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February 2011 Volume: 5 No: 5
GREAT PAINTERS
The stor of pai nti ng ges as far back
as 20,000 years ago, to a time when
Man had not yet learned to write. He
looked around the world, and tried to
reproduce what he saw in drawings.
Man was just a caveman i n those days,
and the history of art began in caves.
Art has progressed through the
ages. It has organized i tsel f i nto dif
ferent styles i n terms of form, as wel l
as content. Many pai nters bel ong to
certai n movements, gi vi ng different
treatment to space, perspective, l ight
and col our. Hi story tel l s us of many
great geni uses who l ed such mov
ments, and revol uti oni sed the world
of art. A few exampl es are Edgar De
gas, Vincent Van Gogh, and Pablo Pi
casso who created hi story by i nitiat
ing great movements l i ke I mpres
si oni sm, Expressi oni sm and Cubi sm.
Thi s issue of Manorama Tel l Me Why
presents to you some of these great
pai nters whose works have stood the
test of time. I nevitably, we had to
make many reluctant omi ssions, and
many names had to be left outfor l ack
of

pace. we h
2
1

vinQ
pai nters elt

FROM THE HOUSE OF MAGIC POT, MANORAMA yr.: iOOK, VANITHA, THI Wi,!
AND THE MALAYA LA MANORAMA DAILY
Why is it said that
the history of painting
began with cave paintings?
We know that earl y Man l ived i n caves.
He l ived mai nl y by hunti ng, and gradual ly, he
began to decorate the rock faces i n the recesses of
caves. Earl y Man created i mages of the bi son and
rei ndeer whi ch he hunted, and these were the very first
pai nti ngs ever created.
Prehi storic cave pai nti ngs have been di scovered in many
parts of the worl d, from Euroe and Africa, to Austral i a. Africa
has some of the earl i est pai nti ngs and rock engravi ngs to have
been dated. Nearl y 30,000 years ol d, they were di scovered i n
1 969 on the rock face i n a cave i n Nami bi a. But the most numer-
ous, and the most sophi sticated of prehi storic pai nti ngs are on
the wal l s of caves i n Southwest France and Northern Spai n.
4
Tel l Me Why
Why are the pai ntings at the
Grotte Chauvet special?
Grotte Chauvet i s a beautiful
pai nted cave in France. I t has sev
eral very l arge gal l eri es with more
than 300 pai nti ngs and engravi ngs
that were probabl y done 32,000 to
30,000 years ago. The pai nti ngs
show rhi noceroses, fel i nes, bears,
owl s and mammoths, as well as
ani mal s such as owls, hyenas and
panthers whi ch have never - or very
rarely - been found in previ ous
pai nti ngs of thi s peri od. I n fact,
some archaeol ogi sts bel i eve that
these may be the ol dest known
pai nti ngs i n the worl d, and there
fore, they are very speci al .
Why is Cimabue ofen regarded
as the 'first modern pai nter/?
Ci mabue was a major artist work
i ng in Fl orence at the end of the
1 3th century. He was born i n Fl or
ence in 1 240 AD. When Ci mabue
was l earni ng to pai nt i n the 1 260's,
Ital i an pai nters were sti l l copyi ng
the style of Byzanti ne art whi ch al
ways had gol d backgrounds. I t
general ly showed sai nts and an
gel s, as wel l as Jesus and Mary i n
very formal , stiff posi ti ons, to show
how i mporant these figures were,
and that they were not l i ke real
peopl e. The figures were flat, and
very l ittl e effort was made to show
1 00 Great Painters
thei r muscl es, or the
sh
a
dows that woul d
make them l ook real .
Ci mabue was associ
ated wi th a styl e of
pai nti ng known as
gothi c art, and he was
al so an i mportant fore
runner of the later i nter
national gothic style.
He i ntroduced a l ifel i ke
treatmentoftradi ti onal
rel i gi ous subjects, and
was al so famous for hi s
wal l pai nti ngs. Hi s most
famouswork,'Madonna
Enthroned', stood three
and half metres hi gh!
He i s consi dered by
some experts to be the
fi rst 'modern pai nter'.
5
Why did Gioto di 80r
done change the history
of painting?
Gi otto was an I tal
i an pai nter, who was
a student and con
temporary of
Ci mabue. It is sai d
that Gi otto was a shep
)
m!m
..
boy scratchi ng pi ctures of
sheep on rocks when
Ci mabue di scovered hi m. Gi
otto first worked on mosai cs
before his interests spread to
pai nti ng, scul pture, and ar
chi tecture.
Gi otto worked mai nly i n
wal l or fresco pai nti ng. He i s
known for begi nni ng to put i n
natural l andscape back
grounds to hi s pai nti ng, as
opposed to the pl ai n gol d
backgrounds favoured by the
ol der Ci mabue. Hi s figures
were l ifel i ke, and he pai nted
the outdoors with gl ori ous re
al i sm and col ours. He changed
the history of pai nti ng by tak
ing the portrayal of peopl e and
pl aces to new levels. His art
shi nes with truth and humanity,
and his figures are fl esh-and
bl ood i ndivi dual s who convinc
i ngl y express joy, anger, fear,
horror, and gri ef.
6
Why was Si mone Mari ni
famous i n Europe?
Si mone Marti ni was an Ital
i an pai nter, who was one of
the most ori gi nal and i nfl uen
ti al arti sts of the Si enese
school . Si mone was born i n
Si ena, a city i n West Central
Italy, and apprenticed i n the
workshop of Si enese master
Duccio di Buoni nsegna,
where he developed his
style and reputation early.
Si mone created his own
versions of many of Duccio's
greatest works. But, in do
i ng so, he appl ied his own
sense of decorative charm
to traditi onal subjects, and
soon became known for
hi s uni que combi nation of
ol der Byzanti ne and
French Gothic styles.
Si mone became most
famous i n Siena with the
fresco of the Maesta in
Tel l Me Why
the Pal azo Pubbl i co.
Over the succeedi ng
years, hi s career grew
rapi dly. Many of Si
mone's i mportant
works show his devel
opi ng sense of l and
scape and real i sm.
Si mone was a mas
ter i n depi cti ng fi gures
and portraits. He pai d
parti cul ar attenti on to
faci al features that
gave hi s subjects
compl ex characters
and emotions. Fi g
ures were al ways fi n
i shed wi th scrupu
l ous attention to de
tai l , and his work is
admi red to thi s day
both for its spi ritual
ity and its real i sm.
1 00 Great Painters
Why was Fra Angelico called
by this name?
Fra Angel ico was a Domi nican
monk and famous Ital i an pai nter of
the early Renaissance Fl orentine
School . Though his name was Fra
Gi ovanni da Fiesole, he. earned his
ni ckname through his unusual l y pi
ous nature. He was cal led Angel ico
whi ch is Ital i an for 'angel ic', because
the pai nti ngs he di d were of cal m,
rel i gi ous subjects, and because of
hi s extraordi nary personal piety.
One of Fra Angel ico's most exten
sive projects was the decoration of
the Domi ni can Monastery of San
Marco i n Fl orence between 1 435 and
1 445. Hi s ski l l i n creati ng monumen
tal fi gures representi ng motion and
suggesti ng deep space, mark hi m as
one of the foremost pai nters of the
Renaissance. He earned fame for his
technical ski l l, and he never retouched
or altered any of his pai nti ngs, for he
bel i eved that to do so woul d be goi ng
agai nst the wi l l of God.
Deposition o/Christ -
A Famous Painting by Fra Angelica
What were the
contributions of Jan
Van Eyck?
Jan Van Eyck was
the greatest artist of
the early Netherl ands
school . He hel d many
hi gh positions duri ng
hi s career, i ncl udi ng
that of a cour pai nter
and di pl omat. Hi s
specialty was oi l
pai nti ng, and he used
the medi um so ski l -
J
an Van Eyck's altarpiece in
St. Bavon Cathedral, Ghent
ful l y that he was abl e to capture even
the smal l est detai l . He had a remark
abl e memory, and it i s sai d that hi s
eye acted both l i ke a telescope, and a
mi croscope! His pai nti ngs combi ne
fantasy with real ity, and he bel i eved
that people, nature, and dai l y l ife are
fasci nati ng subjects that can be cap
tured i n a spi ri tual manner. He was
cal led 'a pri nce of pai nters', by an
other pai nter of that period, and was
truly one of the pi oneers of Fl emish
real i sm.
Who were the greatest
pai nters of the Renaissance?
ranged in unnatural, geometric
groups, and backgrounds are
nothing more than washes of The term 'Renaissance' refers
to the revival of art and l itera
ture under the i nfl uence of
cl assical model s in the 1 4th_ 1 6th
centuries. It was trul y the gol den
age of pai nti ng.
I n worksfromtheMi ddl eAges,
saintsand Bi bl i cal fi gures are ar-
8
. gol d. The Renaissance pai nters
depicted the human figure as
real i stical l y as possi ble, ofen
with backgrounds of the natural
worl d. Careful use of l i ght and
shadow made fi gures appear
ful l and real . Renaissance pai nt-
Tel l Me Why
ers not onl y portrayed objects
with more real i sm, they often
fi l l ed thei r canvases wi th more
objects, al l careful l y and accu
rately depicted.
The Renai ssance period has
produced some of the most fa
mous artists in the hi story of
manki nd. They i ncl ude Brunel
l eschi , Giotto, Donatello, Botti
cel l i, Masaccio, Andrea Man
tegna, Pi ero del l a Francesca,
Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael ,
Mi chel angel o and Titi an, al ong
with a host of other artists and
i ntel l ectual s.
Why is Pabl o Uccello con
sidered one of the founders
of the Renaissance?
Pablo Uccel l o was an Ital i an
pai nter who wanted to present
objects i n three di mensional
forms in order to create a feel
i ng of depth i n hi s pai nti ngs. I t
i s sai d that he woul d stay up al l
1 00 Great Painters
ni ght, trying to determi ne the
exact vani shi ng poi nt of an ob
ject! He loved usi ng the forms
and movement of humans and
ani mal s i n hi s pai nti ngs. I n fact,
Pabl o Uccel l o's pai nti ngs are
very famous for thei r tangl es of
horses, ri ders, l ances and pen
nants, hel mets and bits of l and
scape.
Uccel l o's greatest pai nti ngs
Battle of San Romano
were three panel s titled 'The Bat
tle of San Romano', ' Ni ght Hunt',
and 'The Deluge'. Other pai nt
i ngs are 'portraits of Si r John
Hawkins', 'Giotto', ' Brunel l eschi',
'Donatello', and 'St. George and
the Dragon'. Uccel l o's pai nti ngs
resembl e l ife, and confuse us
i nto mi staki ng i l l usi ons for real
ity. Hi s use of bri l l i ant col ours
and the fantastic efects l eft a
l asti ng i mpact on hi s viewers,
and he was consi dered one of
thefounders ofthe Renai ssance
movement i n pai nti ng.
9
Why was Rogier Van Der
Weyden influential in France,
Germany, and
'
Spai n?
The begi nni ng of the
_
century saw the emergence of
a tal ented generati on of pai nt
ers i n the Netherl ands. With
thei r excepti onal eye for detai l,
A Famous Altarpiece by Weyden
they were an i nnovative ktCC
i n Western pai nti ng. These art
i sts went down i n hi story as the
Fl emi sh pai nters.
Rogi er Van Der Weyden was a
Fl emi sh pai nter who became
famous for the detai l ed real ism
that characterizes hi s works. He
settled i n Brussels, and soon he.
was appoi nted as the city pai nt-
1 0
er, whi ch l ed to numerous pub
l i c and private commissions.
Rogi er operated a l arge work
shop with many assistants, i n
cl udi ng hi s son Pi eter, who
succeeded hi m as city pai nter
in Brussels. His pai nti ngs were
dramati c and emoti onal , and
he was ofen referred to as the
'master of passion'.
Rogi er's i nfl uence was strong
and widespread. I n hi s own
l ifeti me, hi s pai nti ngs were sent
al l over Europe. Rogi er's por
traits, usual l y serene and ari sto
cratic, were al so much i mitated,
i nfl uenci ng Dutch, Spani sh and
German art.
Why i s it said that Tomasso
Masaccio stared the Ital i an
Renaissance?
Tomasso Masaccio was a re
nowned pai nter of frescoes
duri ng the Ital i an Renaissance.
'Masaccio' meani ng 'sl oppy'
I'll not eat
a thing until I finish
this!
Tel l Me Why
Madonna and Child with Saint Anne -
A Famous Work by Masaccio
was a nickname given to hi m, because
his dedication to his pai nti ng was so
great that he gave l ittl e attention to
hi s personal hygi ene!
Masaccio is noted for hi s advanced
use of perspective in order to create
more real istic figures. He al so moved
away from the Gothi c styl e of the ti me
to a more natural istic styl e. His great
est works were hi s frescoes done for
the Brancacci Chapel in Fl orence. Ma
saccio was a major i nfl uence on the
l ater Ital ian Renaissance pai nters, pri
mari l y Mi chel angel o.
Masaccio managed to pai nt a few
pictures of such enormous i mpact as
to affect not onl y the whol e future
course of Fl orenti ne pai nti ng, but al so
that of European fi ne art pai nti ng. As a
result, he is considered as one of the
foundi ng fathers of Renaissance a rt.
1 00 Great Painters
Andrea Mantegna
An Italian painter
and engraver, And
rea Mantegna paint
ed heroic figures, of
ten using a dramatic
perspective1hat
gives the viewer the
ill usion of looking up
from below. The ef
fect is somewhat the
same as looking up
from ground level at
statues mounted on
a pedestal - and this
is what made his
work so diferent.
A series of nine
paintings, titled 'Tri
umph of Caesar',
that Mantegna start
ed in 1 486 shows his
interest i n imperial
Rome. I n one famous
work, called the
'Camera degli Sposi'
or the 'Wedding
Chamber', he paint
ed the wal ls and ceil
ing of a small interior
room, transforming
it into an open-air
pavilion. Rooms cre
ating this sort of illu
sion became very
popular in the
1 600's.
1 1
Why is Botticelli's
painting 'Birth of Ve
nus' so special?
Born i n 1 445, Sandro
Botti cel l i was an i mpor
tant pai nter duri ng the
,
I tal i an Renaissance. He is
known for the dreamy
l ook of the people, gods,
goddess, and angel s i n
hi s pai nti ngs. The way he
pai nted faces was so
speci al . Each face was
different, but ful l of l ife
Chapel For An Artist
Andrea Mantegna died in Mantua
in 1 506, and received the special
honour of having a funeral chapel in
the church of Santa Andrea (pictured
here) dedicated to him. This famous
church also safeguards golden ves
sels said to hold Earth soaked by the
blood of Christ.
and beautiful in its own way.
Botticel l i pai nted many rel i gi ous
and mythol ogi cal scenes. One of his
most famous pai nti ngs is the ' Bi rth of
Venus'. This shows the Goddess Venus
emergi ng from a seashel l , and the
pai nti ng is remarkabl e i n that the
wei ght of the body is di stri buted un
equal l y so that the figure forms one
conti nuous curve. I t remai ns, to thi s
day, one of the greatest masterpi eces
of al l ti me.
Why was it said that Hieronymus
Bosch knew psychology?
Hieronymus Bosch was a pai nter
from the Netherl ands who l ived dur
i ng the 1 5th and 1 6th centuries. Many
of hi s works depict si n and human
moral fai l i ngs. Bosch who used i mages
of demons, half-human ani mals, and
machi nes to evoke fear and confusion
to portray the evi l of Man, produced
some of the most i nventive fantasy
pai nti ngs that have ever existed.
Tel l Me
Why is the Mona
sa unique?
greatest artists and
thi nkers of al l ti me.
I n addi ti on to hi s
pai nti ngs, da Vi nci
was an accom
plished scul ptor, ar
chitect, mUSICIan,
engi neer, and
'
sci
entist.
The Mona Lisa is
the most famous
pai nti ng i n the his
tory of art. Leonardo
da Vinci is the crea
tor of this master
piece. It is said that
when he was 1 4, Le
onardo had pai nted
Mona Lisa
The pai nti ng
the picture of a dragon that
l ooked so real that it actual l y
scared hi s father! Leonardo da
Vi nci is consi dered one of the
Bosch has been cal led 'the
master of the monstrous, the
di scoverer of the unconsci ous',
for his pai nti ngs show a keen
i n
si ght i nto human psychol ogy.
He depi cts l ife as a conti nuous
struggl e between Man and hi s
i nner nature, and uses fami l i ar
p
roverbs to comment on the
shows a beautiful
woman seated on an arm
chai r on a bal cony. Behi nd
her, a l andscape can be seen.
Leonardo has seated her so
that the figure seems al most
al ive. Her smi l e i s mysteri ous,
and nothi ng i n the pai nti ng
appears fixed. Al l the shapes
seem to sway and flow gentl y
i nto one another, and the fig
ure and landscape are per
fectly harmonized. Experts
bel i eve Leonardo pai nted the
Mona Lisa i n Ital y over a l ong
period begi nni ng about 1 505.
human condi ti on. He was a su
perb craftsman too, and used to
work di rectly on the canvas
with no under pai nti ng. At the
ti me of hi s death, Bosch was i n
ternati onal l y cel ebrated as an
eccentric pai nter of rel i gi ous
vi si ons, who dealt i n parti cul ar
with the torments of hel l .
The Lst Supper
Why is the painting 'The
l ai d out in such a way that it
Last Supper' remarkable? l ooks l i ke Jesus and his
The Last Supper is a mural apostles were sitti ng at the
by Leonardo da Vinci that end of the di ni ng hal l . The
was pai nted on a wal l of the di sci pl es are al l reacti ng i n
di ni ng hal l i n the Convent horror to the thought that
of Santa Maria del l e Grazie someone at that tabl e
i n Mi l an, I taly. The i dea was woul d betray their master.
that the monks woul d be The pai nti ng is remarkable,
able to focus on the last because the disciples are al l
meal of Jesus whi l e they porraying very human,
were eati ng. The mural i s easily identifi abl e emotions.
huge, and covers an enti re You can see that every si n-
wal l . In fact, it is the l argest gl e el ement of the pai nti ng
picture that Leonardo ever di rects one's attention
pai nted. The pai nti ng is strai ght to the mi dpoi nt of
-
the composition
ato
whi ch
Sfumato is a painting tech
nique in which there are no harsh
outlines present. Figures blend
into one another through minis
cule brushstrokes, which make for
a rather hazy, yet more realistic, de
piction of light and colour. An early,
wonderul example of sfumato
can be seen in Leonardo's
Mona Lisa.
Jesus Christ's head.
