From Specimen to Contemporary Taxidermy
There are many media through which artists can express their own vision, approach their aesthetic feeling, and capture the reality that vanishes in...
Caroline Galambosova 4 August 2025
Animals
Masterpiece Story: The Monkey Painter by Jean-Baptiste Chardin
It’s tacky! It’s funny! It’s weird! Yes, Jean-Baptiste Chardin’s The Monkey Painter is definitely not what you would consider in good taste.
James W Singer 27 July 2025
Masterpiece Story: Alpine Mastiffs Reanimating a Distressed Traveler by Edwin Landseer
Painted when Edwin Landseer was just 18, Alpine Mastiffs Reanimating a Distressed Traveler is a powerful tribute to the selfless devotion of rescue...
Theodore Carter 24 July 2025
Masterpiece Story: Striding Lion from the Ishtar Gate
Striding Lion is a masterpiece of Mesopotamian art with monumental size and composition. It symbolizes the strength of King Nebuchadnezzar II and the...
James W Singer 24 July 2025
Max Ernst and Birds: A Relationship Explained Through Paintings
Max Ernst (1891–1976) was a prolific German avant-garde artist. He was a pioneer in the early 20th-century movements of Dada and Surrealism and...
Anastasia Tsaleza 21 July 2025
Masterpiece Story: Donkey Rides on the Beach by Isaac Israëls
As part of our link-up with the Rijksmuseum, here is one of Isaac Israel’s beach scenes. Donkey Rides is painted with a breezy freedom that...
Catriona Miller 20 July 2025
Thomas Gainsborough and His Dog Portraits
Thomas Gainsborough (1727-1788) was a portrait and landscape painter. During his career, he often painted dogs accompanying his sitters. He always...
Joanna Kaszubowska 17 July 2025
Owls, Peacocks and Sparrows: Birds in Art
The idea of birds in art probably brings to mind John James Audubon, the 19th-century ornithologist who wrote and illustrated the landmark series The...
Alexandra Kiely 2 July 2025
Masterpiece Story: Woman with a Parrot by Gustave Courbet
Gustave Courbet, the enfant terrible of French 19th-century art, did everything he could to save himself in the memory of the contemporary art...
Zuzanna Stańska 10 June 2025
Jeff Koons and His Balloon Dogs
What do Jeff Koons, Jay-Z, Christie’s, and clowns have in common? Balloon dogs. Koons is a controversial figure in the contemporary art world,...
Zuzanna Stańska 5 June 2025
Can You Spot the Cat? Cats Hidden in Famous Paintings
I like cats and I’m sure that many of you do, too. A fascinating animal, the cat has earned itself an important place in culture, literature, and...
Marina Kochetkova 4 June 2025
Wild Spirits: 5 Animal Paintings by Franz Marc
Examining Franz Marc’s most iconic animal paintings reveals how the German Expressionist used color and form to convey the spiritual essence of...
Lisa Scalone 15 May 2025
