Netherlandish or French, The Madonna and Child with Saints Louis and Margaret, about 1510. The National Gallery, London. My first talk about the newly refurbished Sainsbury wing, this Monday, 30 June at 6pm, is entitled Opening up the North. There are various reasons for choosing this title, which I will discuss during the talk itself.Continue reading “252 – Beauty and the Beast”
Tag Archives: painting
248 – More value than many sparrows
Max Liebermann, Free Time in the Amsterdam Orphanage, 1881-82. Städel Museum, Frankfurt. German Impressionism – the subject of my talk on Monday, 19 May – was not a direct rejection of the pristine surfaces and clear, crisp colours of the Nazarenes, who I talked about earlier this week, but it so easily could have been.Continue reading “248 – More value than many sparrows”
Asking again: painted by a madman?
Edvard Munch, The Scream, 1895. Private Collection. If you think I’m being rude – or insensitive – I should point out that the title of today’s post is simply a quotation, in English, from the words that Edvard Munch himself wrote on the first (or second) version of The Scream. An infrared photo of theContinue reading “Asking again: painted by a madman?”
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”
242 – Take a little space
Pietro Lorenzetti, Saint Sabinus before the Roman Governor of Tuscany, 1335-42. The National Gallery, London. It’s not long until Siena: The Rise of Painting opens at the National Gallery. I’ve already talked about Duccio, and now, after a week’s break (please do check the dates of the talks you are booking for!) I will continueContinue reading “242 – Take a little space”
Double Duccio
Duccio, The Virgin and Child with Saint Dominic and Saint Aurea, and Patriarchs and Prophets, about 1312-15 (?). The National Gallery, London. I first posted today’s blog just before I gave my first independent Zoom talk four years ago, on 8 February. And here it is, back again, to announce the first of my seriesContinue reading “Double Duccio”
238 – Following the Magi
Masaccio, The Adoration of the Magi, 1426. Gemäldegalerie, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin. Happy New Year! And as Monday will be the Feast of the Epiphany, I thought that it would be a good idea to talk about a painting of The Adoration of the Magi today. I have chosen Masaccio’s version rather than any ofContinue reading “238 – Following the Magi”
237 – Monet, looking at London
Claude Monet, The Thames below Westminster, about 1871. The National Gallery, London. Keep looking – that’s the most important thing. If you keep looking you keep learning. I certainly do: it’s one of the things I most enjoy about writing this blog. But then, check that what you’ve learnt from what you see is correctContinue reading “237 – Monet, looking at London”
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”
235 – Raphael, after himself
After four weeks talking about the Royal Academy’s superb exhibition celebrating the ‘chance’ encounters of Michelangelo, Leonardo and Raphael in Florence, it will be a pleasure to keep the momentum going this Monday, 9 December by including just a few of their works in my introduction the King’s Gallery exhibition Drawing the Italian Renaissance. ThereContinue reading “235 – Raphael, after himself”