Masterpiece Stories

Yaxchilán Lintel 24, 723-726 CE, Limestone, Temple 23, Yaxchilán, Mexico, British Museum, London, UK. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Yaxchilán Lintel 24

Yaxchilán Lintel 24 is an iconic image of Pre-Columbian art. It easily represents the vitality, mystery, and fascination surrounding the Mayan...

James W Singer 23 November 2022

Sculpture

A Very Florentine Story: Perseus and the Head of Medusa by Benvenuto Cellini

Benvenuto Cellini’s Perseus and the Head of Medusa is a sculpture that is commonly overlooked. In fact, it could be the most regularly overlooked...

James Wray 22 November 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Rain by Oswaldo Goeldi

Whether it’s a dream or a memory, it does not matter. Our gaze is immediately drawn to a bright red umbrella that hangs in the black air like a...

Rute Ferreira 8 November 2022

Marietta Robusti, Self Portrait with Madrigal Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Self-Portrait with Madrigal by Marietta Robusti

The Venetian Renaissance painter Marietta Robusti has recently caused a stir in the art history world. Although only a few works are attributed to...

Anna Ingram 21 October 2022

Plate with Arabic Inscription, ca 975-1000, painted and glazed earthenware, Musée du Louvre, Paris, France. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Plate with Arabic Inscription

Plate with Arabic Inscription is a masterpiece of 10th-century Islamic art. It combines minimalism, abstraction, and morality into a beautiful and...

James W Singer 20 October 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Pilgrimage to the Isle of Cythera by Jean-Antoine Watteau

Jean-Antoine Watteau (1684–1721) was the most influential French painter of the 18th century. His painting Pilgrimage to the Isle of Cythera...

James W Singer 10 October 2022

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: 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 arts...

Erol Degirmenci 30 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

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

Baroque

The Veiled Christ: Art or Alchemy?

In the nave of the Sansevero Chapel in Naples there is a unique sculpture depicting Jesus after the crucifixion. His body is covered with a thin...

Rachel Istvan 3 August 2022

Architecture

Aubette: Neoplasticist Gesamtkunstwerk in Strasbourg

Have you ever visited Strasbourg in Alsace, France? It’s a charming city full of picturesque narrow and tiny houses scattered along the canals.

Magda Michalska 2 August 2022