#religious art

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch

Hieronymus Bosch’s triptych The Garden of Earthly Delights remains a mystery to this day. The most respected experts in late-Gothic iconography...

Marta Loza 23 November 2025

Artemisia Gentileschi, Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting, 1638-1639 Women Artists

Artemisia Gentileschi in 10 Paintings

Artemisia Gentileschi is the most celebrated female painter of the 17th century. Let's look at 10 of her paintings.

Candy Bedworth 20 November 2025

Artist Stories

Bronzino in 10 Paintings

Bronzino was of the generation of artists who had to find a way of following the perfection of the High Renaissance. They pushed the conventions of...

Catriona Miller, 17 November 2025

tenebrism: Gerard van Honthorst, The Procuress, 1625, Centraal Museum, Utrecht, The Netherlands. Art History 101

Tenebrism 101: All You Need to Know

The Baroque movement, which characterizes much of the European art of the 17th century, is known for its dramatic flair. Gods, demigods, and saints...

Anastasia Manioudaki 7 November 2025

Painting

Mary Magdalene in Candlelight by Georges de La Tour

In the 17th century, Mary Magdalene was a popular subject in art, symbolizing sin, repentance, and redemption. Georges de La Tour, the French Baroque...

Guest Author 7 November 2025

Baroque

Francisco de Zurbarán: The Spanish Caravaggio

Francisco de Zurbarán was one of the major Spanish painters of the 17th century. He is especially known for his religious subjects and for the...

Vithória Konzen Dill 7 November 2025

Hieronymus Bosch, Death and the Miser, ca 1485-90, oil on panel, National Gallery of Art, Washington, DC, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Death and the Miser by Hieronymus Bosch

Death and the Miser is a masterpiece of morbid curiosity. It reflects on the tension between the pursuit of wealth and the inevitability of death,...

James W Singer 2 November 2025

Quiz

QUIZ: Guess the Catholic Saint! Part 2

Joanna Kaszubowska 1 November 2025

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Calling of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio

The Calling of Saint Matthew by Caravaggio depicts the moment Matthew turns away from tax collecting and toward Jesus. Caravaggio was a master of...

Guest Author 27 October 2025

Sor Maria Francisca de San Pedro, Juan Patricio Morlete Ruiz, 1760 Painting

An Instant Becomes Eternity: Nuns’ Profession Portraits in the 18th Century New Spain

At the beginning of the 18th century in New Spain (colonial Mexico), portraits of local elites became an essential genre. In a society with a strong...

Wen Gu 23 October 2025

Antoni, Gaudí, Sagrada Familia, Barcelona, Spain, My Modern Met Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Sagrada Familia by Antoni Gaudí

Today’s modern construction techniques allow us to build huge structures in just a few months or years. For example, the Shard in London was built...

Joanna Kaszubowska 22 October 2025

Asian Art

The Hindu Lord of the Dance—Shiva Nataraja in Art

Nataraja, the manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva as the Lord of the Dance, holds a profound significance in Hindu mythology and symbolism. Depicted...

Maya M. Tola 20 October 2025