How Europe Got Its Name—The Myth of Europa in Art
Have you ever wondered where the name of the continent Europe comes from? Meet Europa, a Phoenician woman who became the inspiration for the name of...
Magda Michalska 8 September 2025
#allegorical painting
Masterpiece Story: Allegorical Painting of Two Ladies
Allegorical Painting of Two Ladies is an enigmatic and highly unusual imaginative portrait made in 1650s England. It reveals a fascinating story...
Nicole Ganbold 10 August 2025
Masterpiece Story: Ten Symbols of Longevity
Ten Symbols of Longevity is a landscape masterpiece of Korean art. It is a beautiful world filled with earthly perfection and cosmic energy. The...
James W Singer 13 July 2025
Everything You Must Know About Las Meninas
This is one of Velázquez’s largest paintings in which he worked very hard to create a complex and credible composition that would convey a...
Zuzanna Stańska, Nicole Ganbold 6 June 2025
Paintings Within Paintings: Time to Go Meta in the Art World
A few years ago, the art world celebrated the complete restoration of Johannes Vermeer’s Girl Reading a Letter at an Open Window. One of the...
Jimena Escoto 5 June 2025
Masterpiece Story: Art of Painting by Johannes Vermeer
Johannes Vermeer is an enigmatic figure in the history of art. He is considered one of the most famous artists of the Dutch Golden Age. Why are his...
James W Singer 13 April 2025
Masterpiece Story: The Milkmaid by Johannes Vermeer
Among many representations of domestic scenes of respectable Dutch middle-class households, there is one that never ceases to impress and capture the...
Giordana Goretti 13 April 2025
François Boucher in 10 Paintings
François Boucher (1703–1770) was one of the major exponents of the Rococo style in the 18th century. His paintings showed the ostentation and...
Jimena Escoto 10 April 2025
Masterpiece Story: Threatened Swan by Jan Asselijn
Swans are normally characterized as graceful birds. They are magnificent and majestic. However, Jan Asselijn displays another side of these elegant...
James W Singer 5 January 2025
A Small Guide to Still Life Symbols
You may think that all those marvelous Dutch still lifes from the 16th and 17th centuries were just some random sets of fruits, vegetables, and...
Zuzanna Stańska, Nicole Ganbold 26 November 2024
Tiepolo: The Last Venetian Master
Mainland Italy is a perfect country for fresco production since it is dominated by a dry climate that preserves frescoes very well. Even though...
Magda Michalska 5 March 2024
Not Just in Movies: The Apocalypse in Art
Recently, people worldwide have experienced a sense of being “in the midst of an apocalypse.” Why do individuals instinctively link this...
Camilla de Laurentis 22 January 2024