I n thi s work, Leon
ardo wanted to ex
peri ment with a new
styl e he had i nvent
ed cal l ed tempera. It
i s a method of pai nt
i ng with pi gments
di spersed in an
emul sion mi sci bl e
wi th water, typical ly
egg yolk. The pai nt
i ng took hi m four
years to compl ete -
1 495 to 1 498. Unfor
tunately, Leonardo's
new experi ment
was a di saster. The
pai nt al most i mme
diately began fal l i ng
off the pl aster. Art
experts tried to re
create what they
thought the pai nt
i ng must have
l ooked l i ke. There i s
a lot of debate about
whether those ex
perts real ly di d 'fix'
the pai nti ng, or if
they changed its
meani ng by maki ng
changes i n col our
and detai l .
. Why was Al brecht Durer
known as 'the prophet of the
Northern Renai ssance"
Al brecht Durer was perhaps the
greatest German artist of the Ren
ai ssance era. I n 1 486, he was ap
prenticed to the pai nter and
pri ntmaker Mi chael Wol gemut,
and began to work with woodcuts
and copper engravi ngs as wel l .
Durer's work includes altarpieces,
numerous portraits, and self-por
traits, and copper engravings. Hi s
stil l-famous works i ncl ude the
'Apocalypse woodcuts', 'Knight,
Death, and the Devil', 'Saint Jerome
in his Study' and 'Melencolia' which
has been the subject of extensive
analysis and i nterpretati on. Hi s
watercolours mark hi m as one of
the first European l andscape art
ists, whi l e his ambi ti ous woodcuts
revol uti onized that medi um.
Durer's pri nts establ i shed hi s
reputation across Europe when
he was sti l l i n hi s twenties, and he
has been re
garded as the
greatest artist of
the Renaissance
in Northern Eu-
Why is Michel angelo's
painting in the Sisti ne Chapel
one of the gre
'
atest feats ever
acco p ishe .
The Sistine Chapel cei l i ng
pai nti ngs (see pi cture to the
right) by Michel angelo were
commi ssioned by Pope Jul i us I I
i n 1 508, and were compl eted i n
1 5 1 2. It was arduous work that
requi red the artist to constantly
paint whi l e lying on his back,
atop a scaffol d that raised hi m
to withi n i nches of the cei l i ng.
The pai nti ngs tookfour years to
fi ni sh, and it was physi cal ly, ar
tistical ly, and emoti onal ly a tre
mendous feat by the artist, who
created thi s masterpiece si n
gle-handedly.
The pai nti ng covers 520
square metres of the cei l i ng,
and the central area i s made up
of ni ne panel s showi ng scenes
from the Old Testament. These
panel s are sur
rounded by figures
from Greek mythol
ogy and Hebrew
prophets. To thi s
day, these cei l i ng
paintings conti nue
to i nspire mi l l ions
of pi l gri ms and
tourists i n Vatican
City each year.
1 6
What were the contribu
tions of Michelangelo?
Mi chel angel o was an Ital i an
scul ptor, pai nter, architect, and
poet. He was one of the most
i mportant artists of the Renais
sance. At age 23, Michel angel o
completed hi s magnificent 'Pie
ta', a marble statue that shows
the Vi rgi n Mary grieving over
the dead Jesus. He began work
on the col ossal fi gure of 'Davi d'
i n 1 501 , and by 1 504, the scul p
ture was in pl ace outsi de the
Pal azzoVecchi o. After fi ni shi ng
hi s most famous project, the
cei l i ng of the Si sti ne Chapel , he
l ater pai nted 'The Last Judg
ment' on the al tar wal l of the
Si sti ne Chapel .
Towards the end of hi s l i fe,
Michel angelo became more
invol ved in architecture and
poetry. I n 1 546, he was made
chi ef architect of the partl y fi n
i shed St. Peter's Basi l ica i n
Rome. Mi chel angel o' s art was a
cul m
i nation of the knowledge
and revival of the cl assi cs dur
i ng the Renai ssance, and hi s
w
ork was the l aunchi ng poi nt
of a new style of art whi ch be
came known as 'Manneri sm' .
".

.
. .
Why was
Raphael con
sidered a
leader of the
Italian Ren
aissance?
R a p h a e l
had great tal
ent, and he received early
trai ni ng in art from hi s father,
Giovanni Santi . He al so
l earned newtechni ques from
Leonardo da Vi nci and
Mi chel angel o. Beauty and
serenity were hi s great emo
ti onal themes.
Raphael pai nted the Ma
donna del l Granduca, The
Smal l Cowper Madonna, and
The Al ba Madonna. He
pai nted Stanza del l i ncendio,
and four l arge-scal e pai nti ngs
whi ch were Marri age of the
Vi rgi n, Sposal izio, The Cruci
fied Christ with Vi rgi n Mary
and Sai nts and Angel s.
Raphael was a cl assi cal
perfecti oni st, and he was
thought to be one ofthe most
detai l ed pai nters of al l por
traitists. He was known as a
l eader of the Renai ssance, for
he made peopl e thi nk of per
sonal ity when they l ooked at
his pai nti ngs i nto which he
put real i stic emoti ons.
1 7
Why was Titian called a 'master pai nter'?
Titi an was the l eader of the 1 6th century Veneti an
school of the I tal i an Renai ssance. He was recognized
earl y in his own l ifeti me as a supremel y great pai nter.
Hi s work i s characterized by pure colours and i deal ized
beauty in nature and humans.
Titianwasequal lyadept wi th portraits and l andscapes,
mythologi cal , and rel i gi ous subjects. What makes hi m a
master pai nter is hi s deep i nterest in col our. Titi an's most
i mportant i nnovati ons were made in portrai ture, with hi s
search and penetration i n human character.
Titi an al so transformed the art of oil pai nti ng with new
techni ques that changed the way that Renai ssance artists
used pai nts. Hi s work gradual ly became very free,
and he seemed to pai nt from pure emoti on. He fel t
as if nothi ng ever needed to be over-del i berated,
and anythi ng coul d be pai nted over unti l the artist
felt satisfied. This mi ndset, al ong with his master
ful techni ques, made Titian an i nspi ration to the
young artists of hi s own day, and i nfluenced the
great masters of the next century.
Why was Hans Holbein the Younger
considered a man of many talents?
Hans Hol bei n was an outstandi ng portrait
and rel i gious pai nter of the Northern Ren
aissance. He was known as Hans Hol bei n
the Younger because his father, Hans Hol
bei n the Elper, was al so an accompl i shed
pai nter. Hans showed his diverse i nterests
early in hi s career by desi gni ng woodcuts
and gl ass pai nti ngs, i l l ustrati ng books, and
pai nti ng portraits and altarpi eces.
Between 1 51 9 and 1 526, Hans decorated
T0IIMe Why
Why were Tintoretto's
paintings diferent?
Jacopo RobustiTi ntoretto
is best known for hi s monu
mental and dramati c rel i
gi ous art. The artist was
born i n Venice and l ived
there al l his l ife. Even though
his pai nti ng i sdisti ngui shed
by great dari ng, he seems
to have l ed a rather retired
l ife, concerned only with hi s
work, and the wel l-bei ng of
hi s fami ly.
Tintoretto's most notabl e
works i ncl ude the earl y 'St
Mark Freei ng the Slave', as
wel l as the seri es of rel i gious
pai nti ngs he compl eted for
the Scuol a di San Rocco be-
many bui l di ngs in Basel, i ncl ud
i ng the Town Hal l . He al so
pai nted the cel ebrated 'Dead
Christ', as wel l as the al tarpi ece
of the ' Madonna with St. Ursus
and a Bi shop Sai nt', and the fa
m
ous 'Madonna of Burgomas
ter
Meyer' al tarpiece. Also of
thi s period are numerous por
traits in whi ch he shows his true
g
eni us. I n 1 536, he became
court pai nter to Henry VI I I , and
tween 1 564 and 1 588. His
last picture of consi derabl e
i mportance was the vast
'Paradise'. I t was reputed to
be the l argest pai nti ng ever
done upon canvas. He al so
pai nted 'The Last Supper',
whi ch is dramatical l y difer
ent from that whi ch was
pai nted by da Vi nci .
Tintoretto's earl y works
adhered quite strictly to the
Mannerist tradi ti on of the
Veneti an Renaissance.
However, he l ater
devel oped hi s
own styl e that
was hi ghly dy
nami c and ex
travagant.
made numerous portraits
and drawi ngs of the ki ng and
hi s wives.
In addi ti on to hi s pai nti ngs,
Hans lef to the worl d mag
nificent prel i mi nary portrait
drawi ngs i n whi ch he com
bi ned chal k, silverpoi nt, pen
and i nk, and other medi a.
Al so famous are hi s wood
cuts, and i l l ustrations for
Luther's Bi bl e.
Why was Pieter Bruegel
called 'Peasant' Bruegel?
Pi eter Bruegel was the fi rst
in a fami ly of Fl emi sh pai nt
ers, and is general l y consid
ered the greatest Fl emi sh
pai nter of the 1 6th century.
Bruegel's pai nti ngs, i ncl ud
i ng l andscapes and scenes of
peasant l ife are ful l of zest
and fi ne detai l . They al so ex
pose human weaknesses
and fol l ies. He tri ed to tel l
the story behi nd a pai nti ng
bycombi ni ng several scenes
i nto it. He was sometimes
cal l ed the 'peasant Bruegel '
because hi s pai nti ngs were
popul ated by peasants.
Bruegel made the l i fe and
manners of peasants the
mai n focus of hi s pai nti ngs.
20
Why are Sofonisba Anguis
sola's paintings of historical
signfica e7
Sofonisba was one of the first
women to gai n an i nternational
reputation as a pai nter. Sle
made history when she went to
study pai nti ng under the re
nowned artist Campi, because
at that ti me, women were not
general ly accepted i nto pai nt
er's studios. She concentrated
on portraits, and her styl e was
uni que, and therefore hi stori
cal l y si gnifi cant. She di d away
with the ri gi d artifi ci al ity of the
A Painting by Pieter Bruegel
Hi s vivid depi cti on of the ritual s of
vi l l age l i fe give us gl i mpses of a
vani shed fol k cul ture, and are a
pri me source of evidence about
both physical and soci al aspects of
, 6th century l ife.
Tel l Me Why
ti
m
es, and captured emoti on i n
h
er
portrai ts. Many of her sel f
p
ortr
aits convey her own re
fined character.
I n the 1 550'5, Sophonisba joined
the
Spanish cour as a lady in wait
ing to the Queen. There she pro
duced some of her most exqui
site works, ful l of i ntricate and
del icate fabrics, fabul ous jewel
lery, and furs. Her greatest contri
bution was that she opened the
ar world up to women pai nters.
She was undoubtedly the most
successful woman pai nter of
the Spani sh Gol den Age.
Why was EI Greco considered
eccentric?
EI Greco was a Cretan-born pai nter,
scul ptor, and archi tect who settled
i n Spai n, and is regarded as the first
great geni us of the Spani sh School .
He was known as EI Greco or the
Greek, but hi s real name was Do
meni kos Theotokopoul os.
EI Greco's pai nti ng style was di f
ferent, and it gave rise
to many myths about
hi s l ife and art. He
compressed space
and twisted forms to
create a unique style
that was often consi d
ered eccentric. One of
hi s greatest works 'The
1 00 Great Painters
Saint Martin and the Beggar
A Painting by El Greco
Buri al of Count Orgaz ' por
trays a nobl eman's soul ris
ing to heaven, surrounded
by angel s and pol i ti cal fig
ures of the ti mes.
Fol l owi ng hi s death, EI
Greco's work fel l i nto obscu
rity and, after its redi scovery
in the ni neteenth century,
was often mi sunderstood. EI
Greco has been cal l ed a
prophet of modern art, a
mystic, and even a man
whose si ght was di storted -
al l mi sconceptions
that have cl ouded
understandi ng of
hi s disti nctive, but
del i berate style.
21
Why were Carav-
aggio's religious
.
cures diferent?
Caravaggi o was
probabl y the most
revol uti onary arti st of
his ti me. An I tal i an
pai nter, he aban
doned the rul es that
had guided a century
of arti sts before hi m.
Hi s rel i gi ous pai nt
i ngs were realistic
and dramatic, not
ideal ized forms of
men and gods. The
model s chosen for
sai nts were real peas
ants with wri nkled
faces and di rty feet,
not beautiful , aristo
cratic l ooki ng men
and women. Thi s
greatly upset tradi
ti onal soci ety, and
Caravaggi o came i n
for a l ot of cri ti ci sm.
Few artists i n history
have exercised as ex
traordi nary an i nfl u
ence as thi s tempes
tuous and short-lived
pai nter. Caravaggi o
was destined to turn
a l arge part of Euro
pean art away from
22
The Supper at Emmaus -
A Famous Painting by Caravaggio
the i deal viewpoi nt of the Renaissance to
the concept that si mpl e real ity was of
pri mary i mportance. He was one of the
first to pai nt peopl e as ordi nary l ooki ng.
He refused to compromise on hi s style,
and by standi ng fi rm, he pl aced rel igious
art i n a new l i ght.
Why did Peter Paul Rubens gain in
ternational fame?
Peter Paul Rubens was a prol ific seven
teenth-century Fl emish pai nter, who was
i nternational ly known for an exuberant
style that emphasized movement, colour,
and sensual ity. He gai ned fame for his
counter-reformati on altarpieces, por
traits, l andscapes, and history pai nti ngs
of mythol ogical subjects.
Rubens created the fusion of the real is
ti c tradition of Fl emi sh pai nti ng with the
i magi native freedom and classical
themes of I tal i an Renaissance pai nti ng.
His pai nti ngs often depicted rel i gi ous
and mythical heroes i n real i stic and exu-
Tel l Me Why
y are Frans Hals' portraits called 'pleasai t a. '7
Frans Hals bel onged to a respected fami ly i n the Netherl ands. He
was
the first great a rtist of the 1 7th-century Dutch school , and i s
reg
arded as one of the most bri l l iant of al l portraitists. Al most al l
hi s
works are portraits, and even those that are not, are portrait
l i ke in character.
In 1 61 6, Hal s gai ned the reputation of a master
painter with hi s pai nti ng of the St. Jovis Shooti ng
Company, oneofthe cl ubs composed of vol unteers
banded together for the defence of the town. Frans
Hal s seized the opporunity to show hi s wonderful
ski l l i n detail whi l e pai nti ng the cufs and rufs worn
by these grandees. In all his work, there is an i mpres
sion of strength rather than of beauty.
Hal s puts a smi l e on the face of nearly every one
of his ' l eadi ng characters', and i n every case, the
l augh suits the subject. Hal s understood from the
begi nni ng how to convey the spi rit of a jol l y occa
sion, and how to bri ng l ife i nto pai nti ngs of groups.
It was the vital ity and charm of hi s pai nti ngs that
caused hi s portraits to be cal l ed 'pl easant art'.
berant poses, but he i s equal ly respected
for hi s l andscapes and portraits. In the ma
ture phase of hi s career, Rubens ei ther exe
cuted personal ly, or supervised the execu
ti on of an enormous body of works that
spanned al l areas of pai nti ng and drawi ng.
A portrait
by Paul Ruben
1 00
Great Painters
In additi on to runni ng a l arge studi o i n
Antwerp whi ch produced pai nti ngs popu
l ar wi th nobi l ity and art col l ectors through
out Europe, Rubens was a cl assi cal ly-edu
cated humani st schol ar, art col l ector, and
di pl omat who was kni ghted by both Phi l i p
IV, Ki ng of Spai n, and Charl es I , Ki ng of Eng
l and.
23
How do Artemisia Gentileschi's
pai ntings reflect her own experi
ences?
Artemi si a Genti l eschi was one of
the first women artists to achieve
recogni ti on in the mal e-domi nated
worl d of post-Renai ssance art. In an
era when femal e artists were l i mited
A Painting
by Artemisia
to portrait
pai nti ng and
i mitative pos
es, she was the
first woman to
pai nt major
historical and
rel i gi ous sce
narios:
Artemi s i a' s
l ife was tragic,
and it made a
strong i mpact
on her pai nt
i ng. Her work
became a sym
bolic attempt
to deal with the physical, mental, and
emotional traumas that she was expe
riencing. The heroines of her art are
powerful women exacting revenge on
mal e evildoers. Aremisia was without
doubt the most i mportant woman
pai nter of Earl y Modern Europe, by
virtue of the excel l ence of her work,
the origi nal ity of her treatment of
traditi onal subj ects, and the number
of her pai nti ngs that have survived.
24
Why was Di ego
Velazquez called 'the
painter's painter'?
Diego Velazquez was a
Spani sh pai nter who was
the l eadi ng artist i n the
court of King Phi l i p IV. A
master of techni que, he
was hi ghly i ndivi d
u
al i n
style. I n fact, Diego Ve
l asquez may have had a
greater i nfl uence on Eu
ropean art than any other
pai nter of the time.
When he was 24, Diego
pai nted a portrait of Phi l i p
IV, who became hi s pa
tron. From then on, except
Why was Nicolas
Poussin a great
painter?
Nicol as Poussi n was
the greatest French
artist of the 1 7th century,
and the founder of hi s
country's cl assi cal
school . Wi th hi m,
French pai nti ng went
beyond France, and
became a European af
fair, mi rrori ng the
power of the age of
Loui s XI V. By the mi d-
1 630's, he began ex-
Tell Me
Why
Echo and Narcissus -
A Painting by Nicolas Poussin
for two trips to I tal y, he lived in Ma
dri d. Hi s pai nti ngs i ncl ude l and
scapes, mythol ogi cal and rel i gious
pl ori ng a serene, cl assi cal style i n
spi red by Raphael and anti quity.
Poussin's great passi on was hi sto
ry,
and he tol d nobl e, epi c and sti r
ring tal es through hi s art. He made
meticul ous preparati ons before
star
ti ng a pai nti ng. He di d hi storical
re
search, trained hi mself in archae
ol ogy and the study of coi ns, and
car
eful l y checked the authenticity
of
hi s research. Before pai nti ng, he
mad
e model s from wood and wax,
f
ro
m whi ch he made hi s prel i mi nary
s
ke
tches.
P
oussi n's work predomi nantl y
fe
atures cl arity, l ogi c, and order, and
100
Great Painters
subjects, and scenes from
common l i fe, cal l ed genre
pictures. Most of them,
however, are portraits of
the nobl es of the court.
Diego was a master real
ist, and no pai nter"has sur
passed hi m i n the abi l ity to
seize essential features
and fix them on canvas
with a few broad, sure
strokes. Because of Ve
l asquez' great ski l l i n merg
ing col our, l i ght, space,
rhythm of l i ne, and mass i n
such a way that al l have
equal val ue, he was known
as 'the pai nter's pai nter'.
favours l i ne over col our.
