European Art

plakatstil Lucian Bernhard, Manoli, 1910, The Museum of Modern Art, New York, NY, USA. Design

Plakatstil in the 20th Century: Modern Poster Design from Germany

By the beginning of the 20th century, young designers had moved on from the intricate forms of Art Nouveau and Arts and Crafts. The first golden age...

Wen Gu 15 April 2024

Design

The Last Craftsman. Exploring Henry van de Velde and the Passage of Modernism

Until 1972, the Museen zu Berlin exhibited, among other things, a teapot and its accompanying set. From above, the teapot is around 22 centimetres...

Geoffrey Bunting 15 April 2024

WTF Art History

Five Translation Mistakes That Changed Art History

Why did Michelangelo portray Moses with horns? Why are there monkeys in Giulio Romano’s Chamber of Giants? And why does the Nativity scene...

Arianna Richetti 15 April 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: The Swing by Jean-Honoré Fragonard

Jean-Honoré Fragonard (1732–1806) was the most prolific French painter of the 18th century. He created over 550 paintings embodying the spirit of...

James W Singer 14 April 2024

Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Madame de Pompadour by François Boucher

François Boucher (1703–1770) was the most celebrated French painter of the 18th century. His painting Madame de Pompadour captures the beautiful...

James W Singer 14 April 2024

François Clouet (School), Portrait of Louise de Lorraine, ca. 1575, Museum of Fine Arts, Houston, TX, USA. Detail. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: Louise de Lorraine by François Clouet (School)

Portrait of Louise de Lorraine is a French Renaissance painting that exudes the artistic ideas of its time and captures the queen’s personal and...

James W Singer 14 April 2024

Arthur Hughes April Love, 1855-1856, Tate Britain, London, UK. Masterpiece Stories

Masterpiece Story: April Love by Arthur Hughes

Today’s Masterpiece Story is about April Love – Arthur Hughes’ most celebrated artwork that perfectly embodies the Pre-Raphaelite...

Arianna Richetti 14 April 2024

James Ensor, Masks Confronting Death, 1888, Museum of Modern Art, New York, United States of America Expressionism

James Ensor: What the Mask Hides

Do you know who James Ensor was? James Ensor (1860-1949) was a scandalous, rebellious, and revolutionary Belgian painter with a style that could be...

Andra Patricia Ritisan 11 April 2024

Bizarre

James Ensor’s Fighting Skeletons

Do you know the late Victorian and avant-garde painter James Ensor? Often likened to Edvard Munch is his ability to convey the miseries of human...

Sarah Mills 11 April 2024

James Ensor painting in his Ostend studio, 1933. Artist Stories

James Ensor in 10 Paintings

James Sidney Edouard, known as James Ensor, was a Belgian painter and printmaker best known for his colorful compositions, imbued with both...

Natalia Iacobelli 11 April 2024

Expressionism

Helios Gómez: Romani Revolutionary

Romani artist Helios Gómez produced some of the most striking Spanish avant-garde graphics in the first half of the 20th century. However, he also...

Candy Bedworth 8 April 2024

Women Artists

Małgorzata Mirga-Tas: Romani Artist Re-Enchanting the Venice Biennale

In an astonishing first for Roma and Traveller people, a Romani artist has represented a national pavilion at the Venice Biennale 2022. Małgorzata...

Candy Bedworth 8 April 2024