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George Lundeen, 1948 | Departure / Partenza, 1986

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"Departure", installed in the park near the library in Loveland, CO, is a life size bronze sculpture by the American artist, George Lundeen.
According to the artist, "The original piece came from a sketch I did in the Rome train station. There were a couple of kids across from me on the marble floor. It became the first life-size piece I ever did". The work was completed over two years, beginning in 1984.
George Lundeen is a native of Nebraska, and was a Fulbright-Hayes Scholar studying in Florence, Italy. He established his studio in Loveland, Colorado in the mid 1970s where he continues to live and work.











"Departure", che fa parte della collezione dell'arte pubblica di Loveland, Colorado, è una scultura dello scultore Americano George Lundeen.
Come afferma lo stesso autore: "L'opera originale deriva da uno schizzo che ho fatto nella stazione ferroviaria di Roma. C'era una coppia di ragazzi di fronte a me sul pavimento di marmo. È diventato il primo pezzo a grandezza naturale che abbia mai realizzato".



Olivia Muus, 1985 | Museum of Selfies

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Olivia Muus, a designer and marketer based in Denmark, has found a new fun idea that will make sure you won’t get bored the next time you visit a museum. Olivia, who works as an art director at an advertisement bureau, got the idea with a friend when the two of them were visiting the States Museum of Art (Statens Museum for Kunst).
I Saw the paintings and thought that there was something selfie’ish in their expressions. I then played around with it a little bit and the result got to look really funny” She says about the images that were made by holding a phone in front of the images, so that it appears that the characters are in the middle of taking a selfie.





She later tried the technique at a museum in Amsterdam and before long, the concept was a hit with reddit-users. She has now started a Tumbler, Instagram-account and a hashtag dedicated to the museum of selfies. The British National Gallery has even said that they thing it is all right if the visitors repeats her efforts with their works.

Education
The Danish School of Media Graduate 2011.

Experience
Art Director at SELIGEMIG 2012 till present;
Art Director at Suzumuchi 2012;
Art Director Intern at BBH London from July-September 2011;
Art Director Intern at Halbye K JWT 2010.

Awards
Creative Circle 2016 - Outdoor - Nominee;
Creative Circle 2016 - Poster - Nominee;
Creative Circle 2016 - Craft - Awarded Bronze;
Creative Circle 2016 - Craft - Nominee;
Webby Awards 2015 - Second place;
Creative Circle 2015 - Selfpromotion - Awarded gold;
Reklame For Alvor 2015 - Winner;
YCCA 2013 - Print - Nominee.














La designer Danese Olivia Muus ha dato vita ad una raccolta di fotografie dal titolo “Museum of Selfies”, un museo virtuale di autoscatti d’autore.
Dopo una visita ad un museo, la designer aveva trovato tra i suoi scatti uno in cui evidentemente c’era un errore.
La mano, con smartphone impugnato, di una sua amica si era sovrapposta al quadro che stava fotografando. Il risultato si era dimostrato da subito interessante: sembrava che la donna ritratta nel quadro si stesse scattando un selfie.
Lei stessa afferma: "È stato interessante scoprire la nuova percezione dei personaggi raffigurati nei quadri, quando uno smartphone viene messo davanti ai loro volti".









Georges Maroniez | Landscapes with figures painter

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Georges Philibert Charles Maroniez (17 January 1865, Douai - 11 December 1933, Paris) was a French painter, specializing in landscapes with figures.
  • Education and first works
Maroniez was the son of an industrialist who owned a sugar refinery in Montigny-en-Ostrevent. He displayed artistic talent at an early age, but - although not discouraged - was expected to pursue a more professional career.
Accordingly, he studied law, and afterwards served as a magistrate in, successively, Boulogne-sur-Mer (1891), Avesnes-sur-Helpe (1894) and Cambrai (1897).