The finest col l ection of
Poussi n's pai nti ngs, i n
addition to hi s draw
i ngs, i s located in the
Louvre i n Pari s.
25
Li bra Veritatis
Te Libra Veritatis is
a collection of about 200
drawings by the French arist Claude
Lorraine. It was compiled by him, and made
up in book form as a souvenir of paintings he had dis
posed of, to guard against forgeries, and possibly con
taining some outlines for future paintings as wel l.
Claude valued it highly and specially mentioned
it in his will.
What was Claude Lor
raine's chief contribu
tion to landscape
painting?
Cl aude Lorrai ne was an
i nfl uenti al and success
ful artist in the seven
teenth century. Hi s
pai nti ngs were pictur
esque, and ful l of the
rough textures of wi l d
nature with romantic ol d
castles or cl assi cal rui ns.
Cl aude created l and-
scapes that were expansive
and dramatic. Hi s chief contri
buti on to cl assi cal l andscape
pai nti ng was the masterly
treatment of l i ght. He often
gave the foreground strong
contrasts of l i ght and shadow,
whi l e the mi ddl e di stance had
l ess contrast. The far back
ground was rendered even
l i ghter, and with fewer con
trasts to give a sense of great
distance.
Whi l e the subjects of hi s
pai nti ngs and drawi ngs were
ofen from the Bi bl e or cl assi cal
mythol ogy, the mood and at-
_ mosphere of the l andscape
was the real subject. His figures
were usual l y onl y a mi nor part
of a scene to hel p set the scal e
and perspective. Cl aude's style
set the standards for what was
worthy of appreciation.
Why is Rembrandt considered
a giant in the history of ar?
Rembrandt Van Rijn was a Dutch
pai nter, drafsman, and etcher of
the
1 7th century, and a giant in the
hi story of art. Hi s pai nti ngs are
characterized by l uxuri ant brush
work, rich colour, and a mastery of
chi aroscuro, or the i nterplay be
tween l i ght and shade.
Rembrandt became the l eadi ng
portrait pai nter i n Hol l and, and re
ceived many commi ssi ons for por
traits as wel l as for pai nti ngs of reli-
The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes
Tulp - A Painting by Rembrandt
gi ous subjects. I n addition to por
traits, Rembrandt attained fame for
his l andscapes, whi l e as an etcher,
he ranks among the foremost of al l
time. When he had no other model ,
he pai nted or sketched hi s own i m
age. It is estimated that he pai nted
between 50 and 60 self-portraits.
Hi s l andscape pai nti ngs are
Rembrandt 's
Sel portrait
hi ghl y i maginative,
rich portrayal s of the
l and around hi m.
Rembrandt was at his
most i nventive in the
work popularly
known as 'The Ni ght
Watch' pai nted in
1 62. The canvas is
bri l liant with colour,
movement, and l ight.
Rembrandt is gen
eral l y consi dered
one of the greatest
pai nters and pri nt
makers in European
art hi story, and the
most i mportant i n
Dutch hi story. Hi s
contri buti ons to art
came in a period that
hi storians cal l the
'Dutch Gol den Age'.
Why is it be
li eved that Jo
hannes Vermeer
used the 'camera
obscura' for hi s
paintings?
Johannes Ver
meer was a Dutch
pai nter who creat
ed some of the
most exqui site
pai nti ngs i n West
ern art. Of the 35 or
36 pai nti ngs gen
eral ly attributed to
hi m, most portray
figures in i nteriors.
Al l his works are
admi red for the
sensitivity with
which he rendered
effects of l i ght and
col our, and for the
28
poetic qual ity of hi s i mages.
Duri ng the late 1 650's, Vermeer began to
experiment with the 'camera obscura'. Thi s
was an opti cal devi ce that coul d project the
i mage of sunl it objects pl aced before it with
extraordi nary real i sm. It is bel ieved that
Vermeer woul d first
sketch the projected
i mage i n bl ack and
white. He woul d
then pai nt the fi n
i shed version over it
sl owl y and pai nstak
i ngly.
There is sti l l much
spec
ul ation as to
O
ne o/Vermeer
'
s
whether Vermeer
most
popular
paintings
di d use a camera
obscura, or not. But even if he did, it does
not chal l enge Vermeer's geni us. Rather, it
shows how, l i ke many artists, he experi
mented with new technol ogy to develop
his style and choice of subject matter.
Why is Jean Antoi ne Watteau consid
ered the forerunner of the I mpression
ists?
Jean-Antoine Watteau was a French
pai nter whose bri ef career spurred the re
vival of i nterest in col our and movement. He
i nvented new type of pai nti ng, cal l ed the
'fete gal ante'. These l arge scenes of wel l -to
do men and women enjoyi ng themselves
outdoors al l owed hi m to showcase his tal
ent for conveyi ng the del i ghts and enchant
ments of nature. Some of hi s best known
Tel l Me Why
Chairing the Member -
A Painting by William Hogarth
Why was William Hogarth dif
ferent from other pai nters of his
age?
Wi l l i am Hogarth was one of the
leadi ng Bri ti sh artists of the first half
of the 1 8th century. Hi s pai nti ngs are
witty and ful l of an earthy realism,
and are a social commentary on the
morals of the time, as wel l as being
works of art i n their own right.
Hogarth brushed asi de the great
mythol ogical , rel i gi ous and hi stori
cal themes, preferri ng subjects
subjects were drawn from the
worl d of Ital i an comedy and bal let.
Jean Antoine showed artistic abi l
ity
at a young age. He went to Paris
in 1 702 with the hope of entering a
studio where he coul d refi ne hi s art.
Around 1 708, his smal l and human
battle pai nti ngs attracted attention
of perceptive deal ers and col l ec
tors. He was i nvited by the fi nanci er
Crozatto live and work i n hi s home,
fi l l ed with Veneti an and Fl emi sh
100 Great Painters
drawn from qui ck and ofen
mal i ci ous observations of
those around hi m. He en
sured that hi s art reached
the greatest number of peo
pl e possible, and to 'educate
their taste', he had his works
reproduced as engravings.
Though Hogarth had the
gif of tel l i ng a story through
hi s pai nti ngs, peopl es' i nter
est lay in the detai l s and
amusi ng i nci dents found i n
hi s works ratherthan i n thei r
beauty.
Wi l l i am Hogarh paved
the way for an Engl i sh school
of pai nti ng which had hith
erto just not existed. Self
taught, and with no pupi l s,
he became one of the most
i mportant Engl i sh pai nters
of the ei ghteenth century.
pai nti ngs and drawi ngs,
and it was there that he
devel oped the fete gal
l ante.
Duri ng his 1 5-year artis
ti c career, Antoine dealt
with a wi de variety of
subjects and techni ques,
and i s now regarded as a
forerunner of the i mpres
sionists i n his handl i ng of
colour and study of nature.
29
Why was, Francisco De Goya considered a
tragic and analytical pai nter?
Franci sco De Goya i s regarded as the
most i mportant Spani sh artist of the
late eighteenth, and earl y ni neteenth
centuries. Over the course of hi s l ong
career, Goya's pai nti ngs, drawi ngs,
etchi ngs, and frescos moved from the
jol l y and l ight-hearted, to the deepl y
pessi mi sti c and searchi ng.
Goya entered the worl d of art when
he won the second pl ace i n a pai nti ng
competition hel d i n Italy. Hi s first com
missi on i n Spai n was i n 1 774 for 43 car
toons for the tapestries for the Royal
factory at Santa Barbara. He became
the ofi ci al pai nter of Ki ng Charl es I I I
when he was 39 years ol d.
I n 1 792, Goya became deaf. As a result, his style
of pai nti ng al so changed. His work became
tragi c and anal yti cal . He introduced a worl d of
witches, ghosts, and fantastic creatures that i n
vade the mi nd, parti cul arly duri ng dreams, and
nightmari sh vi si ons symbol izi ng a worl d
agai nst reason. Hi s brush strokes were now
bol d and swif, and the col ours he used were
grey, bl ack, brown, and red. Some of the
most graphic i mages to come out of the
brutal Peni nsul ar War were drawn by Goya.
In expressi ng hi s thoughts and feel i ngs
frankl y, as he di d, Franci sco De Goya became
the pi oneer of new artistic tendencies, and i s
consi dered by some to be 'The Father of Mod
ern Art'. Hi s works changed the way artists
woul d i nterpret the worl d.
Why is it said that Jacques David
influenced moral philosophy i n
France?
Jacques-Loui s David, a French
pai nter, was a supporter of the
French Revol uti on, and one of the
leadi ng fi gures of the styl e known as
Neocl assicism. He spent six years i n
Rome, and it was duri ng thi s period
that he abandoned the grand man
ner of hi s earl y work, and turned to a
stark and hi ghly fi ni shed style. Hi s
works now uphel d the anti que vi r
tues of self-sacrifice, devotion to
duty, honesty, and austerity, and
they had a strong moral i nfl uence on
the ti mes he l i ved i n.
David l ater became an active sup
porter of the French Revol u
tion, and was efectivel y a
dictator of the arts under the
French Republ ic. Later, hewas
i mprisoned and on hi s release,
he became a supporter of
Napol eon I . It was at thi s ti me
that he devel oped hi s ' Em
pi re style', notabl e for i ts use
of warm Venetian col ours.
David had a huge number of
pupi l s, maki ng him the
strongest influence i n the
French art of the 1 9t
h
century.
The Death oj Marat
- David's Greatest Work
Bl ake's earl y ambi ti ons l ay not
poetry, but with pai nti ng, and attheag
C! 1 4, after attendi ng drawi ng school ,
Why was William
Blake inspired to
work on religious
themes?
Wi l l i am Bl ake was an
Engl i sh artist, mystic,
and poet. As a chi l d, he
was prone to fantastic
vi si ons, i ncl udi ng see
ing God, and angel s i n
a tree. He woul d l ater
cl ai m that he had regu
l ar conversati ons wi th
hi s deceased brother
Robert. It was soon
apparent that Bl ake's
visions woul d be hi s
i nspi rati on through
out hi s l ife.
32
he was apprenticed to James Basi re, an
engraver. After hi s seven-year term
compl ete, Bl ake studied at the Roya
Academy. In 1 788, at the age of thi rty
one, Bl ake began to experi ment wi th
'rel ief etchi ng', whi ch was tle method
used to produce most of hi s books of
poems.The process i s al so referred to as
' i l l umi nated pri nti ng', and fi nal products
as 'i l l umi nated books', or 'pri nts'. Bl ake
used i l l umi nated pri nti ng for four of his
works. Each of hi s i l l umi nated books
was thus a uni que work of
art, and a radical break with
tradition.
Bl ake's paintings focused
on rel igi ous subjects, the
most famous bei ng the i l
l ustrations of the 'Book of
Job.' He used rigid geometri
cal
patterns, and emphasized
line and col our as a means of
expressi on. Hi s l ife i s
summed up by hi s statement
that 'The i magi nation i s not
a state : it i s the human exist
e
nce itself'.
William Blake
William Blake's Style
I
n the realm of imagina
tive painting, William
Bl ake stands quite alone.
His training as an engraver
must have helped to con
centrate his attention on
pure l i ne as a means of ex
pression. His special print
ing process involved trans
ferring reversed images of
his words and pictures on
to a copper plate with acid
resistant i nk. Once the pic
ture was etched on to the
plate, it produced a relief
image that could be used
to make many copies.
Blake and his wife then
hand coloured each print.
Why was John Constable's
style ,special?
John Constable was one of
the great Engl i sh l andscape
pai nters of the 1 9th century. He
developed his own styl e of
pai nti ng by first sketchi ng i n
penci l , i nkwash, and occasi onal
watercol ours, and al so by mak
i ng many notes on l i ght and at
mosphere at the same ti me.
Only after these preparations
were compl ete, would he actu
al l y start pai nti ng.
Many of Constabl e's sketches
capture unusual effects of l i ght
ing - such as a doubl e rai nbow,
or the weather. For example,
'Study of Cl ouds' records the
skies over London after a storm.
34
In fact, the many studies h
pai nted of the sky testify hi
conti nual i nterest i n the dram
that sky coul d give rise to i n
pai nti ng.
Constabl e developed
uni que style combi ni ng de
tai l ed studies of nature with
deeply personal vision of the
countryside round his boyhood
home. Whi l e most l andscapists
of the day travel l ed extensivel y
in search of picturesque scen-
"
ery, Constabl e never left Eng-
l and. Hi s unique abi l ity to com
bi ne scientific knowl edge and
keen observation with poetry
and ori gi nal ity made hi m di f
ferent from traditional l and
scape pai nters.
Tel l Me Why
Caspar David
Friedrich
Why is Caspar
David Friedrich con
sidered the most
imporant painter
of the German Ro
mantic Movement?
Caspar David Frie
dri chwasa l andscape
pai nter of the
g:-
century German Ro
mantic movement, of
whi ch he i s now con
si dered the most i m
portantpai nter. More
than any of his con
temporaries, he cap
tured the sense of
mysti ci sm and mel
anchol y typi cal of
Northern Romanti
cism. His mai n i nter
est as an artist was
1 00 Great Painters
nature. Friedri ch' s l andscapes are based
entirely on scenes from Northern Germany,
and are beautiful renderi ngs of trees, hi l ls,
harbours, morni ng mi sts, and other l i ght
efects based on hi s close obseration. Many
of hi s scenes are peopl ed by smal l , anony
mous figures that stand i n awed contem
pl ati on of the l i mitl ess expanse of nature.
Though Fri edri ch studi ed in Copenha
gen, he chose to l ive i n Dresden, and hi s
beautiful surroundi ngs i nspi red many of
hi s exqui site l andscapes.
For ni ne years, he worked only i n penci l
or sepi a, and when he switched to oi l
pai nts, he created a sensati on wi th hi s
work 'Cross i n the Mountai n' .
Some of Fri edri ch' s best-known pai nt
i ngs are expressi ons of a rel i gi ous mysti
ci sm. He was, wi thout doubt, one of the
greatest exponents in European art of the
symbol i c l andscape.
' The Stages ofLife ' A Painting by
Caspar David Friedrich
35
36
Napoleon 1-
A Painting by
Ingres
The Tomb ofIngres
Why was Jean Auguste Domin
ique I ngres considered a superb
portrait painter?
Jean-August-Domi ni que I ngres
was a French neo-cl assi cal pai nter,
and one of the major portrait pai nt
ers of the 1 9t
h
century. I ngres felt
that drawi ng was the very heart of
pai nti ng, and he drew and redrew
whatever he was to pai nt unti l he
understood al l its el e
ments. Though he val
ued hi story pai nti ng
above al l el se, he al so
often produced por
traits, some of the best
of whi ch are drawi ngs.
I ngres l ived i n Rome
from 1 806 to 1 820, and
Ingres
it was there that he de-
vel oped hi s extraordi
nary gifts for drawi ng and desi gn.
He hel ped support hi msel f by mak
i ng portrait drawi ngs of visitors to
Rome. These drawi ngs are ski lful ,
conci se masterpi eces. I ngres's out
standi ng use of pl ace, l i ght, and
character i n these seemi ngl y casual
portrait drawi ngs make these
works masterpieces i n their own
right. l ngres' greatest achi evement,
perhaps, were his portraits of wom
en. Though not al l I ngres' model s
were beauti es, he found someth i ng
speci al about each one of them.
Tel l Me Why
Why is Theodore Gericault's 'Raft of
Medusa' a truly i nnovative pai nti ng?
Theodore Gericault's most famous work i s
'Raft of the Medusa', a turbulent pai nti ng of
men at sea who are shi pwrecked and dyi ng.
The event depi cted i s the afermath of the
1 9t
h
century si nki ng of a shi p cal l ed the
Medusa. From an original group of 1 49 on
board, there were onl y 1 5 survivors afer
nearl y two weeks at sea on thi s raf. A l ater
i nqui ry uncovered gruesome stori es of
murder and canni bal i sm duri ng the 1 2 days
adrif with no food and l ittle hope of rescue.
I n order to reproduce the horror, Gericaul t
studi ed corpses and i nterviewed the survi
vors. The Raft of the Medusa is enormous,
measuri ng over 4.9 metres by 6.9 metres. I n
fact, its size was one of the thi ngs that made
i t a sensation when it was unvei l ed i n 1 81 9.
It is a trul y i nnovative pai nting because it
dealt with an actual happeni ng of the ti me,
and al so in its constructi on. Gericault was
1 00 Great Painters
Theodore Gericault
extremel y dari ng i n
organi zi ng hi s
pai nti ng around a
pyramid, at the top
of which the fi gure
of the Negro is seen,
wavi ng a rag. A res
cue shi p is fai ntl y
visi bl e on the hori
zon, and the whol e
pai nti ng reflects
the hope among
the survivors of be
i ng saved.
37
Why are the works of Eu
gene Delacro
i
x remarkable?
Eugene Del acroix was the
most i mportant of the French
Romantic pai nters. His i nspi ra
tion came chiefly from hi storical
or contemporary events or l it
erature, and a visit to Morocco
in 1 832 provided hi m with fur
ther exotic subjects. Hi s remark-
Eugene
Delacroix
abl e use of col our was to later
i nfl uence even modern artists
The colours and vi ol ent con
trasts of North Africa i nfl amed
his work. He became one of the
greatest wi l dl ife pai nters, and
made hi s pai nted ani mal s seem
al ive. He loved natural beauty
i n the movements of ani mal s,
and spent ti me at the zoo
sketchi ng ti gers, l i ons, horses,
and any other ani mal s that
caught his i magi nation. His ex
periences in Morocco and AI -
38
gi ers provided hi m with exotic
subjects such as the Al geri an
women who enchanted hi m.
He sketched them at thei r dai l y
activities, noting the mi nutest
detai l s of col our and desi gn. Hi s
expressive works al so depi cted
hi storic, rel i gi ous and l iterary
themes.
Del acroix was very proud of
the speed at which he worked.
I t is said that he worked so fast
that he coul d sketch a man faI l
i ng out of a wi ndow i n the ti me
it took for the man to hit the
ground! Now i sn't that trul y re
markabl e?
Why is it said that Jean
Francois Mi l l et endowed ru
ral life with dignity?
French pai nter Jean-Francoi s
Mi l let was one of the foundi ng
members of the Barbizon Land
scape School i n France. He was
the son of a smal l peasant of
Tel l Me Why
Grevi l l e in Normandy. Hi s earl y
work comprised of conven
tional portraits and fashi onabl e
eighteenth century pastoral
scenes. However, he gai ned
fame for his depi cti on of the l ife
of the peasants of that ti me.
