Joseph Wright of Derby, The Annual Girandola at the Castel Sant’Angelo, 1775-76. Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool. Wright of Derby: From the Shadows – the exhibition at The National Gallery which I will be talking about this Monday, 24 November at 6pm – is one of those exhibitions which takes a small slice of an artist’sContinue reading “262 – Stand well back”
Category Archives: Repoussoir
250 – What’s in a name?
Victor Hugo, The Cheerful Castle, c. 1847. Maisons de Victor Hugo Paris/Guernsey. This week – Monday 2 June at 6pm, to be precise – I am looking forward to talking about the truly astonishing drawings by Victor Hugo in the Royal Academy’s aptly named exhibition Astonishing Things. If I’m honest, I went to see itContinue reading “250 – What’s in a name?”
246 – Lonely as a Cloud?
Caspar David Friedrich, Wanderer above the Sea of Fog, about 1817. Kunsthalle, Hamburg. Caspar David Friedrich’s Wanderer above the Sea of Fog is one of the archetypal images of German Romanticism – so what better painting to look at as an introduction to my eponymous talk this Monday, 5 May at 6pm? To be honest,Continue reading “246 – Lonely as a Cloud?”
245 – Out of the Corner
Édouard Manet, Corner of a Café-Concert, probably 1878-80. The National Gallery, London. This week, after the splendour of Siena in the 14th century, it is time to turn our attention to another flourishing city – Paris, in the second half of the 19th century – but we will look at it via Switzerland. Over severalContinue reading “245 – Out of the Corner”
236 – Rubens, before Constable
Peter Paul Rubens, A View of Het Steen in the Early Morning, probably 1636. The National Gallery, London. After five weeks talking about the Italian Renaissance I’m going to take a break and head forward to the 19th Century. There is a direct line to be drawn, I think, from Constable, via Monet, to VanContinue reading “236 – Rubens, before Constable”
216 – Between Earth and Heaven
The Master of the Aachen Altarpiece, The Crucifixion, about 1490-5. The National Gallery, London. I’m really enjoying getting to know the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool – it has a fantastic collection, with some real gems – and am looking forward to starting my online stroll around the museum this Monday, 12 February with aContinue reading “216 – Between Earth and Heaven”
193 – Visionary
Paul Gauguin, Vision of the Sermon (Jacob Wrestling with the Angel), 1888. National Galleries of Scotland, Edinburgh. From Shaping Impressionism last week, I am moving on to After Impressionism, the big blockbuster of a show at the National Gallery which I will introduce this Monday, 1 May at 6.00pm, hence my discussion of Paul GauguinContinue reading “193 – Visionary”
192 – Role reversal
Berthe Morisot, Eugène Manet on the Isle of Wight, 1875. Musée Marmottan Monet, Paris. Last week I talked about a traditional, old fashioned couple, where the man was in the driving seat. This week, we will see woman take the reins: Madame Manet, better known by the name she called herself – as she neverContinue reading “192 – Role reversal”
151 – Mommie dearest
James Abbott McNeill Whistler, Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1, 1871. Musée d’Orsay, Paris. This coming Monday’s talk, White: Whistler’s Woman… is an introduction to the Royal Academy’s exhibition entitled Whistler’s Woman in White. This does not refer to one specific painting, though, but to a person, as the subtitle of the exhibition makesContinue reading “151 – Mommie dearest”
Psyching myself up
Jean-Honoré Fragonard, Psyche showing her Sisters her Gifts from Cupid, 1753, National Gallery, London. I was going to write a new post today, but it turns out I’m still in acting mode. After two weeks in Sidmouth playing three different roles in the four playlets that make up Neil Simon’s California Suite we have half a weekContinue reading “Psyching myself up”
dr richard stemp 