While attending law school, he also took courses at the École des Beaux-Arts of Douai and became a student of Pierre Billet in Cantin. It was there that he met the painter Adrien Demont, the son-in-law of Jules Breton. Urged on by Breton, at the age of 22 he started exhibiting peasant genre and landscape scenes in Douai and Paris. He began vacationing in Wissant, where he stayed with Demont and his wife, Virginie Demont-Breton, painting the coastal scenery and becoming associated with the "École de Wissant", founded by Henri and Marie Duhem.
In 1889, he became a member of the Société des Artistes Français.

At the annual Salon des artistes français, he was awarded a Honorable Mention in 1891, a 3rd Medal in 1905, and a 2nd Medal in 1906.
Defying the label of "marine painter", he filled his genre scene paintings with Flemish realism. Using a luminous, caressing light, he transposed the grey country roads of his birthplace with light, and painted eloquent snowy landscapes.
He painted ports of Brittany, France, Belgium and the Netherlands, as well as numerous scenes of the fisherman's life, especially at twilight or night. He captured the magnetic beauty of an ocean sunset, and the tranquility that beauty and light brings.
  • Inventions
Marionez also became interested in photography and invented one of the first hand-held cameras, a device which he soon simplified, named the "Sphynx" and patented in 1891. The camera used a type of film invented by industrialist Victor Planchon (1863-1935), a relative of his. He travelled widely throughout the Mediterranean, North Africa and the Middle East, using his device to take over 1,600 images that are in the collection of the museum in Cambrai.
Later he devised and patented a method of suppressing the vibrations and jerky movements produced by the cinematographs of the Lumière Brothers, which had its unveiling in 1899 at the Société Photographique in Cambrai.
In 1905, the success of his paintings and the anti-clerical attitudes of the Combes administration led him to resign from the judiciary, and to devote himself entirely to art.
  • World War I and maturity
In August 1914, Marionez was drafted into Military Justice. In 1918 he was created a Knight of the Légion d'honneur.
During the German occupation of north-east France, his studio was looted, and his wife was deported, with hundreds of other French civilian hostages, to Holzminden internment camp in Lower Saxony. The family was reunited only after the ceasefire; they relocated to Paris in 1919.
He subsequently took most of his inspiration from Brittany.
His works were very popular but, according to some critics, became repetitive and too commercial. Over 800 paintings are attributed to him, of which the majority are in private collections.
He died of a heart attack in 1933 and was interred in the family vault at Cambrai. | Source: © Wikipedia



















Georges Philibert Charles Maroniez (17 gennaio 1865 Douai - 11 Dicembre 1933, Parigi) è stato un pittore Francese, specializzato in paesaggi con figure.
Maroniez era il figlio di un industriale che possedeva una raffineria di zucchero a Montigny-en-Ostrevent. Ha mostrato talento artistico in tenera età, ma - anche se non scoraggiato - era previsto di perseguire una carriera più professionale.
Di conseguenza, ha studiato legge, e poi servito come un magistrato, successivamente, Boulogne-sur-Mer (1891), Avesnes-sur-Helpe (1894) e Cambrai (1897).
Mentre frequentava la scuola di legge, ha anche preso i corsi presso l'Ecole des Beaux-Arts di Douai e divenne allievo di Pierre Billet in Cantin. E 'stato lì che ha incontrato il pittore Adrien Demont, il figlio-in-law di Jules Breton.
Incoraggiato da Breton, all'età di 22 ha iniziato ad esporre scene di contadini di genere e paesaggi a Douai e Parigi.
Al Salone annuale degli Artisti Francesi, è stato premiato con una menzione d'onore nel 1891, una 3° medaglia nel 1905, e una 2° medaglia nel 1906.
Sfidando l'etichetta di "pittore di marine", arrichì i suoi quadri di genere con il realismo fiammingo.
Marionez era interessato anche alla fotografia ed ha inventò una delle prime macchine fotografiche portatili,  un dispositivo che ben presto semplificato, denominato "Sphynx" e brevettato nel 1891.

Oltre 800 dipinti sono attribuiti a lui, di cui la maggior parte sono in collezioni private.
Le sue opere erano molto popolari, ma, secondo alcuni critici, è diventato ripetitivo e troppo commerciale.
E 'morto per un attacco cardiaco nel 1933 e fu sepolto nella tomba della famiglia a Cambrai.