Mi l let pai nted l abourers go
ing about thei r dai l y busi ness.
He made the countryside look
di gnified, and his peasants look
heroic. I n The Angel us', his best
known work, Mi l let shows a
hard working coupl e at work i n
the fi el ds wi th thei r heads
bowed before the magn ificence
of nature. Among the French
artists of the 1 9t
h
century, he
stands out as a man who found
i nspi ration i n the everyday l ife
of ordi nary peopl e.
Why is it said that Gustav
Courbet believed in aristic
freedom?
Gustav Courbet was an artist
who l ed the Real i st movement
in 1 9t
h
century French pai nti ng.
He bel i eved that every artist
shoul d be his own teacher. By
1 850, he was shocki ng the
pub
l i c wi th the styl e known as
Real i sm, and wi th the scal e of
hi s pai nti ngs. In December of
that year, he exhi bited three
hug
e canvases of peasant l ife.
1 00
Great Pai nters
Gustav Courbet
They were vast, and normal l y
such enormous size was re
served for hi story pai nti ngs of
more ' i mportant' subjects.
One ofCourbefs most i mpor
tant works i s ' Buri al at Ornans', a
canvas recording an event which
he witnessed i n September
1 848. This painting of the funeral
of his grand uncl e became the
first masterpiece i n the Real i st
style. Peopl e who had attended
thefuneral were used as model s
for the pai nti ng.
Courbet worked wi th soci al
i ssues, and focused on the
peasantry and the grave work
ing conditi ons of the poor. He
bel ieved that the Real i st arti st's
mi ssi on was the pursuit of truth,
and that by doing so, an artist
coul d i mprove social conditions
and i nequal ity. (ourbet's par-
ti cul ar i nd 1

enced a
-
0
fol l owe
m
e
39
Why are Gustav Moreau's paintings diferent?
French artist Gustav Moreau i s known for his strange
and mystical works, often portrayi ng scenes from
mythol ogy or rel i gi on. Moreau pai nted for a number
of years without exhi bi ti ng hi s work, but duri ng thi s
ti me, he developed hi s unique style. He
spent many hours studyi ng Persi an, I ndi an,
and Japanese pri nts and from them took
motifs, which he used to create his own vi
sion of myths and rel igi ons. He became one
ofthe l eading artists ofthe Symbolist style.
Moreau emphasized the morbi d si de of
l i feand death. Hi s l andscapes often showed
steep and rocky cl i ffs with twisted trees. He
had a feel i ng for the bizarre and developed
Why is Frederic Edwin Church associated
with nature?
Frederic Church was an Ameri can pai nter
who belonged to the Hudson River School of
l andscape pai nters. He fol l owed a pattern of
travel, hi ki ng, and sketchi ng from spri ng
through autumn, and spent wi nter i n New
York, pai nti ng. Church was i nspi red by the
fasci nati ng variety and compl exity of nature
and bel i eved that the cl ose study of nature
was essential to grasp unique underl yi ng
truth of the Universe.
In 1 853 and 1 857, he visited South America,
and made many sketches of tropi cal and An
dean scenery, which he afterward devel oped
i nto l arge pictures. Several years l ater, an ex
pedition to the coast of Labrador gave hi m
material for hi s great pi cture entitl ed ' I ce
bergs', whi ch attracted much attenti on on its
40
exhibition i n Lon
don in 1 863. I n
1 866, he visited
the West I ndies,
and two years later
Europe and the
Hol y Land, whi ch
Tel l Me Why
a style that is hi ghl y di s
ti nctive i n subject and
techni que. He was a
withdrawn person who
l i ved al one. When he
di ed, on the 1 8th of Apri l
1 898, he l eft to the state
his house, contai ni ng
about 8000 pictures, wa
ter-col ours, cartoons and
drawi ngs, whi ch form
the Moreau gal l ery. I t i s
consi dered one of the
best organized col lec
tions i n Pari s.
resulted i n i mportantworks
depicti ng nature.
Church made ful l use of
his sense of the dramati c
when depi cti ng grandi ose
scenery. Hi s most famous
pai nti ng i s 'The Andes of
Ecuador'.
Frederic Church
Why was Dante Gabri el Rossetti
known as a romantic pai nter?
Dante Gabri el Rossetti was a co
founder of the Pre-Raphael ites, a
group of Engl i sh pai nters and poets
who hoped to bri ng to thei r art the
ri chness and purity of the medieval
period. He was both a poet and a
pai nter. Romanti c
l ove was hi s mai n
theme. Hi s first
pai nti ngs were
basedonrel i gi ous
themes wi th el e
ments of mystical
symbol i sm. They
were 'The Gi rl
hood of Mary Vir-
Dante Gabriel
gi n' and 'Ecce An-
Rossetti
ci l i a Domi ni'.
Rosetti pai nted onl y one type of
woman who became known as the
'Rosetti gi rl ' . I n most of Rossetti's
earl y pictures his i deal l adi es were
portraits of hi s wife, the beautiful
El izabeth El eanor Si ddal . He had
met her i n 1 850, and they married
i n 1 860 when she was al ready in
poor heal th. After his wife died
1 862, Rossetti buried with her the
onl y complete manuscri pt of hi s
poems. The manuscri pt was recov
ered seven years l ater and pu bl i shed
i n 1 870. It i ncl uded most of hi s best
verse and establ i shed his reputa
tion as a poet.
41
The Rossetti
Gi rl
Rossetti al
ways drew
women with
sad faces, long
necks, flowing
hair and dark
protruding
eyes. The hair
colour dif
fered from
painting to
painting but
the face re
mained essen
tiallythe
same, and
soon a woman
with this type
of face be
came known
as 'The Rosset
ti Girl'.
Why was Cami l l e Pissaro considered
a majormemberofthe French I mpres
sionist movement?
French pai nter Cami l l e Pi ssaro was
one of the major members ofthe styl e of
pai nti ng cal l ed French I mpressi oni sm.
Thi s was a major movement, first i n
pai nti ng, and l ater i n music, that devel
oped chiefly in France duri ng the l ate
1 9th and earl y 20th centuri es. The French
I mpressi oni sts were a group of artists
who shared a set of si mi l ar approaches
and techni ques. They tried to record ac
curatel y and objectivel y what they saw
i n terms of l i ght and col our.
Pi ssaro pai nted a
wide variety of sub
jects i ncl udi ng city
scapes, sti l l l ife, por
traits, l andscapes,
scenes of peasants.
Pi ssarro progressed
from dark l andscapes,
to bri ghter I mpres
si oni sm. He often
chose hi ghviewpoi nts,
pai nti ng a city l and
scape for example,
from a top wi ndow.
Al though Pi ssarr
6
never sold hi s pai nt
i ngs for much duri ng
hi s l ifeti me, today they
fetch mi l l i ons of dol
l ars i n art aucti ons.
Why was Manet
considered an ex
peri mental artist?
Edouard Manet was
a French painter who
was often i dentified
with the ' I mpressi on
ists', and was i nfl u-
enced by them. How-
Edouard Manet
ever, because the Pari s
Manet's pai nti ngs of
cafe scenes are obser
vations of social l i fe in
1 9th century Pari s.
Manet pai nted scenes
from 1 9th century hi s
tory, i ncl udi ng one
work featuri ng the ex
ecuti on of Emperor
Maxi mi l l i an of Mexico
art worl d general ly did not fa
vour thi s style, he chose not to
exhi bit them. He was a revol u
ti onary i n that he broke new
ground i n choosi ng subjects
from the events and people of
his own ti me. However, he
craved offi ci al recogniti on, and
preferred to show hi s work i n
the more conservative exhi bi
ti ons sponsored by the French
government.
Manefs style i n this period was
characterized by loose brush
strokes and si mpl ification of
details. He used expressive out
l i nes, severe l i ghti ng contrasts,
bold col our and rich texture to
portray the world around hi m.
i n 1 867.
Manefs earl y works 'The
Luncheon on the Grass/ and
' Ol ympi a/ created great con
troversy, and served as ral lyi ng
poi nts for the young pai nters
who would create the style
known as I mpressi oni sm. To
day, they are consi dered to be
the genesi s of modern art.
I mpressionism
I
mpressionism is a style of paint
ing that began i n Paris, France i n the
mid-1 800s. Unl ike artists before
them, the impressionists painted
most of their paintings outdoors,
and liked to portray natural subjects
like trees, fields, and oceans. When
i mpressionists painted pictures of
people, they made them look like
people you would see everyday.
They often put more emphasis on
the scene, than on the person or
main subject of the painting .
Why is Whistler
considered a great
pai nter?
James Abbott Mc
Nei l l Whi stl er was an
American painter and
etcher, who absorbed
Japanese art styles,
made techni cal i nno
vations, and champi
oned modern art.
Rohul 5hormo
Whistler
cartographer. He
painted portraits i n
the style of Real i sm,
and l ater turned out
abstracted l and
scapes. A strong ad
vocate of 'art for art's
sake', he bel ieved in
the i mportance of the
pai nti ng, rather than
i n its subject matter.
Though Ameri can, Whistl er
l ived and worked mai nl y in
Britai n and France.
Whistl er had no easil y defi ned
style, and had spent most of hi s
l ife travel i ng abroad - hi s work
was mul ti-faceted. His earl i er
pieces were etchi ngs, thanks to
ski l l s he pi cked up worki ng as a
Whi stl er's works have an ex
qui site charm. He is best known
for his nearl y bl ack-and-white
ful l-l ength portrait of his mother
known as 'Whi stl er's Mother'.
To sum up. Whi stl er exerted an
extraordi nary i nfl uence both
on publ i c taste and on future
trends in Bri ti sh art.
44
Tel l Me Why
Why was Edgar Degas diferent?
Edgar Degas was a French artist famous for
hi s work in pai nti ng, scul pture, pri ntmaki ng
and drawi ng. Hi s career was a l ong one, and
hi s style, unl i ke that of most famous arti sts
who worked i nto thei r ol d age, never ceased
devel opi ng, al ways seeki ng out new means
of expression and techni que. Hi s personal
wealth gave hi m the freedom to devote
hi msel f to art, and hi s subjects were usual l y
from hi s own background. Degas al so pai nt
ed portraits of his fami l y and fri ends and a
number of hi stori cal subjects, in whi ch he
combi ned cl assical and romantic styles. I n
the earl y 1 870's, the femal e bal let dancer
The Dance Class' A Painting by Edgar Degas
1 00
Great Pai nters
became his fa
vourite theme. He
sketched from a
l ive model i n hi s
studi o and com
bined poses i nto
groupings that de-
pi cted rehearsal
and performance
scenes.
Degas i s regard
ed as one of the
founders of I mpres
si oni sm, al though
he rejected the
term, and pre
ferred to be cal l ed
a real i st.
Degas's style,
subject matter, and
artistic sensi bi l ity
set hi m apart from
the other I mpres
si oni sts of the
ti me.
45
Why was Winslow Hom
er's work special?
Wi nslow Homer i s consi d
ered one of the foremost
pai nters in 1 9
t
h century
Ameri ca, and one of best
known artists to come out of
the Ci vi l War. He was a l and
scape pai nter and pri ntmak
er, best known for hi s pai nt
i ngs of the sea. Largel y sel f
taught, Homer began hi s ca
reer worki ng as a commerci al
i l l ustrator. He subsequentl y
took up oi l pai nti ng, and pro
duced major studi o works.
Homer's mother was a gif
ed amateur watercol ourist.
She and her son had a close
rel ationshi pthroughoutthei r
l ives with Homer's first
teacher. Hi s early works were
mostly commerci al engrav
i ngs of urban and country
social scenes. They have cl ean
A Painting by Winslow Homer
outl i nes, si mpl ified forms,
and dramati c contrast of
l i ght and dark, as wel l as
l ivel y figure groupi ngs.
Homer al so i l l ustrated
women duri ng war ti me, and
showed the effects of the
war on the home front. He
produced a series of war-re
lated pai nti ngs based on hi s
sketches, among them 'Sharp
shooter on Picket Duty', 'Home,
Sweet Home', and ' Pri soners
from the Front'. After the war,
Homer turned hi s attenti on
pri mari l y to scenes of chi l d
hood and young women. Hi s
l aterworks i ncl ude seascapes
absent of human figures,
mostl y of waves crashi ng
agai nst rocks i n varyi ng l i ght.
Even today, 1 50 years afer
his bi rth, one sees the i nfl u
ence of Homer's watercol
ours in American art.
Why is Paul Ce
zanne considered to
be one of the fore
runners of modern
art?
Paul Cezanne was a
French artist whose
work is said to form the
bridge between l ate
1 9t
h
century I mpres
si oni sm, and the earl y
20th century's new ar
tistic style, Cubi sm. Hi s
work demonstrates a
mastery of desi gn, col
our, composition and
draftsmanshi p.
Cezanne was born i n
the southern French
town of Aix-en-Pro
vence, on January 1 9
t
h
,
1 839, the son of a
weal thy banker.
Cezanne's boyhood
companion was Emi l e
Zol a, who l ater gai ned
fame as a novel i st.
Many of Cezanne's
early works were
pai nted i n dark tones.
Later, Cezanne shifted
from dark tones to
bright hues and began
to concentrate on
scenes of farml and
and rural vi l l ages.
1 00 Great Pai nters
' The Card Players ' - Cezanne 's Painting
Paul Cezanne
Cezanne, who
exhi bited l ittle i n
hi s l ifeti me, is re
garded today as
one of the great
forerunners of
modern pai nti ng,
both for the way
that he managed
to put down on
canvas exactly
what his eye saw
in nature, and for
what he achieved
through a uni que
. treatment of
space, mass, and
col our.
47
Why is Claude Monet considered one of
the foundi ng fathers of I mpressionism?
Cl aude Monet was one of the foundi ng
fathers of French I mpressi oni sm. Hi s l ife
as a pai nter di d not begi n unti l he was
befri ended by Eugene Boudi n, who i ntro
duced Monet to the practice - then un
common - of pai nti ng i n the open ai r. He
then turned away from the traditi onal
style of pai nti ng i nsi de a studi o. Al ong
wi th his fri ends, he went outsi de to the
Fontai nebl eau forest to pai nt. But the
publ i c and art critics ri di culed these new
pai nti ngs that l ooked so di fferent from any
conventi onal art style, and cal l ed them I m
pressi oni st. Though the name was given i n
ri di cul e, it stuck, and the style came to be
known as I mpressi onist style.
In 1 890, Monet began to pai nt systemati
cal l y the same subjects under different l i ght
condi ti ons. The first subjects were the hay
stacks behi nd his house. As the l i ght
changed duri ng the day faster than he
coul d pai nt, he worked si multaneousl y on
several canvases. I n the end, he had pai nted
twenty-five different versions of the hay
stacks!
Many more pai nti ngs fol l owed - the
Rouen Cathedral , views of Venice or the
Thames i n London wi th the Houses of Par
l i ament and other l andmarks 'i n London -
ofen i n the fog. At his home i n Giverny,
Monet created the water-l i l y pond that
served as i nspi rati on for hi s l ast seri es of
pai nti ngs.
Claude Monet
Why is Pierre Renoir cif
ferent from other I mpres
sionist pai nters?
Pi erre Renoir was a French
pai nter ori gi nal l y associated
with the I mpressi oni st move
ment. However, he
differed from the
other I mpressi oni st
pai nters i n that he
was more i nterest
ed in pai nti ng i ndi
vidual s or fami l y
groups than i n
pai nti ng l and
portraits and fi gure pai nt
i ngs, parti cul arl y of women.
Renoi r began work as a
pai nter i n a porcel ai n factory
in Pari s. Later, he began to
study pai nti ng formal ly. I n
scapes. Hi s earl y
works were typi
Pierre Renoir
the earl y
'
1 870's,
Renoi r and hi s
friends joi ned wi th
otherartiststoform
a l oose-knit artistic
circl e now known
as the I mpressi on
ist movement. He
l ater grew di ssatis
fied wi th the formal
restrictions of pure
cal l y I mpressi oni st
snapshots of real l ife, ful l of
sparkl i ng col our and l i ght. By
the mi d-1 880's, however, he
had broken wi th the move
ment to appl y a more di sci
pl i ned, formal techni que to
Berthe Morisot
i mpressi oni sm.
Renoi r i s perhaps the best
loved of al l the I mpressi on
i sts, for hi s subjects-pretty
chi l dren, flowers, beautiful
scenes - have i nstant appeal ,
and he communicated the
joy he took i n them wi th
great di rectness.
B
erthe Morisot was a French painter and
printmaker who was associated with I mpressionism.
She experimented with seascapes but her personal style
developed most markedly during the 1 880's- sketchy, pale
colours and subjects from her own experience including
women, children and domestic life. She was one of the
first women to challenge established ar circles .
Moneesh7odov
, 00 Great Pai
Henri Rousseau's ' Tiger in the Tropical Storm'
How di d Paul Gauguin de
velop his own style?
Paul Gaugui n is considered
one of the l eadi ng pai nters of
the post i mpressi oni st period.
Gaugui n began hi s career as a
stockbroker i n Pari s 1 872. He
attended the I mpressionist's
first exhi bition in 1 874, and was
captivated by the i mpressi oni st
style. In 1 883, the bank that
employed Gaugui n experienced
fi nancial difficulties, and hefound
hi mself free to pai nt ful l -ti me.
Much of hi s work duri ng thi s
period was i nfl uenced by the
I mpressi oni sts, especi al l y Pis
sarro. Later, he began to adopt
his own i ndependent style.
50
Why is Henri
Rousseau con
sidered the most
famous un
trained painter?
Henri Rousseau
created some of
the most popul ar
and memorabl e
pai nti ngs of the
modern era. He
never received
any formal trai n
i ng, and hi s work
therefore, has an
Tel l Me Why
i
nnocence and charm that made
his pai nti ngs very famous. Ri di
cul ed duri ng hi s l i fe, he came to
be recognized as a self-taught
geni us whose works are
of hi gh arti sti c qual ity.
Rousseau is cel ebrated
for hi s vi si onary jungl e
pai nti ngs whi ch capti
vate the viewer with the
l ushness of thei r pl ant
and ani mal l ife. The
scenes are pai nted with
i ncredi bl e detai l and
preci si on. What i s amaz-
i ng is that the artist never saw
the tropi cal scenes he brought
so much to l ife, as he never l eft
France! Hi s exotic j ungl e pai nt
i ngs are the fantasi es of a
city dwel l er, constructed
from vi si ts to the zoo and
botani cal gardens, from
postcards, books, and from
Rousseau's own vivid i m
agi nati on. Rousseau
cl ai med he had ' no teacher
other than nature', and hi s
works have i nfl uenced l ater
pai nters, i ncl udi ng Pi casso.
