The Divine Sarah: Sarah Bernhardt, The First Artist Superstar
While we are all familiar with celebrity culture and can recognize all of the Kardashians by their silhouettes, the idea of ‘celebrity’ is not a...
Wendy Gray 24 March 2024
#19th Century
Capturing Light: The Pioneers of Photography in France
It all officially began in 1839 in two countries at the same time: in the UK, the Royal Academy announced the discovery of a method of capturing...
Magda Michalska 22 March 2024
Theodore Marceau – The Genius Pioneer of Photographic Studios
Theodore Christopher Marceau (1859-1922) was an American photographer who pioneered the creation of a national chain of photographic studios in the...
Zuzanna Stańska 22 March 2024
Julia Margaret Cameron – The Queen of Pre-Raphaelite Photography
The English Victorian artist Julia Margaret Cameron (who was actually born in India and raised in France) was an irreplaceable representative of...
Rute Ferreira 22 March 2024
Masterpiece Story: The Major’s Marriage Proposal by Pavel Fedotov
When you think of 19th-century Russia, images of Anna Karenina with black furs and white diamonds may come to mind. The lives of the wealthy...
James W Singer 19 March 2024
Alphonse Mucha – Art Nouveau Master
Alphonse Mucha is perhaps the artist most publicly associated with Art Nouveau. Today we explore the life and work of the Czech master. Alphonse...
Europeana 18 March 2024
Constance Mayer and Pierre Prud’hon: Better Together?
Constance Mayer (1775-1821) was one of a generation of women artists who took advantage of the new freedoms offered by the French Revolution. She...
Catriona Miller 18 March 2024
Masterpiece Story: Abbey in the Oakwood by Caspar David Friedrich
Sadness and desolation fill this scene like an oppressive melancholy. The sun is dying behind the horizon as fog enshrouds the ground. Skeletal trees...
James W Singer 16 March 2024
6 Highlights from the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin
Discover the wealth of 19th-century artistic treasures housed within Berlin’s Alte Nationalgalerie, a true gem in Germany’s cultural...
Anastasia Manioudaki 16 March 2024
Florence Welch — A Modern Pre-Raphaelite Muse
We all know Florence Welch, the leader of the indie-rock band Florence + The Machine. And if you don’t, I suggest you find her cosmic music right...
Elizaveta Ermakova 15 March 2024
Trouvelot and His Unique Art of the Cosmos
First published in 1881, Étienne Léopold Trouvelot’s portfolio of astronomical illustrations is an exceptional collection of majestic...
Jon Kelly 14 March 2024
Dante and Virgil in Bouguereau’s Hell
Established by the Academy, the hierarchy of genres and subjects was essential for almost every graduate of École des Beaux-Arts. Throughout the...
Christopher Michaut 9 March 2024