Ernst Lorenz Murowana | Romantic Seascape painter

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Ernst Hugo Lorenz-Murowana (Murowana Goślina (Poznan) 1872 - Berlin 1950) was an German painter, active in Berlin. His paintings show predominantly nocturnes views of Berlin, Potsdam, landscapes of Pomerania and from the Baltic Sea, flowers and interiors.
He worked as a painter as well as restorer, and used to live and work in Berlin until his death in 1950.
As he was born in Wielkopolska it is often mistakenly portrayed as a Polish painter.




















Ernst Hugo Lorenz-Murowana (Murowana Goślina (Poznan) 1872 - Berlino 1950) è stato un pittore Tedesco, attivo a Berlino. Dipinse notturni, con vista su Berlino e Potsdam, paesaggi di Pomerania e dal Mar Baltico, nature morte ed interni. He lavorato come pittore e restauratore. Visto che era nato in Wielkopolska, è spesso erroneamente considerato come pittore Polacco.



Vasily Polenov / Василий Поленов | Woman Walking in a Forest Park, 1883

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Vasily Dmitrievitch Polenov was born on May 20,1844 in Saint-Petersburg. His family placed great emphasis on the importance of art and culture. Indeed his father, Dmitri Vassilievitch Polenov (1806-1872) was a connoisseur of the artistic world, and his mother, Maria Alexeievna Voeïkova (1816-1895) a gifted portraitist of the Brullov school.
He spent his childhood in Saint-Petersburg, a major cultural center, and Carely, in the Olonentsky countryside.


Like his ancestors, Vasily Dmitrievitch studied law at the University of Saint-Petersburg, yet he dreamt of becoming a painter. He decided to take courses at the Academy of Painting (1863-1871). While he was studying at the Academy, he was able to travel in Western Europe (Germany, Italy, Greece, France). He had a studio in Montmartre, an important center for Parisian art, and sought inspiration in Normandy.
In 1871 he received the Academy's Gold Medal for his painting The Resurrection of Jaïre's daughter.
Vasily Dmitrievitch founded the school of Russian realistic landscape painting. Starting in 1879, each year he took part in the annual exhibits of the Wanderers Society (1870-1923). In 1926 he was given the title "Artist of the Republic".
  • A humanist devoted to cultural development for all people
In the 1860’s, avant-garde thinkers fought oppression and wished to improve the general level of instruction. Their humanitarian ideals made a deep impression on Vasily Dmitrievitch, an adolescent at the time, and stayed with him all his life. In 1915, for instance, they prompted him to create a center for teaching the dramatics art in Moscow.
In 1882 he married Natalya Vassilievna Iakountchikova, with whom he had five children. They moved to the Tula countryside, which became their new family center and home. Natalya Vassilievna helped her husband transform his ideals into concrete projects. Togeher they founded two schools - in Bekhovo and Strakhovo - as well as an amateur theatre circle. Vasily Dmitrievitch considered theatre to be one the best ways to bring culture to the people.
Vasily Dmitrievitch died on July 18, 1927, leaving behind him a rich artistic and cultural legacy.
His artistic testament reflects his conception of art.
In May 1906, he wrote "A man lives on through his creations".
He was buried in Bekhovo.
After the artist's death, the estate of Borok was renamed Polenovo to commemorate his name.
Vasilij Dmitrievič Polenov / Василий Дмитриевич Поленов (San Pietroburgo, 1º giugno 1844 - Tula, 18 luglio 1927) è stato un pittore Russo, specializzato in soggetti storici, paesaggistici e di genere, nonché pedagogo.
Polenov nacque il 1º giugno 1844 a San Pietroburgo. Frequentò il ginnasio di Petrozavodsk e, al termine, si iscrisse all'Accademia russa di belle arti. Studiò con Pavel Petrovič Čistjakov.
Nel 1869 gli fu conferita una medaglia d'oro piccola per il quadro Giobbe e I suoi amici e l'anno seguente una grande per il suo Cristo resuscita la figlia di Giairo.
Contemporaneamente Polenov frequentava i corsi universitari alla facoltà di Legge. Terminati gli studi, nel 1872, si recò all'estero con una borsa di studio dell'accademia.
Visitò Vienna, Monaco, Venezia, Firenze e Napoli e soggiornò a lungo a Parigi dove dipinse, tra gli altri, il quadro Arresto della contessa d'Etremont che gli valse il conferimento, nel 1876, del titolo di Accademico.
Tornato, nello stesso anno, in patria si recò ben presto sul teatro della guerra russo-turca, dove assunse il ruolo di pittore ufficiale presso lo stato maggiore dell'erede al trono (il futuro imperatore Alessandro III).
Alla fine del conflitto si trasferì a Mosca, da cui effettuò, nel 1884, un viaggio a Costantinopoli e, da qui, in Palestina, Siria ed Egitto. Nel 1879 entrò a far parte dell'Associazione delle mostre d'arte itineranti.
A partire dagli anni 1870 Polenov lavorò parecchio nel campo delle decorazioni teatrali. Dal 1882 al 1895 fu insegnante all'Istituto moscovita di pittura, scultura ed architettura, dove ebbe come allievi Isaak Levitan, Konstantin Alekseevič Korovin, Il'ja Semënovič Ostrouchov, Abram Efimovič Archipov ed Aleksandr Jakovlevič Golovin.
Tra il 1910-1918 Polenov si dedicò, a Mosca, ad attività di divulgazione culturale, partecipando all'organizzazione del Teatro popolare.
L'artista morì il 18 luglio 1927 nel villaggio di Borok (l'attuale Polenovo), regione di Tula. | Wiki

