WTF Art History

Print with large white hare with red eyes presented frontally on pink background. The body of a hare is rounded. Asian Art

10 Cutest Rabbits in Asian Art You Need to See (For the Lunar New Year)

In the Chinese lunisolar calendar, 2023 was the Year of the Water Rabbit. Celebrated in late January or February, the Lunar New Year (or Spring...

Ela Bobek 21 January 2025

Animals

Killer or Kitty? The Tiger in Art

Tigers are frequently depicted in art - they have fascinated so many artists from across the world. Let's leap into the eye of the tiger!

Candy Bedworth 21 January 2025

Animals

Practical, Erotic and Magical: The Miniature World of Netsuke

Originating in 17th-century Japan during the Edo Period, Netsuke (pronounced nets-keh) are toggles that attach pouches to the traditional robes,...

Nadine Waldmann 21 January 2025

Art Travels

Hunting for Northern Lights: Aurora Borealis in Art

With mesmerizing colors dancing in the night sky, witnessing an aurora must feel like being inside of a painting. What are the northern lights and...

Marta Wiktoria Bryll 20 January 2025

Sport

All the Fun of the Fair: 8 Carousels, Roundabouts, and Merry-Go-Rounds in Art

Carousels, roundabouts, and merry-go-rounds have a long history documented in art, stemming back to the time of the Crusades. They were used as a...

Wendy Gray 20 January 2025

Bizarre

The Weirdest Thing You Will See Today: A Toilet as a Work of Art

A joke, a provocation, or an attempt to attract your attention? Maybe none of these or maybe all of them. Here are three of the most renowned toilets...

Caroline Galambosova 20 January 2025

Baroque

Pure Happiness, Fun, and Joy in Jan Steen’s Paintings

I am a true happiness digger and I’m looking for happiness also in art. If you are a frequent reader here, you may have seen our other articles...

Rute Ferreira 20 January 2025

Animals

The Medieval Bestiary—Cute, Quirky, and Weird Animals

Of all the medieval manuscripts, bestiaries are definitely the most fun. A medieval bestiary is a book about animals. It’s full of unusual...

Alexandra Kiely 16 January 2025

Medieval Art

Here Be Medieval Dragons

Dragons are everywhere in popular culture. People make movies about them, collect stuffed animals of them, and dress up as them for Halloween. They...

Alexandra Kiely 16 January 2025

Painting

One Final Masterpiece: 7 Last Paintings from Great Masters

Hippocrates said that life is short, and art is long. Every great artist left behind iconic works of art that have lived long after their death. Some...

Sam Malone 13 January 2025

Winterfled Diptych: Mary Magdalene Raised by Angels WTF Art History

Why Is She So Hairy? Iconography of Mary Magdalene

Whenever I come across Gothic or early Renaissance representations of Mary Magdalene I always ask myself this question – why is she so hairy? Keep...

Magda Michalska 10 January 2025

Tatsuya Tanaka, Spoon Pool, 2024, MINIATURE CALENDAR Asian Art

10 Miniature Sculptures By Tatsuya Tanaka To Brighten Your Day

Japanese miniature craftsmanship has been evolving for the past couple of centuries. Their love for scaled-down everyday objects gained the interest...

Sandra Juszczyk 9 January 2025