Rembrandt (1606-1669) A Polish Nobleman 1637 Oil on panel. 96.8 x 66 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington After learning the fundamentals of drawing and painting in his native Leiden, Rembrandt van Rijn went to Amsterdam in 1624 to study for…
Rembrandt (1606-1669) Lucretia 1664 Oil on canvas, 120 x 101 cm National Gallery of Art, Washington After learning the fundamentals of drawing and painting in his native Leiden, Rembrandt van Rijn went to Amsterdam in 1624 to study for six months with Pieter Lastman (1583–1633), a…
Botticelli, Sandro (c.1445-1510) Ritratto di Simonetta Vespucci (Portrait of Simonetta Vespucci) c.1480–1485 Mixed technique on poplar, 81.3 x 50 cm Städel Museum, Frankfurt Idealised Portrait of a Lady (Portrait of Simonetta Vespucci as Nymph) The fantastical accoutrements in this larger-than-life-size half-length painting…
Madrazo y Kuntz, Luis de (1825-1897) Isabel la Católica c.1848 Oil on canvas, 225 x 140.8 cm Museo del Prado, Madrid The Chronological Series of the Kings of Spain was a museum project planned in 1847 by José de Madrazo to adorn…
Raffaello (1483-1520) La dama col liocorno (Lady with a Unicorn) c.1505–1506 Oil on panel transferred to canvas, 67 x 56 cm Galleria Borghese, Roma The young woman depicted is a Florentine girl, as can be seen from the precious fashionable dress of…
Raffaello (1483-1520) Ritratto di Maddalena Doni (Portrait of Maddalena Doni) 1505–1506 Oil on panel, 65 x 45.8 cm Galleria Palatina, Firenze On the back there is a representation in monochrome of Deucalion and Pyrrha. Pair: Raffaello (1483-1520) Ritratto di Agnolo Doni 1505–1506 Galleria…
Holbein, Hans the Younger (c.1497-1543) Portrait of Henry VIII of England c.1537 Oil on panel, 28 x 20 cm Museo Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid Portraiture was the most popular genre in sixteenth-century England, and indeed one of the few available to artists following the…
Manet, Édouard (1832-1883) La Parisienne (A Parisian Lady) 1883 Oil on canvas, 192 x 125 cm Nationalmuseum, Stockholm This painting shows the actress Ellen André as a Parisienne, who lived and moved in the modern commercial city. Socially, she was often a…
Lavinia Fontana (1552-1614) Ritratto di nobildonna (Portrait of a Noblewoman) c.1580 Oil on canvas, 114.3 x 88.9 cm National Museum of Women in the Arts, Washington Marriage Portrait of a Bolognese Noblewoman (Livia de’ Medici Bandini?) illustrates Lavinia Fontana’s ability to…
Cranach, Lucas the Elder (1472-1553) Portrait of John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony c.1530s Oil on panel, 62.8 x 39.7 cm Private Collection See also: • John Frederick I, Elector of Saxony (1503-1554)