Ilya Repin | A Parisian Cafe / Un caffè Parigino, 1875

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Repin's time as an academic pensioner in Paris 1873-76 was a fruitful as well as confusing time for the rising young star of Russian realist painting and he responded to a bewildering variety of new stimuli with enthusiasm and uncertainty, painting both Russian motifs as well as the sights of contemporary France.
In particular it was a period of burgeoning experimentation as Repin (1844-1930) took cognisance of modern French artistic developments, the major outcome of which was his large canvas "A Parisian Café", which was sold in London in June 2011 for a record price by the artist.

Ilya Efimovich Repin | Self-portrait, 1917


Ilya Efimovich Repin | Study for a Parisian Cafe, 1875

This canvas, "Study for a Parisian Cafe", was exhibited at the official Paris Salon and proved both a cause célèbre and a critical turning point in Repin's career. In preparing his tour de force of modern actualité Repin made many studies and sketches, of which this intimate and introspective image is a particularly refined and remarkable example; seemingly intended to portray either one of the café habitués seen in the rear of the evocatively glowing interior, or perhaps simply as a crisply observed delineation on contemporary female fashion.
This subtle and sophisticated study is both a testament to Repin's rigorous professional practice as well as his unerring eye for cultivated aesthetic nuances. | © Sotheby’s, David Jackson, Professor of Russian and Scandinavian Art Histories, University of Leeds.







Il periodo parigino (1873-1876) del giovane Repin (1844-1930)è stato molto fruttuoso ed ha contributo nella carriera artistica del famoso artista realista Russo, visto che egli rispose con entusiasmo ma anche incertezza ad una sconcertante varietà di nuovi stimoli, combinando i motivi russi con i luoghi della Francia contemporanea.
Prendendo atto dei sviluppi moderni artistici francesi, Repin si dedicò a crescenti sperimentazioni, risultato principale dei quali divenne la grande tela "Un caffè parigino", che è stata venduta a Londra, nel giugno 2011, con un prezzo record per l'artista.



For biographical notes -in english and italian- and other works by Repin see:

Platone | The Philosophy of Music / La Filosofia della Musica

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Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)

"Music is a moral law.
It gives soul to the universe,
wings to the mind,
flight to the imagination,
and charm and gaiety to life and to everything".


"La musica è una luce morale.
Essa dona un’anima ai nostri cuori,
delle ali ai pensieri,
Uno sviluppo all’immaginazione,
Essa è un carme alla tristezza,
alla gaiezza, alla vita,
a tutte le cose
".

