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A Glorious Day

The Poles surrender the Moscow Kremlin to Prince Pozharsky in 1612 by the Russian painter Ernst-Johann Nicholas Ernestovich Lissner (1874-1941). The destructions give evidence about the heavy fighting as well as the numerous Polish soldiers now leaving Russia defeated.

Social realist art and workers' rights - Noel Counihan

When my parents moved into a care-home earlier this year, they asked me to: take the art work from their walls, take the music and books from their bookshelves and sell everything else. I recognised all their paintings and drawings, except for their beloved Noel Coun­ih­ans.Noel Counihan (1913–86) was born in this city, Melbourne. Show More Summary

Famous Paintings: Nighthawks

Nighthawks, one of Edward Hopper's most famous paintings, has become one of the most recognized images in 20th century American art. But first some history about Edward Hopper (1882-1967) himself. Brought up in a town on the Hudson River, Hopper attended the New York Institute of Art and Design Edward Hopper. Show More Summary

An Animated Parable of Painting

What really matters in an art education? Do we teach every child to paint or sculpt? Do we school them in names and dates and places? Or do we somehow teach them the elusive and dangerous “truth” of what art is or should be? Jean-Francois...Show More Summary

Investments in art and culture

Carla Passino wrote in Country Life (13th March 2013) about the Knight Frank’s Luxury Investment Index. Her conclusion is that passion-driven investments have significantly out-performed more traditional assets such as the FTSE 100 or the property market. Show More Summary

Bunch of Beautiful Nudes

Pharaoh's Daughter by the English painter Frederick Goodall (1822-1904).

When Modernism First Moved

Modernism first moved on May 29, 1913. That’s century-old hyperbole, of course, but if any date achieves day of infamy status for modern art in the 20 th century, it’s the day that Russian composer Igor Stravinsky teamed up with Russian...Show More Summary

Dana International - best Eurovision performance ever!

The Eurovision Song Contest has been broadcast every year since it started in 1956 and is one of the longest-running television programmes in the world. Up to 600 million people across the globe watch each year, including my family. Congratulations to Denmark for their great success this week. Show More Summary

Cheesy Middle Ages

The Hostage by the English painter Edmund Blair-Leighton (1853-1922). Blair-Leighton was famous for these cheesy scenes, still popular today.

Napoleon, Nelson, Menzies ...and Newcastle, Australia

Leonard Joel Auctioneers in Melbourne provided this historical evidence, based on Royal Marines Historical Society records (see reference). The auction is on 19th May 2013.Charles A.F.N. Menzies (1783-1866) was born in Perthshire in Scotland, the son of an army captain. Show More Summary

Should Museums Stop Teaching?

When the Tate Britain recently revealed the latest rehanging of their astounding collection of British art, many long unseen works found a new place in the galleries, but one long-standing feature was not to be found—explanatory wall text. Show More Summary

Nude Drawing

Life drawing sessions haven’t changed in centuries. There are good sketches of them by many of the great artists. But in particular there is a wonderful painting in the Louvre by an eighteenth-century painter that will bring it all back … Continue reading ?

Gustave Eiffel's Paris synagogue

Synagogue Tournelles is a Jewish house of worship built in the heart of Paris’ important Marais district (in the 4th arrond­ise­ment). main synagogue entrance in Rue de Tournelles architect: Marcellin Emmanuel Var­collier In 1872 the building was designed to seat 1400 people, with the men on the ground floor and two higher storeys for women. Show More Summary

Why Cartoonists Make the Best Case for Gun Control

The gun debate in America may have “jumped the shark” with yesterday’s Mother’s Day Parade shooting in New Orleans that left 19 wounded, including two children. When something as universally accepted as the idea of motherhood becomes...Show More Summary

Husband hunting in British India

My favourite area of history for reading and writing has always been social hist­ory, regarding marriage, child rearing, dom­es­tic architecture, education, men’s and women’s careers, collecting in the arts, entertainment and transport. Show More Summary

Samson and Delilah

Samson and Delilah by the Dutch painter Adriaen van der Werff (1669-1722).

A Severe Walk

Mary Stewart on the way to her execution by the British military painter Laslett John Pott (1837-1898). Pott shows a queen calmly facing death.

Can There Be Such a Thing as Punk Couture?

With all apologies to Neil Young, this is the story of Johnny Rotten, or at least the story of his clothes. PUNK: Chaos to Couture, which opens today at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and runs through August 14, argues that Punk rock and its accompanying look didn’t fade away, but rather lingers on in our culture in an important way. Show More Summary

20 Cezanne Paintings

With one of the most renowned Cezanne paintings, The Large Bathers, on loan to the Museum of Fine Arts in Boston, I was curious which were considered to be his most famous paintings. Born in 1839, Paul Cezanne was one of the most significant pioneers of Modernism. Show More Summary

Caravaggio Paintings: St. Francis of Assisi in Ecstasy

The fame of Caravaggio paintings is particularly astonishing given the brevity of his life, a mere 38 years (1571-1610). Equally awe-inspiring are the accomplishments of this pioneer of Baroque paintings: Caravaggio revolutionized contemporary...Show More Summary

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