Gaugui n's break
wi th the I mpressi on
i sts came when he
pai nted 'Vi si on after
the Sermon', where
he tried to depict the
i nner feel i ngs of hi s
subjects. This pai nti ng
al so marked the start
ofa new pai nti ng styl e
Paul Gauguin
that cameto be known
as 'Symbolism'.
1 00
Great Pai nters
Gaugui n spent the l ast years of his l i fe i n
Tahi ti, an i sl and i n the Pacific Ocean. I n
Tahiti, hi s pai nti ng style evolved to reflect
the Pacific I sl ands' pri mi tive forms and
bri l l i ant col ours. Hi s stri ki ng i mages of
Pol ynesi an women rank among the most
beautiful pai nti ngs of the modern age.
51
Raja Ravi Varma
A Family of Beggars
A Lady Playing Swarbat
Arjuna and Subhadra
Damayanti Talking to a
Swan
Draupadi Dreading to
Meet Kichaka
Girl in Sage Kanwa's
Hermitage
Jatayu
Lady Giving Alms at the
Temple
Lady Lost i n Thought
Lady with Fruit
Lord Krishna as
Ambassador
Lord Rama Conquers
Varuna
Nair Woman
Romancing Couple
Shakuntala
Shantanu and
Matsyagandhi
Swarbat Player
The Hearbroken
The Orchestra
Victory of I ndrajit
52
Why is Raja Ravi Varma considered
a vital l i nk between I ndi an and Euro
pean art'
Raja Ravi Varma i s known for hi s
amazi ng pai nti ngs, whi ch revolve
mai nl y around the great epics of Ma
habharata and Ramayana. He i s one of
the few pai nters who have managed to
accompl i sh a beautiful uni son of the
I ndi an traditi ons wi th the techniques
of European art.
At the age of seven, he started draw-
Some Paintings by Raja Ravi Varma
i ng on the pal ace wal l s usi ng charcoal
Hi s uncl e noticed Ravi Varma's tal ent,
and gave hi m prel i mi nary l essons i n
pai nti ng. At the age of fourteen, the
Maharaja took hi m to the Travancore
Pal ace, and he was taught water col our
pai nti ng by the pal ace pai nter Rama
Swamy Nai du. He was l ater given l es
sons rn oi l pai nti ng by a Bri ti sh pai nter,
Theodor Jenson. His exposure in the
west came when he won the first prize
i n the Vi enna Art Exhi bi ti on in 1 873.
Raja Ravi Varma i s most remembered
for his pai nti ngs of beautiful sari cl ad
Tel l Me Why
Georges
Seurat
A Painting by Georges Seurat .
Why will Georges Seurat
always be remembered?
Georges Seurat was a
French pai nter and drafts
man. Hi s l arge work 'Sunday
Afternoon on the I sl and of La
Grande Jatte/ i s hi s most fa
mous pai nti ng. It altered the
di rection of modern art, and
is one of the i cons of

gt
century pai nti ng.
Georges Seurat is the ul ti
mate exampl e of the artist as
scientist. He spent hi s l ife
studyi ng col our theories,
and the effects of diferent
women, who were portrayed as
very shapel y and graceful . He is
consi dered as a modern among
traditi onal i sts, and a rati onal ist
among moderns. Ravi Varma
traveled throughout I ndi a i n
search of subjects. He often
model ed Hi ndu goddesses on
South I ndi an women, whom he
consi dered beautifut Raja Ravi
1 00 Great Pai nters
l i near structures. His 500
drawi ngs al one establ i sh
Seurat as a great master. He
wi l l al ways be remembered
for his techni que of portray
ing l i ght usi ng tiny brush
strokes of contrasting col
ours. This technique became
known as pointillism. Using this
techni que, he created huge
compositions with tiny, de
tached strokes of pure col our
too smal l to be disti ngui shed
when l ooking at the entire
work, but maki ng his paint
ings shi mmer with bri l l i ance.
Varma was undoubtedl y one of
the greatest pai nters i n the hi s
tory of I ndi an arts. He brought
I ndi an pai nti ng to the attenti on
of the l arger worl d , and provid
ed a vital l i nk between tradi
ti onal I ndi an art and contem
porary art. He was known as ' A
pri nce among pai nters and A
pai nter among pri nces'.
53
A Sel - portrait of
Van Gogh
Van Gogh and
Paul Gaugi n were
good fri ends.
Van Gogh suffered
from temporal
lobe epi l epsy.
At the age ofthi rty
seven,Van Gogh shot
hi mself i n a wheat
field in Auvers, France,
but di d not di e unti l
two days later .
Several works by
Van Gogh rank
among the most
expensive pai ntings
i n the worl d.
I n 1 987, Van Gogh's
. pai nti ng ' I rises' was
sold for a record
$53.9 mi l l i on. In 1 990,
his 'Portrait of Doctor
Gachet' was sold for
$82.5 mi l l i on, thus
establ i shi ng a new
price record.
54
Why is Vi ncent van Gogh one ofthe
world's greatest pai nters?
Vi ncent van Gogh is general l y con
si dered the greatest Dutch pai nter after
Rembrandt. Hi s work was produced
duri ng a peri od of only ten years. I t
haunti ngl y conveys through its stri ki ng
col our, brushwork, and forms, the an-
' The Potato Eaters
'
by Van Gogh
gui sh of a mental i l l ness that eventual ly
resul ted i n sui ci de.
Among Van Gogh' s masterpi eces are
numerous sel f-portraits, and the wel l
known The Starry Ni ght'. Al though he
Vi ncent's Brother , Theo
Vi ncent's brother,Theo was an
ar dealer in Paris. He regularly sent
money from his own income to
Vincent to allow hi m to paint.Theo
was devoted to Vincent, and chris
tened his son Vincent Willem.Vin
cent relied heavily on Theo to sup
por him throughout his life as an
arist.Theo was devastated by Vin-
Tel l Me Why
ofen suffered
from extreme
poverty and un
dernouri shment,
his output in the
ten productive
years of hi s l i fe
was amazi ng
about 800 pai nt
i ngs and a si mi l ar number of draw
i ngs. l n keepi ng with his humanitari an
outl ook, he pai nted peasants and
workers, the most famous picture
from thi s period bei ng 'The Potato
Eaters'.
He sold onl y one pai nti ng duri ng
hi s l i feti me ' Red Vi neyard at Ari es,'
and was l ittl e known to the art worl d
at the ti me of his death. However, hi s
fame spread rapi dl y thereafer. Hi s
stormy and dramati c l ife, and hi s un
swervi ng devotion to hi s i deal s have
made hi m one of the great cul tural
heroes of al l ti mes.
cent's death, and survived him by
only six months, dying on
25th
January 1 891 .They were buried
side by side in the cemetery at Au
vers.Vincent wrote regularly to his
brother Theo and it is mainly
through the existence of this cor
respondence that we know so
much about him today.
BAnkf Kour
' 00 Great Pai nters
Van Gogh's
Masterpiece
The Starry Night
was the masterpiece
painted byVan Gogh
while he was in a
mental asyl um. Van
Gogh painted furi
ously, and'The Starry
Night' vi brates with
rockets of burning
yellow, while planets
turn like cartwheels.
The hills quake and
heave, yet the cosm ic
gold fireworks that
swirl against the blue
sky are somehow
restful. This painting
is probably the most
popular of Vincent's
w9rks.
55
Why was James Ensor differ
ent from hi s peers?
James Ensor, a Bel gi an pai nter,
printmaker, and draftsman, lived
i n Ostend, Bel gi um, al l his l ife. He
began his artistic career as a por
trait pai nter, but l ater rebel-
l i ousl yincorporatedcontroversi al
J
ames Ensor
themes, col ours, and
shapes i nto hi s work.
In 1 884, he hel ped to
found the art group
cal l ed 'Les Vi ngts', but hi s
preference for sol itude
l ed hi m away from the
group. Ensor's focus on
morbi d subjects such as
skul l s and corpses i n his
earl y work i ncited criti
cism from the publ ic.
Ensor's most famous
picture is 'The Entry of
Christ i nto Brussel s'. It is a very controversi al and
l arge pai nti ng, i n bright, even gari sh col ours,
pai nted i n a del i berately crude styl e. Most peopl e
are shown weari ng masks that cannot be di stin-
gui shed from thei r true faces. Ensor i dentified
with the martyred Christ, and he used his own
features for the face of Christ.
Al though hi s pai nti ngs became more tradi
ti ona I l ater i n hi s l ife, Ensor is noted for those ear
l i er pai nti ngs because of thei r si gnificance in the
transition from the style known symbol i sm to sur
real istic style of pai nti ng.
Why is it said that Gustav Klimt was i n
spired by different styles?
Gustav Kl i mt was an Austri an symbol i st
pai nter, and one of the most promi nent
members of the Vienna Art Nouveau move
ment. Hi s major works i ncl ude pai nti ngs,
mural s, sketches, and other art objects, and
hi s pri mary subject was the femal e body.
Kl i mt became one of the foundi ng mem-
Gustav Klimt
bers and presi dent of the Vi enna Art Noveau
Movement. The group's goal s were to pro
vide exhi bi ti ons for unconventi onal young
artists, to bri ng the best forei gn artists' works
to Vi enna, and to publ i sh its own magazi ne
to showcase members' work. The group di d
not set out to encourage any parti cul ar style
- Natural i sts, Real ists, and Symbol i sts al l co
existed.
Kl i mt's ' Gol den Phase' was marked by
positive cri ti cal reaction
and success. Many of hi s
pai nti ngsfrom thi s period
uti l ized gol d leaf. His
painting method was very
del i berate and pai nstak
i ng, and at ti mes he re
qui red l engthy sitti ngs by
hi s subjects. Art hi storians
note a wi de range of i n fl u
ences contri buti ng to
Kl i mt's di sti nct styl e, i n
cl udi ngEgypti an, Mi noan,
cl assical Greek, and Byz-
'Hope ' Gustav Klimt's Painting
anti ne i nspi rations.
What were the contribu
tions of Paul Signac?
Paul Si gnac was a French
pai nter, one of the ori gi na
tors of the techni que known
as poi nti l l i sm, or divi si on i sm.
Under the i nfl uence of
Georges Seurat, he aban
doned the short brushstrokes
of i mpressi oni sm to experi
ment with smal l dots of pure
col our, i ntended to combi ne
and blend, not on the canvas,
but in the viewer's eye. Thi s
was the mai n feature of what
i s known as poi nti l l i sm.
Many of Si gnac's pai nti ngs
are of the French coast. He
lef the capital each summer,
to stay in the South of France
in the vi l l age of Col l i oure or
at St. Tropez, where he
bought a house and i nvited
hi s friends. Si gnac loved sai l
i ng, and he began to travel i n
1 892, sai l i ng a smal l boat to
al most al l the ports of France,
to Hol land, and around the
Mediterranean as far as Con
stanti nopl e. From hi s vari ous
ports of cal l , Si gnac brought
back vibrant, colourul water
col ours, sketched rapidly from
nature. From these sketches,
he pai nted l arge studi o can
vases that are careful l y
worked out i n smal l , mosaic
l i ke squares of col our, quite
diferent from the ti ny, varie
gated dots previ ousl y used
by Seurat.
Si gnac hi msel f experi
mented with various medi a.
He made etchi ngs, l itho
graphs, and many pen-and
i nk sketches composed of
smal l , l abori ous dots.
Tel l Me Why
Why did Edvard
Munch become one
of the most noted fig
ures i n modern art?
The Norwegi an artist
Edvard Munch i s re
garded as a pi oneer in
the expressi onist move-
Edvard Munch
ment in modern pai nt
i ng. He grew up in Nor
way's capi tal , Oslo and
began to pai nt to ex
press hi s grief after the
death of hi s mother
and ol der si ster. Hi s l ife
was ful l of tragedy. Hi s
father and brother had
al so di ed when he was
young, and another
si ster was al so i n a psy
chiatric hospital. Munch
turned agai n and agai n
t
o the memory of i l l -
1 00 Great Painters
ness, death, and grief i n his art. Munch
attended courses i n the pai nti ng at the
Royal School of Drawi ng, and was i n
structed for a ti me by Norway's l eadi ng
arti st, Chri sti an Krohg.
One of Munch's most famous pai nt
i ngs i s 'The Scream'. I t i s often described
as the first expressi oni stic picture, and
i s the most extreme exampl e of Munch' s
'soul pai nti ngs' . Hi s work often i ncl uded
the symbol ic portrayal of such themes
as mi sery, si ckness, and death.
Between 1 892 and 1 908, Munch spent
much of his time i n Pari s and Berl i n,
where he became known for hi s pri nts
etchi ngs, l ithographs, and woodcuts.
After 1 91 0, Munch returned to Norway,
where he l ived and pai nted unti l hi s
death. I n hi s l ater pai nti ngs. Munch
showed more i nterest i n nature.
' The
Scream'
A Painting
by Edvard
Munch
59
60
Why was Henri
Toulouse considered
to be a man of strong
wi l l ?
Henri Toul ouse was
a l eadi ng artist whose
painti ngs, lithographs,
and posters contrib
uted much to the de
vel opment of Art
Nouveau i nthe 1 890's.
He was al so a harsh
and witty chroni cl er of
the gaudy ni ghtl ife and
the sordi d el ements of
l ate 1 9th century Paris
ian society.
Toul ouse had to
fi ght agai nst many
disadvantages. He had
two acci dents that
cri ppl ed hi m, and al so
a speech probl em. But
he was determi ned to
succeed as an artist.
He haunted the dance
hal l s and ni ghtcl ubs
of Montmartre i n Paris,
taki ng hi s subjects
from hi s observations
of what occurred on
stage and among the
patrons. He chose aci d
and gari sh col ours and
.
adopted a drawi ng style that i s al
most grotesque in its exaggera
ti ons.
Toul ouse's career spanned l ess
than twenety years. Duri ng thi s pe
riod, he created 737 canvases, 275
watercol ours, 363 pri nts and post
ers, 5,084 drawi ngs, some cerami c
and stai ned gl ass work, and an un
known number of l ost works. Tou
louse i s known al ong wi th Cezanne,
Van Gogh, and Gaugui n as one of
the greatest pai nters of the Post
I mpressi onist period. He excel l ed at
capturi ng peopl e i n thei r worki ng
envi ronment, with the col our and
the movement of the gaudy ni ght
l i fe present, but the gl amour
stri pped away . . . and therei n l ay hi s
greatness.
'Alone ' - A Painting by Henri Toulouse
Wassily
Kandinsk
A Painting by Wassily Kandinsk
Why was Wassily Kandin
sky's style si gnificant?
Wassi l y Kandi nsky was one of
the most ori gi nal and i nfl uenti al
artists of the 20thcentury. His
style of pai nti ng is si gnificant
because it pl ayed an i mportant
rol e i n the devel opment of ab
stract art. He used shapes and
squi ggles to symbol ize hi s i deas
and hi s state of the mi nd. Thi s
Russi an born artist was al so an
accompl i shed musi ci an, and he
bel ieved that col our and musi
cal harmony are l i nked. He even
cl ai med that when he saw col
our he heard musi c!
Now consi dered to be the
founder of abstract art, Kandi n-
1 00 Great Painters
sky's work was exhi bited
throughout Europe from 1 903
onwards, and ofen caused
controversy among the publ ic,
the art critics, and his contem
porari es.
Kandi nsky conti nued to fur
ther express and defi ne hi s form
of art, both on canvas and i n hi s
theoretical writi ngs. Hi s reputa
tion became fi rml y establ i shed
i n the United States through
numerous exhi bi ti ons.
Kandi nsky conti nued pai nt
i ng al most ti l l his death. Hi s un
rel enti ng quest for new art
forms have provided us with an
unparal l el ed col l ection of ab
stract art.
61
Why did Henri Matisse become popular?
Henri Mati sse is an artist who i s often re
garded as the most i mportant French
pai nter ofthe 20th century. Hi s artistic career
was l ong and varied, coveri ng many difer
ent styles of pai nti ng from I mpressi oni sm
to near Abstraction. Earl y on, i n hi s career,
Matisse was viewed as a Fauvist, and hi s
cel ebrati on of bri ght col ours reached its
peak in 1 91 7.
Do you know who the Fauvists were?
They were artists whose style of pai nti ng
fl ouri shed i n France from 1 898 to 1 908.
Fauvists used pure, bri l l i ant col our, appl i ed
strai ght from the pai nt tubes in an aggres
sive, di rect manner to create a sense of an
explosion on the canvas. The Fauvists painted
di rectly from nature as the I mpressioni sts
had before them, but thei r works were i n
vested wi th a strong ex
pressive reaction to the
subjects they pai nted.
Matisse's art has an as
toni shi ng force, and he
produced some of the
most powerful beauty
ever pai nted. I s it any
wonder then that his
Henri Matisse
works are so popul ar?
Abanindranath
Tagore
What was the
specialty of Abanin
dranath Tagore's
paintings?
Aba n i n d r a na t h
Tagore was the
l eadi ng pai nter of
Bengal . He coun
tered the Bri ti sh Raj
through hi s pai nt
i ngs. Duri ng hi s
ti me, Western mod
el s of art were
taught in the art
school s under the
British Raj. Tagore
tried to modernize
Mughal and Rajput
styles to ofset thei r
i nfl uence. He suc
ceeded, and hi s
style was accepted
as a natural I ndi an
style.
Tagore devel -
Tel l Me Why
'Bharat Mata
'
A Painting by
Abanindranath Tagore
oped an i nterest i n wa
ter col ours whi l e study
i ng at the Cal cutta
School of Art. He creat
ed some pai nti ngs
based on the l i fe of Lord
Kri shna. These pai nt
i ngs show a strong i n
fl uence of the Mughal
style. I n hi s l ater works
he drew on Chi nese
and Japanese cal l i
graphi c traditi ons. Cal
l i graphy i s the art of
decorative writi ng.
Abani ndranath Tagore
was a nephew of Rab
i
ndranath Tagore.
1 00 Great Pai nters
Why S t S0 tht Fet
M0n0tnchnge0thehS-
t0ty0fpntng!
Have you heard of cubi sm?
Cubi sm i s a style of pai nti ng
that makes use of si mpl e geo
metric shapes. Piet Mondri
an's brush with cubi sm at an
exhi bi ti on i n Amsterdam
proved to be a turni ng poi nt.
He gave up pai nti ng natural
forms. Exhi bi ti ons i n Pari s
and Berl i n gave hi m i nterna
ti onal fame.
