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: 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

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Death and Life by Gustav Klimt

Death has been a fascinating theme for artists since the beginning of time. It was imagined as a personified force, also known as the Grim Reaper, a...

Zuzanna Stańska 11 July 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Fish Magic by Paul Klee

Fish Magic is a mysterious and very fascinating work by Swiss-born German artist Paul Klee, a painter who balanced on the verge of a few modern art...

Kate Wojtczak 19 June 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Season’s Greetings by Banksy

What if a children’s game turned into a frightening nightmare? And what would you think if the cause was… you? In Port Talbot, UK, Banksy...

Camilla de Laurentis 20 May 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Iron Rolling Mill (Modern Cyclopes) by Adolph Menzel

The 19th century, the age of steel and steam, witnessed not only the development of the industry but also the new themes in painting. Now, simple...

Kate Wojtczak 1 May 2022

Art Nouveau

Painting Human Desire for Happiness – Klimt’s Beethoven Frieze

When we think of Gustav Klimt we imagine beautiful portraits of women, sensual and dangerous compositions, gold and decorative motifs. However, if...

Zuzanna Stańska 10 March 2022

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Divan Japonais

Divan Japonais is a lithograph poster by Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec which was an ad for a café-chantant of this exact name. The poster is like a...

Zuzanna Stańska 24 November 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Aristide Bruant in his Cabaret

In the 1890s Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec was one of a group of young avant-garde artists whose color lithography was a vehicle for innovative...

Zuzanna Stańska 24 November 2021

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Kensingtons at Laventie by Eric Kennington

The painting The Kensingtons at Laventie, which we present today, is Eric Kennington’s most famous work. It has been described as “one of the...

Zuzanna Stańska 11 November 2021

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