#19th Century

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Lady of Shalott by John William Waterhouse

Elaine, the white lady of Shalott, was portrayed in a painting by John William Waterhouse escaping a tower where she was only able to see the world...

Guest Profile 12 November 2023

Post-Impressionism

Going Dotty: The Best Pointillist Landscapes

When Georges Seurat developed Pointillism – painting with little dots – in the mid-1880s, it seemed like a pretty niche idea. Yet for the next...

Catriona Miller 11 November 2023

Art History 101

Post-Impressionism 101: Everything You Need to Know

The term Post-Impressionism combines the oeuvre of many artists. We will tell you about four prominent masters who are most associated with the art...

Nataliia Pecherska 11 November 2023

Painting

Company School: Transition to Indian Modern Art

The Indian court painters of the mid-18th century (known for their mastery of rich Mughal and Rajput styles) shifted their renderings to the demanded...

Urvi Chheda 9 November 2023

Artist Stories

Paul Gauguin – Master or Monster?

When Paul Gauguin visited Tahiti in the 1890’s was he a genius in search of paradise, or a seedy sex tourist? A painter, printmaker, sculptor,...

Candy Bedworth 6 November 2023

Art Nouveau

Carl Strathmann’s Bizarre Cabinet of Art Nouveau Curiosities

Tired of the forever beautification of women in Art Nouveau worlds of flamboyant ornaments and stylized flowers? Then you should be looking at Carl...

Kero Fichter 6 November 2023

Utagawa Hiroshige maple trees: Utagawa Hiroshige, Maple Trees at Mama, Tekona Shrine and Tsugi Bridge, One Hundred Famous Views of Edo, 1857, ink on paper, Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam, Netherlands. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Maple Trees at Mama by Utagawa Hiroshige

Utagawa Hiroshige’s prints were exported to Europe and became very popular with Western artists. Post-Impressionist painter Vincent van Gogh owned...

James W Singer 5 November 2023

Johan Thomas Lundbye, View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord, 1843, National Gallery, Copenhagen, Denmark. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord by Johan Thomas Lundbye

View from Kitnæs on Roskilde Fjord by Johan Thomas Lundbye is a masterpiece of 19th century Danish landscape painting. It set a new standard for the...

James W Singer 5 November 2023

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Irises by Vincent van Gogh

One year before his death on March 30, 1890, Vincent van Gogh chose to enter Saint Paul de Mausole, an asylum in Saint-Rémy, originally a...

Zuzanna Stańska 3 November 2023

Museum Stories

How Science Saved Van Gogh’s Sunflowers

In January 2019, the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam announced that the painting Sunflowers would not be leaving Amsterdam anymore due to its fragile...

Joanna Kaszubowska 3 November 2023

Asian Art

Art from Horror Movies: Japanese Woodblocks of Tsukioka Yoshitoshi

For centuries, gore has been part of the culture in Japan, rooted in its history. Its representation is very common in woodblock engraving pictures.

Sofia Rodriguez Cuevas 31 October 2023

Artist Stories

Whistler vs. Ruskin: How to Fling a Pot of Paint and Win a Trial

After paying a visit to the newly inaugurated Grosvenor Gallery in London, John Ruskin wrote a stinging review of the modernist exhibition. The...

Ruxi Rusu 28 October 2023