Platone

Busto Platone rinvenuto nell'area sacra in Largo Argentina (1925) a Roma, conservata nel Musei Capitolini

José de Ribera (Spanish painter,1591-1652) Platón, 1637
Leo von Klenze (Pittore Tedesco 1784-1864) | Akropolis, la Città-stato dell'antica Grecia
Mattia Preti (Italian painter 1613-1699) Diogenes and Plato, 1649


The Republic (Greek: Πολιτεία, Politeia; Latin: De Re Publica) is a Socratic dialogue, written by Plato around 380 BC, concerning the definition of justice (δικαιοσύνη), the order and character of the just city-state and the just man ecc..

The Philosophy of Music The Republic, Book III


Then now, my friend, I said, that part of music or literary education which relates to the story or myth may be considered to be finished; for the matter and manner have both been discussed.
I think so too, he said.
Next in order will follow melody and song.
That is obvious.
Everyone now would be able to discover what we ought to say about them, if we are to be consistent with ourselves.
I fear, said Glaucon, laughing, that the word "everyone" hardly includes me, for I cannot at the moment say what they should be, though I have a suspicion.
At any rate you are aware that a song or ode has three parts – the words, the melody and the rhythm.
Yes, he said; so as that I know.
And as for the words, there will surely be no difference between words which are and which are not set to music; both will conform to the same laws, and these have already been determined by us?
Yes.
And the melody and rhythm will be in conformity with the words?
Certainly.
We were saying, when we spoke of the subject-matter, that we had no need of lamentations and strains of sorrow?
True.
And which are the harmonies expressive of sorrow? You are musical and can tell me.
The harmonies which you mean are the mixed or tenor Lydian, and the full-toned or bass Lydian, and such-like.
These then, I said, must be banished; even to women who have a character to maintain they are of no use, and much less to men.
Certainly.
In the next place, drunkenness and softness and indolence are utterly unbecoming the character of our guardians.
Utterly unbecoming?
And which are the soft and convivial harmonies?
The Ionian, he replied, and some of the Lydian which are termed "relaxed".
Well, and are these of any use for warlike men?
Quite the reverse, he replied; and if so the Dorian and the Phrygian are the only ones which you have left.
I answered: Of the harmonies I know nothing, but would have you leave me one which can render the note or accent which a brave man utters in warlike action and in stern resolve; and when his cause is failing, and he is going to wounds or death or is overtaken by disaster in some other form, at every such crisis he meets the blows of fortune with firm step and a determination to endure; and an opposite kind for times of peace and freedom of action, when there is no pressure of necessity, and he is seeking to persuade God by prayer, or man by instruction and admonition, or when on the other hand he is expressing his willingness to yield to the persuasion or entreaty or admonition of others. And when in this manner he has attained his end, I would have the music show him not carried away by his success, but acting moderately and wisely in all circumstances, and acquiescing in the event. These two harmonies I ask you to leave; the strain of necessity and the strain of freedom, the strain of the unfortunate and the strain of the fortunate, the strain of courage, and the strain of temperance; these, I say, leave.
And these, he replied, are the Dorian and the Phrygian harmonies of which I was just now speaking.
Then, I said, if these and these only are to be used in our songs and melodies, we shall not want multiplicity of strings or a panharmonic scale?
I suppose not.
Then we shall not maintain the artificers of lyres with three corners and complex scales, or the makers of any other many-stringed, curiously harmonized instruments?
Certainly not.
But what do you say to flute-makers and flute-players? Would you admit them into our State when you reflect that in this composite use of harmony the flute is worse than any stringed instrument; even the panharmonic music is only imitation of the flute?
Clearly not.
There remain then only the lyre and the harp for use in the city, and the shepherds in the country may have some kind of pipe.
That is surely the conclusion to be drawn from the argument.
The preferring of Apollo and his instruments to Marsyas and his instruments is not at all strange, I said.
Not at all, he replied.
Then let us now finish the purgation, I said. Next in order to harmonies, rhythms will naturally follow, and they should be subject to the same rules, for we ought not to seek out complex systems of metre, and a variety of feet, but rather to discover what rhythms are the expressions of a courageous and harmonious life; and when we have found them, we shall adapt the foot and the melody to words having a like spirit, not the words to the foot and melody. To say what these rhythms are will be your duty – you must teach me them, as you have already taught me the harmonies.
But, indeed, he replied, I cannot tell you. I know from observation that there are some three principles of rhythm out of which metrical systems are framed, just as in sounds there are four notes out of which all the harmonies are composed. But of what sort of lives they are severally the imitations I am unable to say.
Then, I said, we must take Damon into our counsels; and he will tell us what rhythms are expressive of meanness, or insolence, or fury, or other unworthiness, and are to be reserved for the expression of opposite feelings. And I think that I have an indistinct recollection of his mentioning a complex Cretic rhythm; also a dactylic or heroic, and he arranged them in some manner which I do not quite understand, making the rhythms equal in the rise and fall of the foot, long and short alternating; and unless I am mistaken, he spoke of an iambic as well as a trochaic rhythm, and assigned to them short and long quantities. Also in some cases he appeared to praise or censure the movement of the foot quite as much as the rhythm; or perhaps a combination of the two; for I am not certain what he meant. These matters, however, as I was saying, had better be referred to Damon himself, for the analysis of the subject would be difficult, you know?
Rather so, I should say.
But it does not require much analysis to see that grace or the absence of grace accompanies good or bad rhythm.
None at all.
And also that good and bad rhythm naturally assimilate to a good and bad style; and that harmony and discord in like manner follow style; for our principle is that rhythm and harmony are regulated by the words, and not the words by them.
Just so, he said, they should follow the words.
And will not the words and the character of the style depend on the temper of the soul?
Yes.
And everything else on the style?
Yes.
Then beauty of style and harmony and grace and good rhythm depend on simplicity, – I mean the true simplicity of a rightly and nobly ordered mind and character, not that other simplicity which is only a euphemism for folly?
Very true, he replied.

