Masterpiece Stories

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 27 April 2025

JMW Turner, Fighting Temeraire, 1839, National Gallery, London, UK. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Fighting Temeraire by J. M. W. Turner

Fighting Temeraire by British Romantic painter J. M. W. Turner is a seascape that expresses poetic and patriotic...

James W Singer 22 April 2025

Anne Vallayer-Coster, Still Life with Flowers in an Alabaster Vase and Fruit, 1783, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Still Life with Flowers in an Alabaster Vase and Fruit by Anne Vallayer-Coster

Still Life with Flowers in an Alabaster Vase and Fruit by Anne Vallayer-Coster is a masterpiece of the still-life genre, 18th-century French art, and...

James W Singer, 20 April 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Flower Still Life by Jan van Huysum

Flower Still Life by Jan van Huysum is a still-life masterpiece that explores beautiful flowers and delicate butterflies. The painting is part of the...

James W Singer 20 April 2025

Li Di, Red and White Cotton Roses, Southern Song dynasty, 1197, color on silk, Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo, Japan. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Red and White Cotton Roses by Li Di

Red and White Cotton Roses is considered Li Di’s lifetime masterpiece and a masterwork of Chinese...

James W Singer 20 April 2025

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 20 April 2025

Édouard Manet boating: Édouard Manet, Boating, 1874. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Boating by Édouard Manet

Known as the father of modernism in art, Édouard Manet was a key figure in the shift from Realism to Impressionism. Finding the guidelines of the...

Natalia Iacobelli 17 April 2025

Contemporary Art

Masterpiece Story: My Bed by Tracey Emin

My Bed is an iconic and seminal artwork by British artist Tracey Emin. It was created over 20 years ago and despite its age, it is still one of...

Isla Phillips-Ewen 16 April 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Sleeping Venus by Giorgione and Titian

Giorgione and Titian’s Sleeping Venus is a masterpiece of the Venetian Renaissance school of painting. It explores sensual nudity through a...

James W Singer 16 April 2025

Painting

A New Take on the Iconic Girl Reading a Letter by Vermeer

The recently restored Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window by Johannes Vermeer (1632-1675) is often said to be that of a young woman reading a...

Tom Anderson 13 April 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Music Lesson by Johannes Vermeer

Music was a big part of daily life in Holland in Johannes Vermeer’s time. As a testament to that, 14 Vermeer paintings include a musical...

Tom Anderson 13 April 2025

Johannes Vermeer, Art of Painting, ca 1666-68, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna, Austria. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Art of Painting by Johannes Vermeer

Johannes Vermeer is an enigmatic figure in the history of art. He is considered one of the most famous artists of the Dutch Golden Age. Why are his...

James W Singer 13 April 2025