Caillebotte, Gustave (1848-1894) Portrait de Madame X (Portrait of Madame X) 1878 Pastel, 63 x 50 cm Musée Fabre, Montpellier A central figure in Impressionism, Caillebotte trained in 1871 in the very academic studio of Léon Bonnat. While he passed the entrance…
Gainsborough, Thomas (1727-1788) Mrs Siddons 1785 Oil on canvas, 126 × 99.5 cm National Gallery, London Mrs Siddons (1755–1831) was the greatest tragic actress of her time, remaining at the top of her profession for 30 years. Gainsborough painted her in the…
Cranach, Lucas the Elder (1472-1553) Portrait of Frederick the Wise, Duke of Saxony c.1525 Oil on wood panel, 28.7 × 24.5 cm Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia The sitter is Frederick the Wise, Duke of Saxony, who is best known for having protected…
Campin, Robert (c.1378-1444) Portrait of a Stout Man (Robert de Masmines?) c.1425 Oil on panel, 35.4 x 23.7 cm Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid Robert Campin was a renowned painter of his day whose workshop trained important artists such as Jacques Daret and…
Tiziano (c.1488-1576) La Bella (Portrait of a Lady) 1536–1538 Oil on canvas, 89 × 75.5 cm Galleria Palatina, Palazzo Pitti, Firenze
Carracci, Annibale (1560-1609) Madonna Montalto (The Holy Family with the Infant Saint John the Baptist) c.1600 Oil on copper, 35 x 27.5 cm National Gallery, London Domesticity reigns in this exquisite little picture. A delightfully pretty Virgin Mary balances a squirming,…
Dalí, Salvador (1904-1989) Le Roi d’Aragon (King of Aragon) 1973 Etching and mezzotint on paper, 48.3 × 35.6 cm Tate Britain, London Albert Field, The Official Catalog of the Graphic Works of Salvador Dalí, New York 1996, p.80: “King of Aragon…
Murillo, Bartolomé Esteban (1617-1682) La Adoración de los Reyes Magos (The Adoration of the Magi) c.1655–1660 Oil on canvas, 190.8 x 146.1 cm Toledo Museum of Art, Toledo Bartolomé Esteban Murillo became the leading painter in devoutly Catholic Seville, Spain, from…
Van der Weyden, Rogier (c.1399-1464) The Magdalen Reading c.1435 Oil on mahogany, transferred from another panel, 62.2 × 54.4 cm National Gallery, London A young lady in an extravagant green dress sits on the floor, reading. Although she wears fifteenth-century clothing…
Bruegel, Pieter the Elder (c.1525-1569) The Adoration of the Kings 1564 Oil on oak, 112.1 × 83.9 cm National Gallery, London The Virgin sits in front of a dilapidated stable with the naked Christ Child on her knee. Three men offer…