Tag: music

The Egyptian Widow (1872)

Alma-Tadema, Lawrence (1836-1912) The Egyptian Widow 1872 Oil on panel, 74.9 × 99.1 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam The Frisian artist Alma-Tadema was a great success in England, where he was even knighted. His representations of ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman scenes made…

La sfida delle Pieridi (c.1523-1527)

Rosso Fiorentino (1495-1540) La sfida delle Pieridi (The Challenge of the Pierides) c.1523–1527 Oil on wood transferred to canvas, 31 x 63 cm Musée du Louvre, Paris A rare mythological subject This small painting represents an episode reported by Ovid in…

King David Playing the Harp (c.1627-1628)

Rubens, Peter Paul (1577-1640) King David Playing the Harp c.1627–1628 Oil on panel, 44.8 x 66 cm Barnes Foundation, Philadelphia The biblical King David strums his harp, performing the music of heaven in concert with five angels. Ornate fictive architecture frames…

Quattro donne che fanno musica (1658-1660)

Giordano, Luca (1634-1705) Quattro donne che fanno musica (Four Women making Music) 1658–1660 Oil on canvas, 57 x 101.5 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam On loan from the Koninklijk Kabinet van Schilderijen Mauritshuis, May 1948. Four young women making music. Busts. The two…

Sapho, Phaon et l’Amour (1809)

David, Jacques-Louis (1748-1825) Sapho, Phaon et l’Amour (Sappho, Phaon and Cupid) 1809 Oil on canvas, 225.3 x 262 cm Hermitage Museum, Saint Petersburg David is considered the founder and leading light of Neoclassicism, which dominated art in the late 18th and…

Madonna dell’Umiltà (c.1433-1435)

Angelico, Fra (c.1395-1455) Madonna dell’Umiltà (The Virgin of Humility) c.1433–1435 Tempera on panel, 98.6 x 49.2 cm Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid ©Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, on loan at the Museu Nacional d’Art de Catalunya (MNAC) Guido di Piero da Mugello, known as Friar Giovanni…

The Virgin and Child with two Angels (1480-1490)

Memling, Hans (c.1430-1494) The Virgin and Child with two Angels 1480–1490 Oil on panel, 36 x 26 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid The Virgin appears seated in a walled garden, an allusion to the hortus conclusus or enclosed garden, which symbolizes…

The Siesta, or Pompeian Scene (1868)

Alma-Tadema, Lawrence (1836-1912) The Siesta, or Pompeian Scene 1868 Oil on canvas, 130 x 369 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid A domestic scene set in classical antiquity. An old man and a youth recline on divans while an attractive young woman…