Masterpiece Stories

Ancient Egypt

The Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut

Hatshepsut (c. 1507-1458 B.C.E.) was the fifth pharaoh of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty and arguably the most important among ancient Egypt’s many female...

Maya M. Tola 6 November 2023

Wang Ximeng, One Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains, Song dynasty, 1113, ink and color on silk scroll, Palace Museum, Beijing, China. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: One Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains by Wang Ximeng

Wang Ximeng’s One Thousand Li of Rivers and Mountains is a masterpiece of the Northern Song dynasty and of the larger history of traditional...

James W Singer 5 November 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Rainy Season in the Tropics by Frederic Edwin Church

In our Masterpiece Stories series we have something truly beautiful for you. I want to discuss Rainy Season in the Tropics by Frederic Edwin Church,...

Zuzanna Stańska 5 November 2023

Utagawa Hiroshige maple trees: Utagawa Hiroshige, Maple Trees at Mama, Tekona Shrine and Tsugi Bridge, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 1857, ink on paper, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Maple Trees at Mama by Utagawa Hiroshige

Utagawa Hiroshige’s prints were exported to Europe and became very popular with Western artists. Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh owned...

James W Singer 5 November 2023

Johan Thomas Lundbye, View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord, 1843, National Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord by Johan Thomas Lundbye

View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord by Johan Thomas Lundbye is a masterpiece of 19th century Danish landscape painting. It set a new standard for the...

James W Singer 5 November 2023

Henry Ossawa Tanner, Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City, 1885, White House, Washington DC, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City by Henry Ossawa Tanner

Sand Dunes at Sunset, Atlantic City is a masterpiece of Black art and history. It was painted by Henry Ossawa Tanner during a time of incredible...

James W Singer 4 November 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Irises by Vincent van Gogh

One year before his death on March 30, 1890, Vincent van Gogh chose to enter Saint Paul de Mausole, an asylum in Saint-Rémy, originally a...

Zuzanna Stańska 3 November 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Almond Blossom by Vincent van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh only sold one painting during his lifetime. He was not a financially successful artist, and he was entirely dependent on his...

James W Singer 3 November 2023

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 1 November 2023

A dark brown horse rears on its hind legs; an olive green background: George Stubbs, Whistlejacket, c.1762, The National Gallery, London, UK. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Whistlejacket by George Stubbs

If you visit London’s National Gallery, you can’t miss Whistlejacket. George Stubbs’ life-size, rearing stallion is visible down a...

Catriona Miller 23 October 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Seascape Near Les Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer by Van Gogh

Vincent van Gogh is one of the most popular painters of all time. He dominates Post-Impressionism, he fills art books, and he inspires modern...

James W Singer 23 October 2023

Gian Lorenzo Bernini, Ecstasy of Saint Teresa, 1647-1652, Santa Maria della Vittoria, Roma, Italia. Masterpiece Stories

Ecstasy of Saint Teresa by Gian Lorenzo Bernini: Divine Bliss or Pure Erotic Pleasure?

Among the works of the famous sculptor and architect Gian Lorenzo Bernini (1598–1680), the sculptural group called Ecstasy of Saint Teresa remains...

Montaine Dumont 18 October 2023