Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun, Self Portrait in a Straw Hat, 1782, National Gallery, London. I’m no milliner, but I know a straw hat when I see one. And Elisabeth Louise Vigée Le Brun is wearing one here. This is a defiantly confident self portrait. Doubly confident, in fact, because it is a copy she madeContinue reading “Day 55 – A Straw Hat”
Category Archives: Titles
Day 46 – Psyche III
Claude, Landscape with Psyche outside the Palace of Cupid (‘The Enchanted Castle’), 1664, National Gallery, London. So… Psyche has done the one thing she was supposed not to do, and has tried to find out who her mystery lover really is (if you missed the first parts of the story, head back to Picture Of TheContinue reading “Day 46 – Psyche III”
Day 39 – La Tempesta
Giorgione, La Tempesta, c. 1504, Accademia, Venice. I’ve been asked to talk about Giorgione’s evocative and mysterious painting La Tempesta, which I’m very happy to do, even if it is something I have often avoided, for reasons which should become obvious. The best translation of the title would be ‘The Storm’, but, if translated at all, itContinue reading “Day 39 – La Tempesta”
Day 26 – ‘La Tasse de Chocolat’
Day 26 – Nicolas Lancret, ‘La Tasse de Chocolat’, probably 1742, National Gallery, London. It’s Easter Monday, which is not a religious festival (unless you’re Orthodox, in which case Easter isn’t until next Sunday anyway), but a chance for the banks to have a holiday because they wouldn’t have been open yesterday anyway, so couldn’t haveContinue reading “Day 26 – ‘La Tasse de Chocolat’”
Day 9 – The Fighting Temeraire
Day 9 – Joseph Mallord William Turner, The Fighting Temeraire, 1839, National Gallery, London. Originally posted on 27 March 2020 Isn’t this a wonderful painting? Evocative, atmospheric, rich in colour, packed with meaning – all in all, it is beautifully painted. Indeed, a few years back it was voted ‘the Nation’s favourite painting’, and has evenContinue reading “Day 9 – The Fighting Temeraire”
dr richard stemp 