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Reading in Western Art
Reading as been depicted in Western Art as early as the Ancient Greeks. Both men and women of the aristocracy read. In medieval times, the literacy rate decreased. Now, only monks and nuns had the ability to read. Since they produced most of the arts, medieval times showed for the most part religious folks reading the Bible. In Renaissance paintings, the Virgin Mary appeared often reading. During the baroque period, women reading letters became quite the popular subject matter. They were perceived as being gossipy bunch. They also read novels. Once we got to the impressionism period, there came a...
Mothers in Art: Mother’s Day Art Blog
Today, I decided to rant about mother’s in art. One of the earliest depictions of a mother features Nefertiti with her princesses on her lap. Showing a mother with her baby became the standard way of depicting a mother. The Greeks had some variances here and there. They even showed mothers nursing in statues. There is even a vase that shows potty training. During the middle ages, the Virgin Mary became the most common mother that appeared in art. She was supposed to be a role model for all Christian women. Ironically, Queens and rich women couldn’t raise their kids....
Evolution of Gustav Klimt Art
Klimt started by painting in the Academic style. In the painting of Greece and Egypt, we see his fascination with the color gold. The colors gold and lapis lazuli blue became more prominent during his art deco phase. He experimented a bit with impressionism. All his landscape paintings are impressionist styles. He made a romantic painting about love. He also did an expressionist artwork featuring Schubert Playing the piano. All his brushstrokes become rather painterly. He eventually restricts the female body to just hands and face. This is well noticed in his Adele painting. He combines impressionism and his love...
Music in Art History
Today, I wanted to show you some paintings about music. Folks have been painting musicians since the time of the pyramids. This tradition continued with the Greeks. The Greeks had more than one God of music. Apollo had his harp. Pan his flute. In medieval times, the violin and the lute came into the scene. Most of the music scenes depicted angels playing instruments. Then again, medieval art was usually made by monks. The piano was a later development during the Renaissance period. However, the lute continued to be the most popular instrument depicted in art. In Spain, the Guitar...
30 Beach Paintings for Spring Break
Spring Break is just around the corner. So, I decided to do an art blog about paintings that take place in the beach. I chose 1 by various artists. Beach scenes tended to be pretty rare in the old days. Most of the time beach scenes featured Venus being born or a historical event that took place near the beach. With the rise of leisure, folks fooling about the beach became more common. Thanks to Shakespeare’s The Tempest, melancholic women by the beach became more common. Once we make it to modern times, maidens by the beach start cheering up....