Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Stories

Painting of the Week: Thomas Cole, The Architect’s Dream

The Architect’s Dream is an outstanding example of architectural genre. It was painted by American artist and founder of the Hudson River School Thomas Cole in 1840 for the New York architect Ithiel Town. The painting seamlessly stitches together Egyptian, Graeco-Roman and Gothic styles into a fantastical landscape.

Rucha Vijay Bodas 8 August 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Painting of the Week: Claude Raguet Hirst, A Gentleman’s Table

A Gentleman’s Table by Claude Raguet Hirst is a mysterious painting that echoes the realism of Winslow Homer, Thomas Eakins, and Henry Ossawa...

James W Singer 6 June 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Tempest by Giorgione

Giorgione and his masterpiece The Tempest form the rare combination of a mysterious artist and a mysterious painting. This small canvas has puzzled...

Anastasia Manioudaki 30 May 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: A Ride for Liberty by Eastman Johnson

The cool morning dew blew against their warm sweaty skin as the horse led them towards the free North. Stories of another life, a free life,...

James W Singer 11 April 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Flora by Rembrandt van Rijn

Rembrandt painted his wife Saskia van Uylenburgh as Flora, goddess of spring and flowers, three times during their relatively short but meaningful...

Zuzanna Stańska 21 February 2021

Masterpiece Stories

History in Art: Washington Crossing the Delaware

Throughout history, artists have documented the world around them. Consequently, this has culminated in some of the most famous historically-based...

Rachel Witte 19 January 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Princess Olga Orlova by Valentin Serov

Late Tsarist Russia evokes images of great social inequality in respect of health, wealth, and happiness. In addition, it evokes images of extreme...

James W Singer 17 January 2021

Artist Stories

The Story of Vincent van Gogh’s Bedroom and Its Three Versions

The Bedroom(s) are among the most famous paintings of Vincent van Gogh. Why the plural? There are three similar paintings of the same title. All...

Zuzanna Stańska 9 January 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Adoration of the Magi by Gentile da Fabriano

Let’s explore this beautiful altarpiece which features scenes of great pomp and circumstance. Let us venture into the brilliant world of the...

James W Singer 20 December 2020

Masterpiece Stories

Painting of the Week: James Barry, King Lear Weeping over the Dead Body of Cordelia

King Lear by William Shakespeare is a great tragedy that centers around ideas such as loyalty, familial bonds, and remorse. The painter of this work,...

Merve Parla 29 November 2020

Masterpiece Stories

Painting of the Week: Fragment of a Floor Mosaic with a Personification of Ktisis

The bejeweled woman from the mosaic, holding the measuring tool for the Roman foot, is identified by the restored Greek inscription as Ktisis. She is...

Zuzanna Stańska 18 October 2020

Masterpiece Stories

Painting of the Week: Firs Zhuravlev, A Fashionista Wife

Firs Zhuravlev’s realistic paintings show all aspects of Russian life. And we can imagine the scene from the picture A Fashionista Wife in the...

Elizaveta Ermakova 20 September 2020