Flower Still Life, 1669 by Maria Oosterwijck.
Dutch Still Life painting has remained a popular genre since it reached it's zenith in the 17th century. The beautiful colors and arrangements continue to attract and amaze people with their realism.
Green Dress
Jeune fille en vert, 1930 by Tamara de Lempicka.
Lempicka has come to represent the Art Deco period in painting because of the fluid lines, rich colors, and sensuousness of her paintings. She was inspired by, and part of, the bohemian scene in Paris in the 1920's and the Hollywood scene in the late 1930's and 40's. She liked socializing and being a part of the most popular groups. She disliked the 1970's era, feeling it was inferior to the ones that preceded it, but ironically, in the 1970's her artwork was discovered once again, after a retrospective of her work was shown in Luxembourg and she has remained popular with collectors, since then.
Once Again
Thanksgiving, 1935 by Doris Lee, Art Institute of Chicago.
The hardest part is getting it all hot and on the table at the same time.
Looking forward to celebrating with family today.
Classic Beauty
Daybreak by Maxfield Parrish, 1922, Private Collection.
Parrish's father was an artist and he was encouraged by his family to pursue a career as an artist. He had a good deal of success as an artist, but also as illustrator who added life and color to many books. This is one of his most famous pieces and is still available as a print today.
Spots Before My Eyes
Kusama with Pumpkin by Yayoi Kusama, currently at David Zwirner Gallery NYC
I got to see the Kusama exhibition at the Cleveland Museum of Art in 2018 and I found it to be one of the most exciting and interactive exhibitions I had seen in a long time. Her work is so colorful and uplifting that is the perfect art for the social media age. Hi neighbors: The Phoenix Museum of Art has a Kusama Infinity Room too (see it when they re-open).
Bringing the Modern to Tradition
The Modern Song (Modan bushi) by K. Kotani, 1930.
Japanese Art Deco period. The work presented shows us a country working to combine tradition with the modern western world whose influence had been felt in Japan for a while, but whose culture was only then beginning to be adapted. This can be seen most prominently in the depiction of the Japanese version of the "Flapper," or modern early 20th century woman, who was up-ending society in the West.
Setting the Scene
Dancers in the Wings by Edgar Degas, 1876-78, Pastel
Degas is well known for his superior ability to draw and to fade into the background so that he could capture a scene without influencing what was happening.
Mad Architecture
The Old Pennsylvania Station, NYC, 1910-1963, McKim, Mead, and White Architects.
When the original Beaux-Arts station was torn down in 1963 there was such an uproar from the citizens of NYC that the New York City Landmarks Preservation Commission was established. The loss of historic architecture to make way for future projects is a double-edge sword, what went up in its place is Madison Square Garden. The destruction of this building was featured in an episode of the television series Mad Men.
Preferring Art to War
Court Ladies Preparing Newly Woven Silk Emperor Huizong, 11th cantury, The Museum of Fine Arts, Boston.
Emperor Huizong is the one of the most famous of the Song Dynasty emperors. He followed the Taoist religion and was known to be a fine artist, poet, and writer who surrounded himself with others who shared his interests. His interests in things artistic led to his downfall when his army, such as it was, was easily overtaken and he was replaced as emperor by the Jin forces.
Understanding Symbols
The Hunter (Catalan Landscape) by Joan Miro, 1923-24, MoMA, NYC.
Miro began his work as a painter doing portraits but soon found the work of artists like Picasso and the Surrealists with whom he socialized in Paris, to influence him to try other directions in his paintings. The Spanish Civil War drew his work into a political realm as his countrymen suffered at home. His career lasted well into the later part of the twentieth century, in fact a large tapestry he did for the World Trade Center was one of the most valuable pieces of art work that was destroyed on September 11, 2001.
Figure 6 by Joan Miro, 1974, The World Trade Center (destroyed 9/11/01).
Out of the Background
Salisbury Cathedral from the Bishop's Grounds, ca. 1825 by John Constable, The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This one is a favorite of mine by Constable because the cathedral is so clear and detailed.
Blessed
Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows, 1831 by John Constable, Tate Britain.
This version of the cathedral is the most "romantic" with the horse and cart in the foreground and the rainbow in the background, which was apparently a later addition to the work.
Glass Jewels
Stained Glass Panel in Frank Lloyd Wright’s Style at Arizona Biltmore, Phoenix.
Frank Lloyd Wright always liked to create an entire environment in his buildings and homes. He designed furniture, rugs, light fixtures, stained glass, pottery, fabrics - whatever a home would need. His student Albert McArthur, who collaborated with Wright on the design, included a glass panel typical of his teacher's style that now serves as a beautiful focal point at the entrance.
Breaking Ground by Making Art
Gateway, Tangier by Henry Ossawa Tanner, c. 1912, The St. Louis Art Museum.
Tanner studied art at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts, which was highly unusual for an African American at this time. He was also lucky enough to study under Thomas Eakins, who revolutionized the way that art was taught and influenced many. Robert Henri, founder of the Ashcan School, was also a student at the same time. Tanner felt the burden of post-slavery racism (his mother was a slave who had escaped through the Underground Railroad, even in the north, and decided to strike-out for France, where he spent most of his life. He continued his studies at The Louvre where the great French masters, such as Gustave Courbet, influenced his work further.
Bringing Real Scenes to Life Through Art
Jesus Loves Me by Varnette Honeywood, 1983
A good friend first introduced me to the art of Varnette Honeywood about the time this work was made. I have always been fond of the way Honeywood combined, colors and shapes to perfectly capture her scenes. Sadly, she passed away in 2010.
Pink Flamingos
Flamingoes by Sydney Long, c. 1905-06, The National Gallery of Australia
Long's work was often controversial because of the subject matter he chose to portray in his languid art nouveau style. He was fond of nudes and tranquil scenes. He often chose flamingos as a subject matter and this is perhaps his most stylistic version of the subject matter, where colors and curves become the focus rather than a realistic portrayal. After 1918 he concentrated on print making translating many of his most popular paintings into prints.
Found and Flowing
Between Heaven and Earth by El Anatsui, 2006. The Metropolitan Museum of Art
From Ghana, artist El Anatsui uses found object to create beautiful works of art that drape and hang within the spaces in which they are shown. He also uses more traditional mediums like wood, clay and paint, but you can find bottle caps, metal cans, aluminum wrapping, etc.
Paper Landscape
Gas Giant by Jacob Hashimoto at MOCA, Los Angeles
Jacob Hashimoto creates large installation pieces made up of many small parts that are constructed, quite often by utilizing kite making techniques. You can see in the photo the individual pieces, some in boxes, some circles that look like small kites.
Video:
http://www.nytimes.com/video/arts/design/100000002782070/gas-giant-by-jacob-hashimoto.html
Flying Fish
Peacock tiles by William De Morgan and Co., c. 1888-97, The Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge, UK.
William De Morgan was closely associated with William Morris the British Arts and Crafts movement, like Morris, De Morgan believed that looking to the skilled crafts of the past would greater enrich the lives of the people of Victorian Britain, as the hand-made work was both fulfilling and beautiful. His work was influenced by the ornate and colorful ceramics of the Middle East.
Influence from Afar
Chinese Wallpaper design, 18th century, Victoria and Albert Museum, London.
Chinese produced wallpapers that were made for export, primarily to Europe in the 18th century as part of the movement known as Chinoiserie, in which Chinese porcelains, and in this case wallpaper, were collected and displayed. They were beautiful objects in themselves, but also prized because they were expensive and difficult to obtain.