acapulco chair, with its unmistakable egg-shaped silhouette and PVC cord weaving, has become synonymous with Mexico’s vibrant culture and...

Lisa Scalone 11 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: A Bigger Splash by David Hockney

David Hockney is one of Britain’s most well-known and influential artists. His iconic style is instantly recognizable. As you hunch over your work,...

Candy Bedworth 9 July 2024

The sculpture by Cattelan, showing a middle finger. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: L.O.V.E. by Maurizio Cattelan

In the heart of Milan, steps away from the iconic Duomo, Piazza Affari hosts a provocative sculpture by Maurizio Cattelan. Titled...

Lisa Scalone 8 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Sympathy by Remedios Varo

Sympathy is a fascinating painting by Catalan artist Remedios Varo. It presents a lady with a cat in a most unusual and Surrealist situation. You...

Alicja Gluszek 7 July 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Cupid and Psyche by Antonio Canova

A true gem of virtuosity, Psyche Revived by Cupid’s Kiss is a marble sculpture made between 1787 and 1793 by Antonio Canova. The sculptor portrayed...

Montaine Dumont 5 July 2024

Eugène Delacroix, The Barque of Dante, 1822, The Louvre, Paris, France Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Barque of Dante by Eugène Delacroix

Welcome to Hell—tonight, our guide will be Virgil, Dante, and of course Eugène Delacroix. The Barque of Dante, the first major painting by French...

Anastasia Manioudaki 3 July 2024

Carl Gustav Carus, Woman on the Balcony, 1824, oil on canvas, Galerie Neue Meister, Dresden, Germany. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Woman on the Balcony by Carl Gustav Carus

Woman on the Balcony is an intimate portrait of a person lost in thought. There is no action and no obvious story to interpret. However, its quiet...

James W Singer 2 July 2024