Stranded i n HoI
l and by Worl d War
I, Mondri an and
Theo Van Does
burg started a
magazi ne cal l ed
The Styl e'. They
Piet
were
comm
itted
Mondr
ian
to purifyi ng modern art and
bri ngi ng i t to the masses.
Mondri an pai nted squares
and rectangl es in pri mary
col ours, on a white back
ground, divided by bl ack
bands. He ai med for a spi ritu
al experi ence. Though Mon
dri an grew up i n a strict rel i
gi ous fami ly, he rebel l ed and
l ived out the l ife of an artist -
an artist who made hi story.
How di d the political conditions in his
country affect Kasi mi r Mal evi ch?
Kasi mi r Mal evich was a Russi an pai nter. He
pai nted si mpl e geometric forms. Hi s geomet
ric square, cross and rectangl e were meant to
show the ' supremacy of forms'. These forms
were associ ated wi th ideas of spi ritual purity.
Thi s is Suprematism, and Mal evich, the son of
a factory foreman, created thi s new style
of pai nti ng. ' Bl ack square' and 'White on
White' are his most famous works.
The young Soviet Uni on was a ferti l e
ground for artists. Mal evich was a bri l
l i ant speaker, and a man of great charm.
Suprematism became the styl e for eve
rythi ng. Fi l m posters, cerami cs, and even
texti l es were designed in thi s style. How
ever, i n the late 1 920's unfavourabl e po
l itical wi nds rocked Supremati sm and
Mal evi ch. The State ordered that art
shoul d gl orify pol itical and soci al ideal s.
Mal evich was margi nalized, and even arrested
once. In 1 932, Stal i n banned i ndependent art
movements and Suprematism was si l enced.
Kasimir
Malevich
Why is it said that Paul Klee was very
deeply influenced by music?
' The Rose Garden '
by Paul Klee
Paul Kl ee's parents were musi ci ans who
passed on thei r love for music to hi m. Kl ee
was a tal ented vi ol i ni st whose musi c i nfl u
enced hi s art. Klee's earl iest works were penci l
l andscapes. 'Taki ng a l i ne for a wal k', was how
he described hi s drawi ngs. Dream l i ke i mages
made hi s pai nti ngs uni que. Hi s art combi ned
strange and fai ry tale l i ke qual ities. He gave
64
Tel l Mp Whv
Paul Klee
them poetic titl es
such as 'Two Men
Meet, Each Bel iev
ing the Other to Be
of Hi gher Rank'. He
1 00 Great Pai nters
What were Franz Marc's interpre
tations of different colours?
Franz Marc fol l owed i n his father's
footsteps, and became a pai nter. He was
i mpressed by the paintings of Gaugui n
and Van Gogh.
I n 1 9 1 0, he wrote a famous letter to
hi s pai nter-fri end August Macke. In it,
he gave emoti onal val ues to col ours.
He descri bed bl ue as the mal e pri nci
pl e, yel l ow as the gentl e femal e pri n
ci ple, and red as the heavy matter
which was to be opposed, and over
come by the other two.
In 1 91 1 , he began a series of pai nt
ings of ani mal s. Hi s reputation rests
on these pai nti ngs. By 1 91 4, Marc's
work had become abstract, that is he
di d not present real ity as such i n hi s
pai nti ngs. Duri ng the war, he kept a
notebook with drawi ngs for hi s pai nt
i ngs. H never created those pai nt
i ngs. In March 1 91 6, Franz Marc was
struck dead by a shel l spl i nter.
al so i ncl uded l etters and numbers in hi s
works.
A trip to Tunisi a turned hi m to the use of
col our. 'Red and White Domes' was pai nted
duri ng thi s peri od.
I n 1 925, he publ i shed an essay on art
theory cal l ed 'Pedagogi cal Sketchbook'. I n
1 93 1 , he began teachi ng at the Dussel dorf
Academy, but was soon di smissed by the
Nazi s. 'Sti l l Life' was hi s l ast pai nti ng.
65
Ferand Leger
66
Why i s Fernand Leger regarded
as a giant of French painting?
Fernand Leger fai l ed the entrance
exam to a presti gi ous French art
school , but went on to become a gi
ant of French pai nti ng. I n 1 909, he
was ranked as one of the three major
cubists. Cubi sts used geometri cal
forms i n thei r pai nti ngs. Leger gave
i mportance to cyl i ndrical forms, and
hi s form of cubism is cal l ed tubi sm.
He was a member of the breakaway
Puteaux group of cubi sts. He saw ac
tion duri ng the Fi rst Worl d War. This
changed his ideas about art forever.
He di scovered the beauty of com
mon objects, whi ch he descri bed as
'everyday poetic i mages'. He began
pai nti ng i n a cl ean, accurate style.
Leger pai nted objects si mply, in bol d
col ours.
In 1 924, he made a fi l m, ' Bal let
Mecanique'. In it he compared ma
chi nes and l ifeless objects with hu
mans and thei r body parts. I n 1 945,
he joi ned the communi st party, and
hi s pai nti ng style changed agai n. He
created l arge pai nti ngs cel ebrati ng
the peopl e i n cl ear, fl at col ours. Acro
bats, cycl i sts and bui l ders al l came to
l ife in his pai nti ngs. He al so produced
stai ned gl ass wi ndows, book i l l ustra
ti ons, and mosaics. In 1 950 he
founded a ceramics studio at Bi ot. I t
became a nati onal museum i n1 967.
Tel l Me Why
Picasso's
Fi rst Word
It is as if Picasso
was born an ar
ist. His Hrst word
was 'piz', the
Spanish word
for pencil.
Why is Pablo Picasso one of
the great painters of the
world?
Theoneand only Pabl o Picasso,
created more than 20,000 works
in his l i feti me."Each time I had
somethi ng to say, I sai d it i n the
way, I fel t was right". The Mi das
touch of thi s geni us fel l on ceram-
ics, scul pture, and print maki ng.
'Picador' was Pi casso's first pai nti ng - a
bul lfight scene whi ch he pai nted at the
age of ei ght. Art hi stori ans have di vi ded
Picasso's art i nto periods. Sad subject
matter and cool bl ue shades mark Pi
casso's ' Bl ue Period', dati ng from 1 901 -
1 904. Most of hi s subjects duri ng thi s
.
ti me are shown as bl i nd, such as 'The
Ol d Guitarist.' Bl i ndness was shown as
an outer si gn of i nner vi si on.
The 'Rose Peri od,' fol l owed. Pi casso
preferred pi nk shades duri ng thi s peri
od. Dancers and acrobats were among
hi s subjects. His pai nti ng, 'Demoi sel l es
d'Avi gnon,' shocked the publ ic. The
pai nti ng represented the femal e form
by usi ng geometrical shapes. Thi s was
later termed Cubi sm. 'Head of a Woman'
and 'The Three Musicians,' are hi s most
famous cubist paintings. In 1 91 2, he cre
ated the art form now known as col lage
when he pasted an oil cl oth to the paint
i ng 'Still Life in a Chai r'. He developed
the cubist techni que from 1 91 8 -1 925 -
the cl assical period in Picasso's rt .
6
Guernica
Pablo Picasso's world famous monu
mental mural Guernica, is a depiction
of war tragedies. It became a powerul
image of the destructive forces that
threaten human l ife.
Picasso painted it when he heard of
the bombing of the Spanish town of
Guernica, on April 26 th, 1 937. Those
were the days of Civil War in Spain,
fought between right - wing National
ists, and lef wing Republicans. On
that day, German fighter planes de
stroyed Guernica, where Republican
' Guerica'
troops were gathered. The Germans
did this to suppor General Franco and
his soldiers, who were conducting a
coup against the Republican govern
ment of Spain. Guernica became a
powerul symbol of the brutal Spanish
Civil War. Guernica is not a colourul
creation, Picasso banished all colours
from this painting except shades of
grey, black, and white. Guernica
stands as a timeless image of violence
waged against human civilization.
68
What were the
contributions of
Umberto Boccioni?
Umberto Boccioni
was the l eader of the
futurist movement,
whi ch embraced the
present, and rejected
the past. I ndustrial i
sation, technology,
and movement were
the watchwords of
futuri sm. Bocci oni
was born i n Rome.
When he was sixteen,
he began studyi ng
art with Gi acamo
Bal l a. Bal l a i ntro
duced hi m to neo
i mpressioni sm. Tiny
dots of vari ous pure
colours whi ch be
came bl ended i n the
viewer's eye were
used in neo i mpres
si oni sm.
Fi l i ppo Tomasso
Mari netti turned
Bocci oni i nto a futur
ist. Boccioni bel ieved
that a sense of move
ment was i mporant
i n art. He was the
chief contri butor to
the theory of ' mobi l e
scul ptures'. 'The City
Tel l Me Why
' The Cit Rises ' A painting by Boccioni
Rises' was hi s first major futuri sti c
work. I t showed the growth of the
modern i ndustri al city and the peopl e
l ivi ng i n it. I n 1 91 1 , he was i ntroduced
to cubi sm. 'State of Mi nd,' and 'Forces
of a Street,' are two of his i mportant
creati ons. Bocci oni was ki l l ed i n a ri d
i ng acci dent i n 1 91 6.
ST
<
R FACT
Picasso's Ful l name
Long name, lasting fame,that
is Picasso for you. Picasso's full
name was Pablo Diego Jose
Francisco de Paula Juan Nepo
muceno Maria de los Remedios
Cipriano de la Santisima Trini
dad Clito Ruiz Picasso. He was
named afer various saints and
relatives. The 'Picasso' is actu
ally from his mother's name,
Maria Picasso Lopez
.
1 00 Great Pai nters
The Medici Family
The Medici family in
Italy were enormous
ly powerful and rich,
making their money
in banking and exer
ing their power by
ruling Florence for
over 300 years.
Lorenzo de' Medici,
who was in power at
the time of Michel
angelo, owned a col
lection of fragments
of antique scul ptures
which were kept in
the garden of San
Marco. Lorenzo de'
Medici allowed ar
ists to study the
sculptures, includ
ing, it would seem,
the young
Michelangelo, who
was allowed to work
there, staying in the
Medici household.
Medici undoubtedly
saw great talent in
Michelangelo, and
helped his career as
an arist. Lorenzo
Medici died in 1 492,
and was succeeded
by his son Pier de'
Medici who contin
ued the family line.
69
' Violin and Pipe ' -
A Painting by Georges Braque
What made Georges Braque different
from hi s contemporaries?
Georges Braque was a house pai nter
who became an outstandi ng professi onal
pai nter. He pai nted houses during the day,
and attended art cl asses i n the eveni ngs.
After seei ng an exhi bi ti on of the pai nter
Paul Cezanne, he establ i shed a studi o for
hi mself, and began to pai nt seriousl y. He
destroyed hi s first pai nti ngs afer exhi bit
ing them. Al l these were pai nted in the les
fauve style which made use of bri l l i ant
col ours. He met Pabl o Picasso. They trans
lated nature i nto pai nti ngs through 'cyl i n
ders, cones and cubes'. Thi s was the origi n
of cubist pai nti ngs.
' House at L'Estaque' and 'Road Near
L'Estaq ue' a re two of Braq ue' s best known
works of this period. 'Vi ol i n and Candl e-
70
Georges Braque
stick' is Braque's
most famous pai nt
ing during hi s ti me
wi th Picasso. I n 1 91 2,
he and Picasso i n
vented the col l age
styl e of art. Braque
pasted strips of wal l
paper on to pai nted
canvasses. 'Sti l l Life
on a Tabl e: Gi l l ette'
and 'The Vi ol i n' are
Tel l Me Why
What was the relation
between Nandal al Bose and
Abani ndranath Tagore?
Abani ndranath Tagore was the painting guru, and
Nandal al Bose was hi s favourite di sci pl e. Nandal al Bose
had art i n his heart. Not surpri si ngly, he fai l ed in his Fi ne
Arts exami nation twice. Nandal al stumbled upon the pai nt
i ngs of Abani ndranath Tagore and real ized that he had
found hi s future guru. The shy Nandal al took hi s
cl assmate Sat yen to speak to Abani ndranath on hi s
behalf. Abani ndranath was i mpressed by Nan
dalal 's pai nti ngs, and took hi m under hi s wi ngs.
Nandal al started wi th the ' I ndi an style'of pai nti ng
before bl azi ng an al ternative style at Rabi ndranath
Tagore's Kal a Bhavan. The mural pai nti ngs of the
Ajanta caves i nfl uenced hi m. He created a bl ack and
white l i nocut print of Gandhi i n 1 930. Thi s pri nt is a
masterpiece. Jawaharl al Nehru i nvited hi m to desi gn
the embl ems of the Government of I ndia's awards
i ncl ud i ng the ' Bha rath Ratna' a nd the 'Pad mash ri'.
Nandalal's pai nti ngs are widel y regarded as
I ndia's best modern pai nti ngs.
among hi s i mportant col l ages.
After Worl d War I I , he took an
i nterest i n Zen Buddhism. His
pai nti ngs turned i nto a search
for the spi ritual . I mages of birds
i n fl i ght domi nated his l ater
works.
1 00 Great Painters
Nandalal Bose
71
'Chop Suey' A Painting by Edward Hopper
Whay was Edward Hopper differen
from hi contemporaries?
Edward Hopper suffered from spel l s of
sadness. He pai nted seri ous fi gures,
mostl y women. The severity and the
Why di d Amedeo Modigllani become
one of the most celebrated painters of
h t y ti c . ury'
Amedeo Modi gl i ani pai nted in the
shadow of poverty. He mostl y pai nted
portraits. A portrait i s an artistic represen
tation of a person, especi al ly of the face or
head and shoul ders. The portraits of hi s
fri ends are styl ized, that i s pai nted i n a
non real i sti c style, but they are recogniz
abl e.
Modi gl i ani was al so a scul ptor. He
scul pted el egant heads i n hi s el ongated
styl e from l i mestone. Modi gl i ani was at-
72
harsh l ighti ng of hi s
pai nti ngs, and the se
ri ous fi gures who are
barel y more al ive
than the furniture
capture the attention
of the viewer. Hi s
commonpl ace i mag
es convey the sense
of l onel i ness that l ives
in the city. Hi s pai nt
i ngs are true to l ife,
they are l andmarks of
Ameri can real i sm.
The essenti al ele
ment of i magi nati on'
gave l i fe to his pai nt
i ngs. 'Automat' i s a
typical Hopper pai nt-
tractive, with ' bl ack
hai r and the most
beautiful dark eyes',
but dri nk destroyed
Tel l Me Why
i ng. Hopper studi ed
pai nti ng at the New
York School of Art. He
visited Paris, but he
was not afected by
the art movements of
the city. He married
Jo Nivi son, hersel f an
artist. They had a stu
di oapartment i n New
York. The marri age
cut short Nivison's
career in art, but Ed
ward Hopperbecame
one of America's best
loved arti sts.
Amedeo Modigliani
hi m. He di ed at the
age of thi rty six. Hi s
distinctive style
made hi m one of
the most cel ebrat
ed pai nters of the
twentieth century.
1 00 Great Pai nters
Why is Jami ni Roy known as
an arti st with hi s own identi
ty?
Jami ni Roywas born i n Bengal
duri ng the Bri ti sh rul e. He
trai ned i n the Western style of
'Mother
and Child' by
Jamini Roy
pai nti ng at
the Govern
ment School
of Art i n Cal
cutta, but he
turned to the
l ivi ng fol k
and tri bal art
for i nspi ra
ti on. The bold
s w e e p i n g
brush-strokes
ofKalighat Pat
i n f l u e n c e d
hi m greatly.
In the1 920's,
he began hi s
first peri od of experi mentation,
wi th the Santhal dance as the
starti ng poi nt. He wanted to
capture the si mpl icity i n the l ife
of the fol k peopl e i n hi s pai nt
i ngs. He al so wanted to make
art accessi bl e to a wi der section
of peopl e, and to give I ndi an
art its own i dentity. Hi s work
has been wi del y exhi bi ted.
Jami ni Roy was awarded the
Padma Bhusan i n 1 955.
'Iand the Village ' A Painting by
Marc Chagall
What were the contributions of
Marc Chagal l ?
As a boy, Marc Chagal l dreamt of a
career i n pai nti ng. He copied i l l ustra
tions from magazines. At the age of
twenty, he lef his native Russi an vil-
'Solitude ' by Marc Chagall
74
l age, and entered the i m
peri al School for Protec
tion of the Arts in St. Pe
tersburg. Duri ng thi s
ti me, he pai nted 'The
Dead Man,' - a funeral
scene i n hi s home town
whi ch al so i ncl udes a
man pl ayi ng fiddle on a
rooftop. He vi si ted Pari s.
There he developed a
personal style that com
bi ned memori es of hi s
native vi l l age and the ele
ments of fantasy. 'I and
the Vi l lage,' and 'The
Drunkard' were pai nted
in thi s style.
He returned to Russi a
i n 1 91 6, and married Bel l a
Rosenfi el d. He l ocked
horns with the pol i ti cal
l eaders of Russi a. Hi s ' Fly
i ng Green Cows and Up
si de down Gi rl s,' di d not
go down well wi th them,
and they pressured hi m
i nto leavi ng Vitebsk. He
emi grated to Berl i n i n
Tel l Me Why
A Work by
Marcel Duchamp
1 922. He visited I srael ,
and began a new medi
um of art i n stai ned gl ass.
He designed twelve
stai ned gl ass wi ndows
symbol i zi ng the twelve
1 00 Great Pai nters
Why is it said that Marcel Duchamp
exerted a strong influence on twen
tieth century radical art?
Marcel Duchamp was an arti st who
opposed the l aws of art. He made
'ready-mades'. Ready-made art took
objects out of their normal setti ng, and
showed them in a diferent way. A bi cy
cle tyre mounted upsi de down on a
kitchen stool is an exampl e of ready
made a rt. Ready-made art was a suc
cess. l t brought Duchamptothe United
States from France. He co-founded the
'Societe Anonyme' in New York City to
promote modern ar.
Duchamp created a reproducti on of
'Mona Li sa' by Leonardo da Vi nci to
whi ch he added a moustache and a
goatee, a poi nted beard l i ke that of a
goat! Hi s famous scul pture is 'Large
Gl ass,' - a construction of l ead wi re and
pai nted foi l on two gl ass pl ates. It is al so
referred to as The Bride Stripped Bare
by Her Bachel ors, Even'. Duchamp
turned to radi cal art after hi s pai nti ng
' Nude Descendi ng a Staircase No.2'
was rubbi shed by critics. His ready
mades whi ch were consi dered anti -art
are now bei ng preserved i n museums.
tri bes of I srael forthe Jewi sh synagogue
near Jerusal em. The cei l i ng decora
tions for the Paris Opera, and the
stai ned gl ass wi ndows of the United
Nati ons bui l di ng in New York city are
among hi s other notabl e works.
