Aurora is a 1621 mythological fresco painting by Italian Baroque artist Guercino. Aurora Analysis: Guercino, also known as Giovanni Francesco Barbieri, painted Aurora on the ceiling of the Villa Aurora, a historical building in Rione Ludovisi in Rome, Italy. It was painted in 1621 for art connoisseur Cardinal Ludovico Ludovisi, nephew of Pope Pope Gregory …
Retrato de Nina (or Nina’s portrait in English) is a 1640 portrait of an unknown girl by Spanish court painter Diego Velazquez (1599-1660). In this likely unfinished painting, he combines a realistic likeness with an acute ability to bring out the quiet intelligence of the girl. Analysis of Retrato de Nina Retrato de niña or …
Infanta Margareta Teresa in a White and Silver Dress is a portrait by Spanish Baroque artist Diego Velazquez. This painting is in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna, Austria. Analysis of Infanta Margareta Teresa in a White and Silver Dress This Royal portrait is one of five Diego Velazquez royal commissions that depict Margaret Theresa of …
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Portrait of Lord John and Lord Bernard Stuart is a 1638 double-portrait painting by Flemish Baroque artist Anthony van Dyck. Analysis of Portrait of Lord John and Lord Bernard Stuart Just as the background and architectural features are non-descript and plain here, the costumes of the two young sons of the Duke of Lennox are …
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This is Anthony van Dyck’s 1623 portrait of one of Genoa’s most prestigious aristocratic families, The Lomellini Family, painted during Anthony van Dyck’s sojourn there during the 1620s. Depicted are the Doge’s wife, two young children, and his two grown sons. The Doge (governor of the city) does not appear because his political position forbade …
Portrait of Elena Cattaneo is a 1623 oil on canvas portrait painting by Flemish Baroque artist Anthony van Dyck. Van Dyck (1599-1641) was a Flemish Baroque artist who was to achieve renown as a portraitist. He was, as a young man, described by the famous Peter-Paul Rubens as ‘the best of my pupils’. In this …
This 1633 portrait by Spanish court painter Diego Velazquez is of Prince Baltasar Carlos (1629-1646) who was the son of King Phillip IV of Spain and his first wife, Isabel de Bourbon. Portrait of Prince Baltasar Carlos in Silver Analysis Prince Baltasar Carlos is about three years old in this painting He would live to …
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In Landscape with Apollo Guarding the Herds of Admetus and Mercury stealing them of 1645, French Baroque painter Claude Lorrain depicts the Greek god Apollo in his guise as the god of music and herds being deceived by Mercury the messenger of the gods in his own guise as the god of thieves and trickery. …
Seaport at Sunset is a 1639 oil on canvas seascape painting by French Baroque painter Claude Lorrain. Seaport at Sunset Analysis The picture depicts a busy seaport in a city at sunset. While daylight is ending, the activity at the seaport shows no sight of ending. We can see fishermen rowing out to sea and …
Ice pleasure on the Scheldt in Antwerp from 1622 is clearly not one of Sebastiaen Vrancx’s famous battle canvasses, but it does contain some of the same compositional traits. Sebastiaen Vrancx is best known for having been one of – if not the first of the Dutch painters to depict battle scenes. As a young …
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Portrait of Rachel de Ruvigny, Countess of Southampton is a 1640 painting by Flemish portrait painter Anthony Van Dyck. It is in the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne where it has been since being purchased by the gallery in 1922. Analysis of the Portrait of Rachel de Ruvigny, Countess of Southampton This is a …
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During his career, Caravaggio quickly made a name for himself, receiving high-profile commissions both religious and secular one of which is The Tooth Puller. His unique style combined unidealized human figures and innovative use of highly contrasted light and dark spaces, known as tenebrism. These elements are both present in 1608’s The Tooth Puller – …
The Rokeby Venus, also known as The Toilet of Venus is an oil painting by Baroque Spanish artist Diego Velazquez. Rokeby Venus Analysis It is a very rare example of a Spanish painting from the 17th century that features a nude woman – in this case, Venus, in her toilette laying down with Cupid, the …
At the height of his fame in 1788, English painter Sir Joshua Reynolds produced Master Hare, a portrait of Francis George Hare, the adopted son of Reynold’s aunt Anna Maria Lady Jones. Master Hare was purchased by famous art collector Baron Alphonse de Rothschild in 1872 and he left it to the Louvre in Paris …
Jacopo Amiconi’s 1752 painting depicts Carlo Broschi Farinelli, the most famous castrato singer at the time, along with his network of important Italian ex-patriot friends, including other famous painters and poets. This event took place in Madrid, where the four would live and work for a time. The center of the painting is Jacopo Farinelli …
