Category Archives: Painting

August 08

James Tissot – Visual Notes of a Victorian Dandy

posted by

On the 8th of August 1902, French Victorian portrait painter, engraver, and enameler, James Tissot, died in Buillon Abbey, near Besançon, France. “After receiving a religious education, Tissot went to Paris at age 19 to study art. In 1859 he exhibited at the Salon. Turning from his rather anguished early works to modern genre paintings […]

»»
August 04

Hedda Sterne: Against the Abstract Expressionist Tide

posted by

On the 4th of August 1910, Romanian-Jewish artist Hedda Sterne was born as Hedwig Lindenberg in Bucharest. Sterne is remembered as the only woman present in the Life magazine “Irascibles” photograph taken by Nina Leen in New York on the 24th of November 1950. The article in which the picture appeared documented the Abstract Expressionists’ […]

»»
August 02

Thomas Gainsborough’s ‘Showbox’ Paintings

posted by

On the 2nd of August 1788, English painter Thomas Gainsborough died in London at the age of 61. One of the most unusual artworks created by the artist, now on display at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, is his experimental showbox with his back-lit landscapes painted in oils on glass, which allowed them to be […]

»»
July 25

Thomas Eakins: Photography and Science

posted by

On the 25th of July 1844, American realist painter, photographer, sculptor, and fine arts educator Thomas Eakins was born in Philadelphia, U.S. Sometimes called America’s greatest painter, Eakins conducted many scientific investigations in anatomy, mathematics, perspective, and photography, which were vital to his art. He used photography as both a science and an art. In […]

»»
July 24

The Forgotten Abstractions of Ana-Eva Bergman

posted by

On the 24th of July 1987, Norwegian painter Ana-Eva Bergman, wife of Tachiste abstract artist Hans Hartung, died in Grasse, on the French Riviera. Whilst Bergman’s talent was recognized during her lifetime, she held a marginal position in the European avant-garde during her life. Anna-Eva Bergman had a turbulent and difficult childhood. Shortly after she […]

»»
July 14

Gustav Klimt’s Secessionist ‘Medicine’

posted by

On the 14th of July 1862, Symbolist painter Gustav Klimt was born in Baumgarten, the Austrian Empire. In 1894, Klimt and his partner, Franz Matsch were commissioned by the Austrian Ministry of Culture and Education to create three paintings for the University of Vienna. The canvases were to be installed on the ceiling of the […]

»»
July 11

Nash and the Neo-Romantic Landscapel

posted by

On the 11th of May 1889, English surreal war artist Paul Nash was born in London. Malcolm Yorke identified him as part of a group of nine British artists who worked in what he defined as a ‘neo-romantic’ vein. The Neo-Romantic landscape was a reaction to naturalism, and stressed external observation, by focusing on feeling and […]

»»
June 28

The Wings of Rubens’ Virgin as Woman of the Apocalypse

posted by

On the 28th of June 1577, Flemish Baroque painter Peter Paul Rubens was born in Siegen, Westphalia (now Germany). The Getty Museum in Los Angeles holds one his more unusual works, an oil sketch entitled Blessed Virgin Mary as Woman of the Apocalypse (ca. 1623-24, Oil on panel, 25 x 19 3/8 in). The piece is […]

»»
June 23

Mark Gertler: Figurative Painting and ‘Women in Love’

posted by

On the 23rd of June 1939, British figurative painter Mark Gertler gassed himself in his London studio. His suicide ended the period of the artist’s prolonged depression caused by growing financial difficulties, unfavourable reviews after the exhibition at the Lefevre Gallery, and the recent break up with his wife. He had also never fully recovered […]

»»
June 19

Jerome Myers: Painter of the Underdog

posted by

On the 19th of June 1940, American painter Jerome Myers died in New York. “For more than 50 years Myers, small of stature and bearing a striking resemblance to Paderewski, was a familiar sight on the streets of New York, which he made his special painting province.” His obituary in The Art Digest, read that, “The […]

»»