75
What made Georgia O'Keefe
a promi nent figure among
American painters?
Georgi a O' Keeffe destroyed
al l the pai nti ngs she created as
an art student, i ncl udi ng her
prize wi n n i ng ones. She fel t that
they were 'unorigi nal '. O'Keeffe
studied under Arthur Dow. She
cal l ed hi m the man ' who af
fected my start, who hel ped me
to fi nd somethi ng of my own'.
O' Keeffe pai nted numerous
pictures i n the abstract style. Her
art di d not represent external
reality i n recognizable forms.
Her first major exhibition was
i n1 922, at the Anderson gal l ery
in New York. The show was
cal led 'One Hundred Pictures'.
Al l the pai nti ngs were unsi gned
and untitl ed si nce O'Keeffe be
l i eved that 'any personal qual ity
in a pi cture shoul d be si gnature
enough' .
76
A Painting
by Georgia O
'
Keefe
O' Keeffe married at the age
of 37. ' Bl ack I ris,' and Two Cal l a
l i l i es on Pi nk,' were the famous
pieces of the peri od. These
pai nti ngs showed a cl ose up
view of a si ngl e subject. She
found i n nature correspondi ng
i mages for emotional states.
When O' Keefe travel l ed to dry
Mexico, flowers were diffi cul t
tocome by, and so, she pai nted
bones. Her new series i ncl uded
'Cow's Skul l - Red, White and
Bl ue'. At the age of seventy, she
travel l ed round the worl d and
pai nted what she saw from the
ai r - pai nti ngs such as 'Sky
above Cl ouds'. Rai sed i n a smal l
fami l y farm i n the U.S,O' Keeffe
rose to i nternati onal fame for
her semi abstract style of pai nt
i ng.
Tel l Me Why
Lhlfl60`5
Gi orgi o de Chi ri co was a poetic pai nt
er, born in Greece to Ital i an parents. He
studied art i n Greece. 'Sti l l Life wi th
Lemons' was hi s first pai nti ng. Afer hi s
father's death, he moved to Germany,
and attended the Academy of Fi ne Arts.
In 1 91 0, he shifed to Fl orence and was
i nfl uenced by Gi otto and pri mitive Tus
can pai nti ng. ' Eni gma of an Autumn Af
ternoon', one of hi s first metaphysi cal
pai nti ngs shows thi s i nfluence.
Metaphysi cal pai nti ng represents a
A Painting by Giorgio de Chirico
different real ity. Bui l di ngs, trai ns and
dummi es used to di spl ay cl othes i n
shop wi ndows are shown i n metaphysi
cal art. Thi s styl eofpai nti ng i s concerned
1 00 Great Pai nters
with the unconsci ous
mi nd. Metaphysi cal
pai nti ng i n its truest
sense was born fol l ow
i ng Chi rico's meeti ng
wi th Carl o Carra at Fer
rara i n1 91 7: Magazi nes
and newspapers round
the world publ i shed
Chi rico's works, and
praised hi s creative
qual ities. Hi s work was
appreciated by al l the
major artists of hi s ti me.
I n 1 925, Chi rico married
the Russi an dancer
Rai ssa Gurievich Krol l .
Chi rico was al so a noted
writer. He wrote the
novel ' Hebdomeros'.

wh Biscuits "
ainting by Chirico
77
What were the specialties
of Egon Schi ele's paintings?
Egon Schi el e started drawi ng
before hi s second bi rthday, ac
cordi ng to hi s mother. Schi el e
worked hard to devel op hi s
natural drawi ng abi l ity, and
drew the eyes of the worl d to
hi s pai nti ngs. The intensity,
twisted body shapes and ex
pressive l i nes of Schi el e's pai nt
i ngs make them special . The
pai nter Gustav Kl i mt was hi s
hero and hi s teacher. Some of
Schi el e's pai nti ngs were cri ti
ci zed, and he was briefly thrown
i nto prison once.
However, the hi gh qual ity of
78
O
ne a/the popular paintings
done by Egan Schiele
Schi el e's pai nti ngs gradual l y
won hi m appreciati on. The
Government of Austri a spon
sored hi mtoboostthecountry's
i nternati onal i mage. Schi l el e
did several portraits. I n 1 91 5, he
married Edi th Harms of Vi enna .
I n 1 91 8, when Edi th was si x
months pregnant, the Spani sh
fl u cl ai med her l ife. Schi el e di ed
three days l ater, at the age of
twenty eight. Duri ng those
three days, he created pai nti ngs
of Edith. Those were hi s l ast
pai nti ngs.
Tel l Me Why
Why is it said that
_ EI Lissitzsky became
-
a l i nk between Rus
= si an and European
artists?
Art unites. EI Li s
sitzsky, the Russi an
pai nter, came to be a
l i nk between Russi an
and European artists.
In 1 909, the Ital i an Fu
turists publ i shed thei r
manifesto i n the
newspaper, Le Fi garo.
A manifesto i s the
publ i c decl arati on of
bel i efs and ai ms. The
futuri sts bel i eved i n
pai nti ng modern i n
dustrial ized l ife. The
artist Kasi mi r Malevich
and hi s fol l owers, one
of whom was Lis
sitzsky, responded
with i deas of thei r
own.
Li ssitzsky's achi eve
ments acted as l i nks
between artists i n
Russi a and the West -
between Wei mar's,
'The Styl e,' and Con
structi vi sm. Art for so
ci al purposes was the
i deal of Constructivi sm. I t ori gi nat
ed in Russia, and afected the de
vel opment of art i n the Wei mar Re
publ ic. Li ssitzsky was known for hi s
A Painting by El Lissitzsk
Proun pai nti ngs. Proun pai nti ngs
expressed hi s vi si on of a worl d of
physi cs i nspi red by modern spi ritu
al ist thought. He al so designed So
viet fl ags. Li ssitzsky set up exhi bi
ti ons i n Berl i n. He al so worked as a
writer and desi gner for i nterna
ti onal magazi nes.
Mao/Marilyn
In the year. 1 971, the French edition of
Vogue magazine took the reading world by
storm. Its cover designer was none other
than the great Salvador Dali. He superim
posed the faces of two of the world's 'super
stars' - Marilyn Monroe and Chairman Mao.
Marilyn Monroe was a famous Hollywood
actress, and Mao was a world renowned com
munist leader. Dali feminised Mao's features!
Salvador Dali was a Spanish surrealist pai nt
er. Surreal ists ofen combined diferent im
ages without any sound underlying reason.
was born near Col ogne i n
Germany. He moved to Paris
i n 1 922. There he i l l ustrated
the coll age - novel 'Les Mal
heurs des I mmortel s'.
Why is Max Ernst consld red a
a gr at p inter?
Duri ng World War I , Max Ernst
came back to l ife from cl i ni cal death.
Thi s comeback i nspi red Ernst to
devote his l ife to art. He met the
pai nter Paul Kl ee i n 1 91 9. He created
hi s first pai nti ngs i n that year. Al ong
wi th J.T Baargel d and Hans Arp, he
found the Col ogne Dada group. The
Dada movement made fun of arti s
ti c conventi ons, the unwritten rul es
by whi ch art was created. Max Ernst
80
In 1 925, Ernst devel oped
the frottage technique
Ma Erst 's ' Ubu Imperator'
Tel l Me Why
Wh
X

K00W0 0! r 0
r !
X
00 0!
X

Joan Mi ro was born i n

the city of Barcel ona.
Though he hungered
to be an artist, hi s father
forced hi m i nto the sta
ble job of a store cl erk.
The l ong hours brought
on a nervous break
down. Whi l e recover
i ng, he enrol l ed at an
art academy. He di scov
ered the works of
Cl aude Monet and Vin
cent van Gogh. During
this period, he pai nted
his first self portrait us
ing bright col ours. The
success of his first exhi
bition enabl ed hi m to
visit France.
He met Pabl o Picasso
there. I n 1 923 he was
i ntroduced to surreal-
whi ch made him fa
mous. Frottage is French
for rubbing. Ernst pl aced
the work surface such
as canvas or paper over
an object with the de
siredtexture, and rubbed
the text ure on to the
1 00 Great Painters
Joan Miro's Painting
'The Tilled Field'
i sm and adopted it as hi s style. An un
expected combi nation of i mages, and
the el ement of surprise marked surreal
i st pai nti ngs. Mi ro drew on memory
and the i rrational to create'the Farmer's
Wife,' and 'The Carri age Li ght'. Hi s
dream l i ke pai nti ngs show pl ayful
twisted ani mal figures, other twisted
l ivi ng shapes, and odd geometric con
structi ons. The subjects are pai nted i n
bri ght col ours agai nst a neutral back
ground. He combi ned the el ements of
real ity and fantasy i n his pai nti ngs. 'Dog
barki ng at the Moon' i s his most cele
brated piece.
work surface. He used this techni que i n
hi s pai nti ngs unti l he stared pai nti ng
graphic novel s. Ernst was thrown i nto
concentration camps twice i n two years.
I n 1 941 , he moved to the United States and
settled in New York. Ernst received the
first prize at the 27th Venice Bi enni al, the
i nternati onal art exhi bition i n Veni ce.
81
What were the special
ties of Rene Magritte's
pai nti ngs?
Rene Francoi s Magritte
was a heavyset man, but
he created dream l i ke
pai nti ngs that di spl ay a
sense of wit and humour.
Magritte wanted to see
objects 'spontaneousl y
brought together i n an
order i n whi ch the fami l i ar
and strange are restored
to mystery'. He had an ex
traordi narygifofcombi n
i ng ordi nary objects to
create magi cal pai nti ngs.
' Fal se Mi rror' i s hi s best
known pai nti ng - a magni
fied eye fi l l s the entire
canvas, reflecti ng a cl oud
fi l l ed sky and its pupi l i s
Magritte's Painting - ' The Empt Mask'
thought to represent the sol ar
ecl i pse. I t was pai nted i n 1 928. I n the
same year, he pai nted 'Threateni ng
Weather'.
'The Therapeutic I I,' shows a head
less man sitti ng on a beach. Hi s hat is
suspended on the non- existent
head and his body i s in a bi rd cage
whi ch has two white doves in it. Hi s
' Exhi bi ti on of Pai nti ng' shows a pen
How I
wonder what
you are!
gui n, a bowler hat,
and a cl oud fi l led
sky parted by a
dark form. Mag
ritte, a Bel gian,
marketed hi msel f
by writing to
newspapers. Rene
Magritte went on
to become a great
force of the Surre
al ist movement.
What were the contri
butions of Salvador
Dali ?
Sal vador Dal i was a son
of Spai n. He cultivated
the art worl d's most fa
mous moustache, and
experi mented with dif
ferent styles of pai nti ng.
I n 1 926, he empl oyed re
al ism whi l e painting 'Bas
ket of Bread,' and cubi sm
i n several ' Harl equi n,'
pai nti ngs. I n 1 927, he
di scovered the style of
pai nti ng that he i s famous
for. Dal i focused on hi s
chi l dhood memories
which were special to hi m,
i n hi s pai nti ngs. He cal l ed
these memories psycho
l ogical obsessi ons. ' Bl ood
i s sweeter than Honey,'
was the first pai nti ng he
created in thi s style. Dal i
pai nted objects i n sad,
empty l andscapes. Dal i
' The Persistence ofMemor'
described these pai nti ngs as ' hand
pai nted dream i mages'. The Lugubri
ous' i s pai nted i n this style. So is 'The
Persistence of Memory'. He was ad
mitted to the group of Surreal ists.
Later, hi s pol iti cal views caused hi m to
be left out of the group. Publ i city was
Dal i 's l ifeblood and he ofen pl ayed
up to the medi a.
Dali's i l l ustrations
Dali produced ill ustrations for the literary publications of
the surrealists. He alsodrew picturesfor'The Visible Woman'
and other writings of his own. Dali illustrated 'The Songs of
Maldoror', a volume of poetry written by the French writer,
Lautreamont. Lautreamont's writings influenced the sur
realists. Dati's ill ustrations for the novel Don Quixote were
in his own words, aimed at being 'extremely unusual'.
00 Great Pai nters
83
Dali's Scandals
Dali came on
stage for a le'c
ture dressed in
a diving suit,
during the In
ternational Sur
realist Exhibi
tion in London.
Dal i could hard
ly breathe
.
He
was on the
point of sufo
cating, but his
cries were muf
fled by the hel
met of the div-
ing suit. The au
dience thought
he was lectur
ing! Finally his
wild actions
made them re
alise the seri-
ousness of the
situation. He
was released
from his suit
with a screw
driver.
Throughout his
life, Dali attract
ed pUblicity by
playing pranks
and by his
strange behav
iour in public
.
84
Why it said that Willem de Koonl ng revo
lutionised American art?
Wi l l em de Kooni ng revol utioni sed American
art, but he was born i n the Dutch city of Rot
terdam. De Kooni ng dreamt of becomi ng a
true artist in the United States. He hi d in the
shi p 'Shel ley' that sai led from Rotterdam to
Vi rgi nia i n the United States. There, he began
l ife as a house pai nter. He moved to New York
City a yea r later. De Koon i ng was com m i ssi oned
to desi gn a mural for the Hal l of Pharmacy at
the 1 939 New York Worl d's Fai r.
De Kooni ng developed an abstract style of
art. Abstract art does
not attempt to repre
sent external reality
i n recognizableforms.
Hi s first pai ntings,
' Pi nk Landscape,' and ,
'The Wave' were
done i n the abstract
style. He met El ai ne
Fried, an artist and art
critic in 1 938 and
married herfiveyears
later. His famous
'Women' series of
pai nti ngs i ncl uded
'Queen of Hearts' and
' Pi nk Lady'. De Koon
i ng revol utionized
American art with the
new 'Women' seri es
De Kooning' s
Painting Women V
in 1 952. The term acti on pai nti ngs were first
appl ied to De Kooni ng's works i n reference to
hi s very vi si bl e brush strokes.
Tel l Me Why
' The Liver is the Cock's Comb' - A Painting by Arshile Gork
Why $ t 5 0 t t f hd
O0fKy W$ 0n m U tragic
h f0 S m Hh$t0fyf
Tragedy shadowed Arshi l e
Gorky from the cradl e to the
grave. He was born i n the West
Armeni an vi l l age of Khorkom.
Hi s mother Shushan, i ntro
duced Gorky to art even before
he coul d speak. One hundred
thousand Armeni ans were
ki l l ed by their Turkish rul ers be
tween 1 91 5 and 1 9 1 8. Khorkom
was destroyed. Gorky's fami ly
was forced to set out on a death
march 1 50 mi les north to the
border of Russi an Armeni a.
When Gorky was fourteen years
ol d, his mother died of starva
tion in his arms. He fled to New
York in 1 920.
Gorky got a job in a rubber
1 00 Great Painters
factory, but was thrown out for
'drawi ng on the job'. He took
pai nti ng lessons and became a
teacher at the New School of
Desi gn in New York. Gorky cre
ated pai nti ngs in the abstract
style, i nfluenced by Matisse, Pi
casso, and other pai nters of the
Pari s school . Al fred H Barr chose
three of Gorky's pai nti ngs for a
group exhi bi ti on of Modern Art.
That was the turni ng poi nt i n
Gorky's pa i nti ng l ife. He pa i nted
his famous ' Ni ght ti me', ' Eni g
ma' and 'Nostal gi a' series. Gorky
married Agnes Magruder, a
weal thy Ameri can soci al ite. But
she l ef hi m afer five years. A
month later, he was di agnosed
with col on cancer. A cri ppl i ng
acci dent fol l owed. Gorky took
hi s own l ife.
85
Frida Kahlo
Why is it said that Frida
Kahlo's paintings depict her
own self?
Fri da Kahl o pai nted to free
her mi nd from the gri p of pai n,
afer a bus acci dent l ef her
paralysed. She pai nted self
portraits for three years. Then
she showed her
work to the
pai nter, Diego
Rivera. Rivera
prai sed and en
couraged her.
Her pai nti ngs
had broad col
our areas and
i ncl uded fan-
tasti cal el e-
ments. Kahl o
'Roots'
A Painting by Frida Kahlo
member of the Communi st
pary. I n 1 929, she created her
famous pai nti ng, The Bus.' The
pai nti ng showed the l ife of the
Mexi can people.
At twenty two, she married
Di ego Rivera,
and they trav
el l ed together
round the
worl d. Marcel
Duchamp ar
ranged hershow
in Pari s and the
French surreal
i st poet, Andre
Breton ar
ranged her New
York exhi bi ti on.
Her Mexi can
got back to her
feet but, she
was al ways i n
pai n. She be
came an active
' The Suicide of Dorothy Hale '
i dentity shi nes
by Frida Kahlo
through in her
pai nti ngs. She
86
Tel l Me Why
'Head VI A Painting
by Francis Bacon
What made Francis Bacon's ar
tistic l ife sensational?
Franci s Bacon pai nted i mages of
terror and anger. Hi s subject matter
shocked the audience i nto real i si ng
the vi ol ence of the human conditi on.
He created three abstract pai nti ngs
titl ed 'Crucifixions'. Hi s pai nti ngs
were rejected by museums and gal
l eries, and hi s first sol o show fl opped.
Di sheartened, Bacon l ost i nterest i n
pai nti ng and took to gambl i ng. Ba
con created a pai nti ng titled ' Pai nt
i ng,' in 1 948 and cal l ed it the 'fi rst
pi cture I ever real l y l i ked'. I t seems to
be a pai nti ng of a
dangerous l ooki ng
umbrel l a. Actual l y,
Bacon had attempt
ed to draw a bi rd!
He had hi s first ma
jor solo show when
he was forty years ol d.
I n this show, he ex
hi bited hi s seri es of
pai nti ngs known as
the 'Screami ng
Popes'. The figures
were horri bl ytwisted
and were pai nted i n
ugl y col ours. I n the
1 970's, he began to
pai nt hi s fri end
George Dyer. Dyer's
sui ci de provided the
theme of hi s most
sensati onal pai nt
i ngs titled 'Triptych'
and 'May-June 1 973'.
Bacon pai nted the
abnormal and the
vi ol ent i n hi s sensa
ti onal artistic l ife.
drew from folk art and her per
sonal grief to create her pai nt
i ngs. Kahl o depi cted her own
self in her pai nti ngs. The pai nt
i ng ' Broken Col umn' shows her
weari ng a metal brace, whi l e
her body is open to reveal a
broken col umn i n pl ace of her
spi ne. Her sorrow over her i na
bi l ityto bearchi l dren is revealed
in ' Henry Ford Hospital '. It
shows hersel f in a hospital bed
surrounded by a baby, a pel vic
bone, and a machi ne.
