WTF Art History

Bizarre

Can You Beat This Beard? Bearded Men in Paintings

According to some fashion experts, beards reached their peak 10 years ago. However, this is not just some seasonal trend. Long, short, trimmed, or...

Magda Michalska 16 September 2024

Baroque

Fascinating (and Creepy) Coffin Portraits of the Polish Nobility

In the 17th and 18th centuries, Poland was a much bigger and more important country than it is today, as it encompassed some parts of the territories...

Magda Michalska 16 September 2024

Bizarre

Wunderkammer – A Universe in Your Closet

How would you feel if you found a mummified crocodile in your best friend’s room? Well, pretty awkward I guess, although I imagine that you’ve...

Magda Michalska 16 September 2024

Sculpture

Franz Xaver Messerschmidt and His Bizarre Character Heads

The so-called character heads created by Franz Xaver Messerschmidt are not only a bizarre collection of sculptures but also a unique portrayal of...

Zuzanna Stańska 16 September 2024

Art History 101

Contrapposto 101 – It’s All in the Pose

If you are taking an introductory art history course in school this semester, you’ll soon be talking a lot about contrapposto. I remember hearing...

Alexandra Kiely 13 September 2024

Saltimbanques Harlequin, 1901 and his Companion by Pablo Picasso (1901) Art State of Mind

Feeling Blue? Color Psychology and Its Use in Art

The year was 1901 when Picasso’s dear friend, Carles Casagemas, committed suicide. That same year, Picasso sank into a deep depression during...

Bruno Guerra 10 September 2024

Art State of Mind

10 Art Masterpieces to Calm Your Anxiety

Art can be many different things: a snobbery-builder; a boredom-killer. According to some studies, it may even extend your life. It can also simply...

Zuzanna Stańska 10 September 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Monomaniac of Envy by Théodore Géricault

Théodore Géricault (1791-1824) was one of the most influential artists of French Romanticism. In Monomaniac of Envy, the artist tries to paint the...

James W Singer 8 September 2024

South American Art

Fernando Botero and His Remakes of Classic Masterpieces

I must tell you something in secret – I love Fernando Botero’s works. Many of his works were inspired by classic art. Or maybe...

Zuzanna Stańska, Aniela Rybak-Vaganay 5 September 2024

Animals

The Fantastic Jungles of Henri Rousseau

Henri Rousseau was a French artist who painted in a Naïve or Primitive manner. He was also known as Le Douanier (the customs officer), which was a...

Zuzanna Stańska 4 September 2024

Animals

Rosa Bonheur’s Magnificent Lions and the Portrait of Wildlife

Painting animals is part of a tradition in European art dating back to the 17th century when animal-specialized painters began contributing to...

Rute Ferreira 4 September 2024

Sir Edwin Landseer, Monarch of the Glen, ca 1851, Scottish National Gallery, Edinburgh, UK. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Monarch of the Glen by Edwin Landseer

Monarch of the Glen by Edwin Landseer is one of the most famous British paintings of the 19th century. It is a Victorian melodrama at its most...

James W Singer 4 September 2024