#Portraits

WTF Art History

Fifty Shades of Dr. Pozzi

There he is, a handsome gynecologist in a portrait entitled Dr. Pozzi at Home painted by John Singer Sargent. Pozzi was a dandy, a gynecologist, and...

Zuzanna Stańska 20 May 2025

Art History 101

Dutch Golden Age Explained

When one thinks of any Golden Age, the first thing that comes to mind is the 17th-century Netherlands at its glory – the Dutch Golden Age. The most...

Nicole Ganbold 19 May 2025

Masterpiece Stories

The Rediscovered Portrait of an African Prince by Gustav Klimt

Masterpiece discoveries are rare, so when one happens, it reaches the headlines. This is the case for a portrait of Prince William Nii Nortey Dowuona...

Jimena Escoto 19 May 2025

Baroque

15 Things You Didn’t Know About the Night Watch by Rembrandt

The Night Watch painted by Rembrandt van Rijn is a monumental canvas displayed today in the “Gallery of Honour” of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam,...

Zuzanna Stańska, Nicole Ganbold 19 May 2025

Baroque

What Is a Tronie? Famous Examples of Tronies in Dutch and Flemish Baroque

Everyone knows The Girl with a Pearl Earring. She is the icon of European painting and considered one of the most famous female portraits – but is...

Anastasia Manioudaki, Nicole Ganbold 19 May 2025

* Johannes Vermeer, Lady Writing a Letter with her Maid (c. 1670–71), National Gallery of Ireland in Dublin, Ireland. Artist Stories

5 Things You Should Know About Johannes Vermeer

Johannes Vermeer was a Dutch painter who lived and worked during the Dutch Golden Age. Along with Rembrandt and Frans Hals, he is considered one of...

Anastasia Manioudaki 19 May 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Whistler’s Mother by James McNeill Whistler

Whistler’s 1871 painting Arrangement in Grey and Black No 1 might not sound familiar. As Whistler’s Mother, on the other hand, it has entered...

Catriona Miller 11 May 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Self-Portrait with Her Daughter by Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun

Self-Portrait with Her Daughter, Julie by Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun is a portrait masterpiece blending fashionable elegance and emotional naturalism.

James W Singer 11 May 2025

Painting

Mothers Who Became Muses: Portraits of Artists’ Mothers

Every great person has a prominent woman standing behind them, and that is true as every remarkable person was a child once. The woman standing...

Valeria Kumekina 9 May 2025

Painting

Diego Velázquez in 10 Paintings

Diego Velázquez was one of the greatest painters of the Spanish Golden Age. Born in 1599 in Seville, he began with religious commissions but soon...

Jimena Aullet 8 May 2025

Painting

Habemus Papam! The Most Famous Portraits of Popes in Art History

For ages, the Catholic Church has been a hugely important patron of the arts. As the Papal States (which predated Vatican City) were enormously...

Zuzanna Stańska 8 May 2025

Contemporary Art

Amy Sherald: American Sublime at the Whitney Museum

Amy Sherald (b. 1973) has identified herself as “an American realist painter painting American people.” The current retrospective of her work...

Tom Anderson 5 May 2025