[Socrates expands on the role of the artist in the ideal State and argues that unsuitable artists should be prevented from practising their art.]

And therefore, I said, Glaucon, musical training is a more potent instrument than any other, because rhythm and harmony find their way into the inward places of the soul, on which they mightily fasten, imparting grace, and making the soul of him who is rightly educated graceful, or of him who is ill-educated ungraceful: and also because he who has received this true education of the inner being will most shrewdly perceive omissions or faults in art and nature, and with a true taste, while he praises and rejoices over and receives into his soul the good, and becomes noble and good, he will justify blame and hate the bad, now in the days of his youth, even before he will recognize and salute the friend with whom his education has made him long familiar.
Yes, he said, I quite agree with you in thinking that it is for such reasons that they should be trained in music…
Even so, as I maintain, neither we nor the guardians, whom we say that we have to educate, can ever become musical until we and they know the essential forms of temperance, courage, liberality, magnanimity, and their kindred, as well as the contrary forms, in all their combinations, and can recognise then and their images wherever they are found, not slighting them either in small things or great, but believing them all to be within the sphere of one art and study.
Most assuredly.
And then nobility of soul is observed in harmonious union with beauty of form, and both are cast from the same mould, that will be the fairest of sights to him who has en eye to see it?
The fairest indeed.
And the fairest is also the loveliest?
That may be assumed.
And it is with human beings who most display such harmony that a musical man will be most in love; but he will not love any who do not possess it.
That is true, he replied, if the deficiency be in the soul; but if there be any bodily defect he will be patient of it, and may even approve it.
[A short discussion of the nature of pleasure.]
Thus much of music, and the ending is appropriate; for what should be the end of music if not the love of beauty..?