1 00 Great Pai nters
87
Why is Jackson Pollock known as
pioneer of American abstract expres
SI OniSt ar 1
Paul Jackson Pol l ock i nspi red the
movement known as action pai nti ng. He
l ai d a canvas on the floor and dri pped
pai nt on to it. These expressionist art
works had no fixed centre. He titl ed these
expressi ons 'Cathedral ', ' Number 1 ',
'White Cockatoo' and Autumn Rhythm' .
'Autumn Rhythm' is hi s most cel ebrated
work. The pri mary col our i s bl ack, the
secondary is orange, and there are
touches of other hues. The
action spreads across the
canvas.
'Number 1 '- A Painting
by
J
ackson Pollock
Pol l ock was born on a sheep ranch i n
the United States. Hehad lived i n six states
by the age of ten. Pol l ock devel oped an
i nterest i n I ndi an sand pai nti ng when hi s
fami ly l ived i n Arizona.
88
one man show i n 1 943
in New York, and had
a show of new works
nearl yeveryyear after
that. In 1 956, he died
in a car acci dent. He
Jackson Pollock
had traded two of hi s
pai nti ngs for the car.
Pol l ock was a pi oneer
of American abstract
expressionistic art.
Tel l Me Why
Why was Amrita Shergill referred
to as ' I ndia s Frida Kahlo ?
Amrita Shergi l l was a gi fted artist
whose l ife was cut short at the age of
28. She was born of Si kh- Hungari an
parents i n Hungary. Her mother was a
Hungari an si nger, and her father was
an ari stocrat. Amrita Shergi l l i s known
as ' I ndia's Fri day Kahl o' for the beauty
and the depth of her pai nti ngs. I n
1 92 1 , her fami l y shifed t o Shi ml a. She
received tuitions form an Ital i an scul p
tor l ivi ng in Shi ml a. Shergi l l moved to
I tal y al ong with her mother. There, she
was i ntroduced to the pai nti ngs of the
Ital i an masters. Her pai nti ngs show a
strong i nfl uence of the Western style
of pai nti ng.
Amrita sensed that her desti ny l ay i n
I ndia, and she returned i n 1 934. Mughal
mi ni atures school s and the Ajanta
pai nti ngs i nfl uenced her. Her famous
'South- I ndi an tri logy' pai nti ngs re
sulted from her travel to the south of
the country. Shergi l l married her Hun
gari an first cousi n, Dr Vi ctor Egan, i n
1 938. They settled i n Lahore city, then
i n undivided I ndi a. Amrita Shergi l l was
the youngest, as wel l as the onl y Asi an
artist to be el ected as an Associate of
the Grand Sal on in Pari s. Her passion
for col our and deep understandi ng of
I ndi an subjects l ight up her pai nti ngs.
The works of Amrita Shergi l l have
been decl ared as Nati onal art treasures
by the Government of I ndi a.
1 00 Great Pai nters
Amrita Shergill
Shergill's Paintings
'Three Girls' (above)
'Two Elephants '(below)
89
What were the specialties of Roy Lichtenstein's
pai nti ng?
Roy Lichtenstei n was an American pop artist. Hi s
work was i nfl uenced by the mass medi a. ' Look Mi ckey'
featured hard edged figures and Benday Dots. Benday
dots are smal l col oured dots used to create diferent
col ours i n comi c books. He produced works with rec
ognizabl echaractersfromgumwrappersand cartoons.
Hi s first one man show was hel d at Leo Castel l i 's gal l ery
i n New York. Lichtenstein used oi l and magna pai nt i n
hi s 'Drowni ng Gi r l ' and other wel l known works. Thi ck
Why are Thomas Gai nsbor
ough's pai nti ngs so delight
ful?
Thomas Gai nsborough was
born i n Engl and, and began
drawi ng when he was very
young. It is said he once sketched
a thief steal i ng from a garden
so accurately, that people rec
ognized hi m as a man from the
next vi l l age! Gai nsborough i s
noted for hi s portraits, but be
fore he started doi ng portraits
he was a pai nter of l andscapes.
He pai nted many pictures i n hi s
l ifeti me- more than 500 pai nt
i ngs. About 200 of these were
pai nti ngs of peopl e.
Gai nsborough became
weal thy because the ri ch peo
pie wanted hi mtopai ntpictures
of thei r fami l i es. Gai nsborough
90
'Mr. and Mrs. Andrews '
Gainsborough's Painting
pai nted more from
his observati ons of
nature than from
any appl ication of
formal rul es. In hi s
earl i er portraits, he
posed hi s model s
Tel l Me Why
outl i nes, bol d col ours and Ben
day Dots gave hi s pai nti ng the
efect of a photographi c repro
ducti on.
'Whaam!' i s hi s best known
i mage. I t i s one of the earl iest
known exampl es of pop art. I t
shows a fighter ai rcraft fi ri ng a
rocket i nto an enemy pl ane
wi th a dazzl i ng explosion of red
and yel l ow. In the late seventies
Thomas
Gainsborough
in the open countryside, and
thi s enabl ed hi m to i ndul ge i n
hi s taste for l andscape. These
canvases are si ncere and si m
pl e, and they are true to nature.
His l ater portraits are character
ized by the nobl e and refi ned
1 00 Great Pai nters
he created surreal i sti c works
such as 'Pow Wow'.
Hi s pai nti ng 'Torpedo ... Los!'
sol d at Christie's for $5.5 mi l l i on
i n 1 989, a record sum at the
ti me. Roy Lichtenstei n was a fan
of jazz in his younger days. He
drew portraits of the musi ci ans
at thei r i nstruments. I n hi s l i fe
ti me he jazzed up the art world
with his pop pai nti ngs.
grace of the fi gures, by poetic
charm, and by cool and fresh
col ours, chi efly greens and
bl ues. Hi s l andscapes are some
of the most beautiful ever
pai nted in Engl and. I t can be
said that in the freshness of
form, col our, character, and feel
i ng, Gainsborough surpassed
any other British pai nter.
'Landscape in Sufolk ' -
A Painting by Gainsborough
91
'Sel Portrait with a Sunfower'
A Painting by Van Dyke
Why was Van Dyke considered one
of the most successful portrait paint
ers?
Antony Van Dyke i s one of the great
est Fl emi sh pai nters. He was an ex
tremel y successful portraitist and
pai nter of rel i gi ous and mythol ogical
pictures i n Antwerp and Italy. He was
al so an accompl i shed draughtsman
and etcher.
In 1 620, Van Dyke went to London,
where he spent a few months, and then
i n 1 62 1 , he went to Italy, where h trav
el l ed a great deal. He gai ned fame for
the refi ned and elegant style whi ch re
mai ned characteristic of hi s work for
the rest of hi s l ife. From 1 632 unti l hi s
death, he was i n Engl and as pai nter to
Charles I . Today, he is best remembered
92
for his elegant repre
sentations of Charl es I
and hi s court. Most of
hi s subjects were fine
boned wi th sl ender
figures, ful l l i ps and
curly hai r, i t was al most
as though they were al l
related i n some way.
Hi s masterpiece is
'Charl es I in Hunti ng
Dress'. It captures beau
tiful lythe haughty grace
ofthe ki ng.
Van Dyke's i nfl uence
on Engl i sh portraiture
has been profound and
l asti ng. Later artists re
vered hi m, and he was
an i nspi rati on to many
others unti l the earl y
20
th
century.
Antony Van Dyke
Tel l Me Why
Why di d light play an i m
portant role i n Wi l l i am
Turner's work?
Wi l l iam Turner was an
Engl i sh Romantic l andscape
pai nter, watercol ourist and
pri ntmaker, whose styl e l ai d
the foundati on for I mpres
si oni sm.
Turner's tal ent was recog
nized early in his l ife. Al
though renowned for hi s
oi ls, Turner i s al so one of the
great masters of Briti sh wa
tercol our l andscape pai nt
i ng. He is commonl y known
as 'the pai nter of l i ght'. I n
fact, he felt that l i ght was an
expression of God's own
spi rit. Oneofhi s mostfamous
oi l pai nti ngs i s 'The Fi ghti ng
Temerai re Tugged to her
Last Berth to be Broken Up'.
1 00 Great Painters
A Painting by William Turner
Other subjects for Turner's
i magi nati on were shi p
wrecks, fires, natural catas
trophes, and natural phe
nomena such as sunl i ght,
storm, rai n, and fog. He was
al so fasci nated by the vi ol ent
power of the sea. One popu
l ar story about Turner i s that
he even had hi msel f 'ti ed to
the mast of a shi p i n order to
experience the drama' of the
el ements duri ng a storm at
sea!
Turner left more than
1 9,000 watercol ours, draw
i ngs, and oi l s to the Bri ti sh
nati on. Most of these works
are in the National Gal l ery
and the Tate Gal l ery, Lon
don.
93
Why is Andy Warhol's name associated
with Pop Art?
Andy Warhol i s one of the most i nfl uenti al
a rtists of the 20th century, and the central fig
ure of the Ameri can Pop Art Movement. Pop
Art i s short for Popul ar Art. It i s i nspi red by
comi c strips, adverti si ng, and popul ar enter
tai nment. Pop art can be any every day item
that i s drawn in a brash and col ourful way. I n
thi s movement, artists created col ourful i m
ages of the social figures, i deas and products
ofthe ti me.
Warhol began hi s career as a commerci al art
i l l ustrator. Duri ng the 1 960's, Warhol began
creati ng the pai nti ngs he i s best known for
today. Warhol loved pop cul ture, and he de
ci ded to pai nt what he loved. bC he pai nted
l arge pi ctures ofCoca-Cola bottles, Campbel l 's
soup cans, and dol l ar bi l l s. He al so pai nted
pi ctures of celebrities.
Because he was creati ng pictures of mass
produced items, Warhol thought it woul d be
fitti ng to mass produce the artwork. He di d
thi s by creati ng screen pri nts, rather than
pai nti ng each pi cture separately. Thi s al l owed
hi m to make many copies of each pai nti ng,
but each copy was an ori gi nal Warhol pai nt
i ng. He al so started a pl ace cal led 'The Factory',
whi ch was an art studi o where he used work
ers to mass produce pri nts and posters.
Andy Warhol was criticized for turni ng art
i nto a busi ness. Many peopl e di dn't l i ke the
i dea that he was just maki ng copi es of the
same picture to sel l and make money. Warhol
bel i eved i n what he was creati ng though, and
i s known today as the ' Pri nce of Pop'.
94
Andy Warhol
A Statue of
Andy Warhol
Tel l Me Why
Why is L.S. Lowry con
sidered a great painter?
L.S. Lowry was an Eng
l i sh artist, who was fa
mous for pai nti ng i ndus
trial scenes, and scenes of
l ife in Northern Engl and
duri ng the early ZU'"cen
tury. He had a hi ghl y di s
ti nctive styl e of pai nti ng,
whi ch ofen i nvolved
' matchsti ck men'. These
were figures of distant
people in i ndustrial scenes,
usi ng drab colours.
Duri ng his earl y years,
Lowry l ived in the l eafy
Manchester suburb of
Victoria Park. Then l ack of
money obl i ged hi s fami l y
to move to Station Road,
Pendl ebury, where fac
tory chi mneys were a
more fami l i ar sight than
trees. These chi mneys
became one of the sub
jects for hi s pai nti ngs. He
al so pai nted chi l dren
pl ayi ng i n the streets,
peopl e returni ng from
work, goi ng of to work,
gossi pi ng on the front
steps, i nci dents, market
pl aces and processions.
Lowry careful l y com
posed his pi ctures i n a
1 00 Great Pai nters
L.S. Lowr
pa i nti ng room at home, a nd took great
care over pl aci ng each fi gure. He used
a very basi c range of col ours, whi ch
he mixed on hi s palette, and pai nted
on a white background. Looki ng
cl osel y at the surface of Lowry's pai nt
i ngs shows us the vari ety of ways he
worked the pai nt with brushes-usi ng
both ends- wi th hi s fi ngers, and with
sticks or a nai l .
L.S. Lowry died i n February 1 976,
aged 88. Hi s pai nti ngs depicti ng i n
dustri al l ife, show the brutal ity and
sadness of peopl e who were deepl y
affected by the results of the I ndustri al
Revol uti on.
AStatue ofL.S. Lowr
Why do we
say
that
Edwi n Lal
d
seer's
pai nti ngs '
cr
ossed
Edwi n Land
e
er was
one of the mcS
t
hi ghly
respected an
d
p
opul ar
Bri ti sh pai nter
s
of the
1 9thcentury. HfWas an
i nfant prodi g
y
, and
one of the mo
t
prol ific
and famous a
rt
i
sts of
hi s period. L
a
ndseer
special ized i n
pai
nti ng
ani mal s, and devel
oped great sk
i l l
i n de
pi cti ng ani ma
l
anato
my. He sometimes
gave his ani rf
a
ls hu
man charact
e
ristics,
and even us
e
d hi s
pai nti ngs to make a
moral statement
.
Reproducti ons of
96
The Monarch of the Glen '
A Painting by Edwin Landseer
Landseer's works were commonl y founa
i n mi ddl e-class homes. Yet hi s appeal
crossed cl ass boundaries, for Landseer
was quite popul ar with the Bri ti sh aris
tocracy as wel l , and was a favourite of
Queen Victoria. Landseer loved the Scot
ti sh hi ghl ands whi ch provided the sub
jects for many of hi s pai nti ngs.
Di d you know that Landseer was ru
moured to be abl e to pai nt with both
hands at the same ti me? For exampl e, h
i
coul d pai nt a horse's head with hi s ri ght
hand and i ts tai l wi th hi s l ef hand, si mul
taneouly! I sn't that amazi ng?
Why is Nicholas Roerich considered
as a great pai nter'
Ni chol as Roerich was a great Russi an
artist. He excel l ed i n other ways too, as a
writer, archaeol ogi st, and phi l osopher.
Born in St.Petersburg on October 9t
h
Tel l Me Why
1 874, he graduated from the
Icademy of Arts I n 1 897.
I n
1 901 , Roeri ch became
5ecretary of the Soci ety of Arts
Encouragement. Later, he al so
:ame to occupy other posi
tions l i ke Di rector of an art
;chool (1 906), Academi ci an of
the Russi an Academy of Arts
: 1 909) and, head of the art
union ' Mi r I skusstva' ( 1 91 0) .
The Museum of Roerich was
:pened i n New York, i n 1 923,
Nhi ch al so was the first muse
, ,
Nicholas
Roerich
um of a Rus-
si an artist
abroad. I n
1 924- 1 92 8,
Roeri ch un
dertook sci
entific and art
expedi t i ons
through the
H i ma l a ya s ,
Ti bet, Mon
gol i a and in
1 934-1 935 - around Manchu
ri a and Chi na. I n 1 928, he es
tabl i shed in I ndi a, the I nterna
ti onal I nstitute of the Hi ma
layan Studi es ' Urusvati'. The
famous I ndian fi l m actress
Devika Rani was married to hi s
son, pai nter Svetosl av Roerich.
Roeri ch di ed on December
1 3
t
h
, 1 947.
1 00
Great Painters
,
l^KllIL^1IIN
,
KLJILMS
It is our policy to correct errors,
and present dif ering views and
clarications about the contents
in previous issues. Please send in
your feedback, mentioning the .
title and page number.
Mr. Manoj Tiwari has an
add-on i nformation t o our
November i ssue, 1 00 GREAT
WRITERS. The world renowned
Engl i sh Pri me Mi nister Si r
Wi nston Churchi l l , was an
emi nent figure i n l iterature
too. He won the Nobel Prize
for Literature in 1 953. Church
i l l wrote 43 books whi ch i n
cl ude Hi story of Worl d War I
and I I , 'The Hi story of the Eng
l i sh Speaki ng Peoples', and an
auto bi ography 'My Earl y Life'
Mr. Rahul N., from Kochi
poi nts out a mi stake i n the
December i ssue, ROMAN CIVI
LIZATION. On page 95, i t was
given that Atti l a, succeeded i n
sacki ng Rome i n 41 0 AD. How
ever, i t was Al aric II, who
sacked Rome i n that year.
Al ari c was ki l led soon afer.
Atti l a was about to i nvade
Rome i n 453 AD, but turned
back at the Pope's request.
hun| yo0rcudcr:|or yo0rvu|0u
u|c|ccduuc|.
- /d||or
97
Aren't there many little things you have wondered about, but didn't know whom to
ask? Send us your questions, and we will give you the fascinating reasons behind the
incredible mysteries of life.
Why do we gives names to hurricanes?
The worl d i s a bi g pl ace, and
l ati tude and l ongi tude posi
at any one ti me, there can be
ti ons, which were constantly
more than one tropical storm or
changi ng. Names are easier to
hurricane brewi ng. Obvi ously,
remember, and less bori ng than
it i s i mportant that the fol ks re-
si mply assi gni ng numbers.
porti ng storms from around the Si nce hurricanes were first
world have accurate data. reported via radio, duri ng
I n order to reduce the chance
World War I I , the names they
of confusi ng one storm with were given were from the pho
another, meteorologists decid- netic al phabet-Abel , Baker,
ed to give each reported hurri-
Charl ie, etc. Later, in 1 953, hur
cane its own name. Before that,
ri canes began bei ng named af
they were referred to by thei r
ter women. I n 1 979, the World
Hurry up . . .
Fnameless
Hurricane . . .
Meteorologi cal Associ ati on
began usi ng both women's
and men's names, so as not to
sl i ght ei ther gender! Hurricane
names are now assi gned al pha
beti cal ly at the begi nni ng of
the year, al ternati ng between
mal e and femal e names. Every
five or six years, the names are
recycl ed and used agai n .
1ocODGeOrge
MANORAMA TELL ME WHY - 10 GREAT PAINTERS
Eitor: Ammu Mathew Editor-in-Charge: N.M. Mohanan'
Printed and Published by V. Sajeev George. on bhalf ofM.M. Publications Ltd.
P.B. No. 226. Kottayam - 686 01 at M.M. Publications Ltd. P.B. No. 226. Kottayam - 686 01
and Malayala Manorama Press. Kottayam 686 039 and published from

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The only
book of its
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M0t
a
hundred q , 'IS
and their answ -so
Authentic and
informative. Yet highly
readable, written in a lucid
style suitable for children.
Profusely i l lustrated
with photographs,
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hilarious cartoons.