Zurbarán, Francisco de (1598-1664) San Francisco en meditación (Saint Francis in Meditation) 1639 Oil on canvas, 162 × 137 cm National Gallery, London In this moving painting, Saint Francis is shown meditating in a landscape. His cowl (or hood) is pulled…
Tiepolo, Giambattista (1696-1770) Tisaferno e Vafrino (Tisaferno and Vafrino) c.1740–1746 Oil on canvas, 158.8 × 53 cm National Gallery, London Two men in turbans are seated under a tree that provides little shade. One has his back to us; the other, who…
Tiepolo, Giambattista (1696-1770) Adrasto assiso ai piedi d’Armida (Adrastus seated at the feet of Armida) c.1740–1746 Oil on canvas, 160.4 × 53.5 cm National Gallery, London Within a walled garden, a man wearing a striking blue costume and ornate necklace catches the…
Tiepolo, Giambattista (1696-1770) Il mago d’Ascalona con lo scudo magico ai piedi (The Wizard of Ascalona with the Magic Shield under his Feet) c.1740–1746 Oil on canvas, 159.1 × 53.3 cm National Gallery, London Two men, wearing stunning robes and headdresses made…
Rubens, Peter Paul (1577-1640) Samson and Delilah c.1609–1610 Oil on wood, 185 × 205 cm National Gallery, London Peter Paul Rubens’s Samson and Delilah portrays a tragedy of love and betrayal. According to the Old Testament, Samson, a Jewish hero blessed…
Puvis de Chavannes, Pierre (1824-1898) Portrait de l’artiste (Portrait of the Artist) c.1887 Oil on canvas, 56 × 46.5 cm Musée d’Orsay, Paris
Poussin, Nicolas (1594-1665) Le Triomphe de Silène (The Triumph of Silenus) c.1636 Oil on canvas, 142.9 × 120.5 cm National Gallery, London This playful scene celebrates Silenus, companion to Bacchus, the Roman god of wine and drunkenness. Silenus, a naked old…
Murillo, Bartolomé Esteban (1617-1682) Autorretrato (Self Portrait) c.1670 Oil on canvas, 122 × 107 cm National Gallery, London Murillo probably painted this self portrait in about 1670, when he was in his early fifties – his hairline is receding and his…
Michelangelo (1475-1564) Deposizione di Cristo nel sepolcro (The Entombment, or Christ being carried to his Tomb) c.1500–1501 Oil on wood, 161.7 × 149.9 cm National Gallery, London This is one of perhaps only three surviving panel paintings by the great Florentine…
Giotto (c.1267-1337) & Workshop Pentecoste (Pentecost) c.1310–1318 Egg tempera on poplar, 45.5 × 44 cm National Gallery, London The simplicity of the storytelling, the inclusion of lively details – like the old man who turns his head to better hear the…