Goya, Francisco de (1746-1828) La maja desnuda (The Naked Maja) 1795–1800 Oil on canvas, 97.3 x 190.6 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid An image of Venus in the nude, lying on a green velvet divan with pillows and a spread. Legend…
Van Eyck, Jan (c.1390-1441) The Annunciation c.1434–1436 Oil on canvas transferred from panel, 90.2 x 34.1 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington The Annunciation described by Saint Luke is interpreted in terms of actuality in this painting, which was probably once…
Van Eyck, Jan (c.1390-1441) Portrait of Giovanni (?) Arnolfini and his Wife 1434 Oil on oak, 82.2 x 60 cm National Gallery, London This must be one of the most famous paintings in the world, and one of the most intriguing.…
Tissot, James (1836-1902) La fille du guerrier (The Warrior’s Daughter) c.1878 Oil on panel, 21.8 x 36.2 cm Manchester Art Gallery, Manchester Modern life was the central theme of Tissot‘s art, with a focus on bourgeois social behaviour. His genre pieces…
Tissot, James (1836-1902) Le Banc de Jardin (The Garden Bench) c.1882 Oil on canvas Private collection
Tissot, James (1836-1902) Cache-cache (Hide and Seek) c.1877 Oil on wood, 73.4 x 53.9 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington In early 1874 Degas wrote, “Look here, my dear Tissot. . . you positively must exhibit at the Boulevard [in the…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) Girl interrupted at Her Music (Onderbreking van de muziek) c.1658–1659 Oil on canvas, 39.4 x 44.5 cm Frick Collection, New York Music-making, a recurring subject in Vermeer’s interior scenes, was associated in the seventeenth century with courtship. In…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) The Lacemaker (De kantwerkster) 1669–1670 Oil on canvas transferred to panel, 24 x 21 cm Musée du Louvre, Paris The motif of the lacemaker at work is traditionally a sign of domestic virtue, tinged with religious moralism (the…
Mantegna, Andrea (c.1431-1506) Presentazione al Tempio (Presentation in the Temple) c.1454 Tempera on wood, 77.1 x 94.4 cm Gemäldegalerie, Berlin The Presentation of Christ in the Temple is narrated in the Gospel of Saint Luke (2:21–39). Soon after his birth, Jesus was…
Bellini, Giovanni (c.1430-1516) Allegoria sacra (Sacred Allegory) c.1490–1500 Oil on wood panel, 73 x 119 cm Galleria degli Uffizi, Firenze One of the most enigmatic and fascinating works of the Italian Renaissance, this painting by Bellini shows the Madonna seated on…