Velázquez, Diego (1599-1660) Las Meninas, o La familia de Felipe IV (Las meninas or The Family of Philip IV) 1656 Oil on canvas, 320.5 x 281.5 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid This is one of Velázquez‘s largest paintings and among…
Courbet, Gustave (1819-1877) L’Atelier du peintre (The Painter’s Studio) 1854–1855 Oil on canvas, 361 x 598 cm Musée d’Orsay, Paris The enormous Studio is without doubt Courbet‘s most mysterious composition. However, he provides several clues to its interpretation: “It’s the whole world…
Goya, Francisco de (1746-1828) La familia de Carlos IV (The Family of Carlos IV) 1800 Oil on canvas, 280 x 336 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid This portrait of the family of King Carlos IV (1748-1819) was painted in Aranjuez and Madrid…
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…
Rousseau, Henri (1844-1910) La Liberté invitant les artistes à participer à la 22e exposition des Indépendants (Liberty Inviting Artists to Take Part in the 22nd Exhibition of the Societe des Artistes Independants) 1905–1906 Oil on canvas, 175 x 118 cm…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) Woman with a Pearl Necklace (Vrouw met parelsnoer) 1663–1665 Oil on canvas, 56.1 x 47.4 cm Gemäldegalerie, Berlin SIGNATURE / INSCRIPTION: Inscription on the table top: IVMeer (IVM in ligature) A young woman stands at a table and…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) Lady at the Virginals with a Gentleman early 1660s Oil on canvas, 74.1 x 64.6 cm Royal Collection, Buckingham Palace, London A Lady at the Virginal with a Gentleman entered the Royal Collection in 1762 as a work…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) The Love Letter (De liefdesbrief) c.1669–1670 Oil on canvas, 44 x 38.5 cm Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam Vermeer chose an unusual vantage point for this painting. From a dim space in the foreground, a glimpse is afforded of another room…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) Woman Writing a Letter, with her Maid (Schrijvende vrouw met dienstbode) c.1670 Oil on canvas, 71.1 x 60.5 cm National Gallery of Ireland, Dublin Considered one of the principal Dutch painters, Vermeer specialised in genre scenes, many of…
Vermeer, Jan (1632-1675) The Glass of Wine (Het glas wijn) 1658–1660 Oil on canvas, 67.7 x 79.6 cm Gemäldegalerie, Berlin In the reflection of cool daylight, which penetrates from the left, especially through the front of the two windows, a young…