Busto virile Platone, Museo Archeologico di Napoli
Plato, Ceiling of Duke Humpfrey's Library, Oxford

Luca della Robbia (Italian Sculptor 1400-1481)
- Plato and Aristotle, or Philosophy.
Marble panel from the North side, lower basement of the bell tower of Florence, Italy.
- Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.
- Platone et Aristotele o la Filosofia.
Marmo, proviene dal lato nord del campanile di Firenze, basamento inferiore.
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, 1437-1439
Luca della Robbia (Italian Sculptor 1400-1481)
- Plato and Aristotle, or Philosophy.
Marble panel from the North side, lower basement of the bell tower of Florence, Italy.
- Museo dell'Opera del Duomo.
- Platone et Aristotele o la Filosofia.
Marmo, proviene dal lato nord del campanile di Firenze, basamento inferiore.
Museo dell'Opera del Duomo, 1437-1439

Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato in front of the Academy of Athens by Leonidas Drosis (Greek Sculptor 1836-1880)
Plato's Academy mosaic - Roman mosaic of the 1st century BCE from Pompeii
now at the Museo Nazionale Archologico, Naples
Plato´s Symposium | Anselm Feuerbach (German painter 1829-1880)

Raffaello - Scuola di Atene / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)


La Repubblica (in greco antico: Πολιτεία, Politéia) è un'opera filosofica in forma di dialogo, scritta approssimativamente tra il 390 e il 360 a.C. dal filosofo greco Platone, la quale ha avuto enorme influenza nel pensiero occidentale.


La Filosofia della Musica, La Repubblica, Libro 3


"Ora, caro amico", ripresi, "è probabile che abbiamo trattato da cima a fondo l'aspetto della musica relativo alle narrazioni e ai miti: è stato stabilito ciò che si deve dire e come lo si deve dire".
"Sembra anche a me", disse.
"E ora", domandai, "ci restano da trattare i generi del canto e delle melodie?" "è chiaro".
"Ma se vogliamo accordare il nostro discorso con le premesse, non sarebbe ormai facile per chiunque trovare le parole adatte a spiegare come devono essere questi generi?" E Glaucone sorridendo disse: "Io, Socrate, rischio di rimanere fuori da questo chiunque. Non sono in grado, almeno per ora, di comprendere di quali generi dobbiamo trattare; tuttavia posso congetturarlo".
"Se non altro, però", ribattei, "sei in grado di asserire questo primo punto, ovvero che la melodia è composta di tre elementi: la parola, l'armonia e il ritmo".
"Sì ", rispose, "questo sì ".
"Ma per quanto concerne la parola essa non differisce in nulla dalla semplice recitazione, poiché la si deve esprimere nelle stesse forme e nelle stesse modalità che abbiamo fissato prima?" "è vero", disse.
"E l'armonia e il ritmo devono seguire la parola".
"Come no?" "Per la verità abbiamo detto che nei discorsi non c'è alcun bisogno di lamenti e gemiti".
"No di certo".
"Quali sono dunque le armonie lamentose? Dimmelo tu, che sei esperto di musica".
"La mixolidia, la sintonolidia e altre simili". "Queste allora", chiesi, "si devono escludere? Sono inutili anche per le donne che devono essere oneste, figurarsi per gli uomini!".
"Giusto".
"Ma per i guardiani l'ubriachezza, la mollezza e la pigrizia sono più che mai disdicevoli".
"Come no?" "E quali sono le armonie molli e adatte ai simposi?" "Certe armonie ioniche e lidie", rispose, "che si chiamano appunto rilassate".
"E tu, caro amico, potrai mai usarle con i guerrieri?" "Nient'affatto", rispose; "ma forse ti rimangono soltanto la dorica e la frigia".
"Non conosco le armonie", dissi, "ma tu conserva quella che sappia imitare convenientemente la voce e gli accenti di un uomo che dimostra coraggio in un'azione di guerra o in una qualsiasi opera violenta, e che anche quando non ha avuto successo o va incontro alle ferite o alla morte o è caduto in altra disgrazia, in tutte queste circostanze lotta contro la sorte con disciplina e fermezza; e conserva pure un'altra armonia, capace di imitare un uomo impegnato in un'azione pacifica non per costrizione ma per sua volontà che cerca di persuadere un dio con la preghiera o un uomo con l'ammaestramento e i consigli, o al contrario si mostra disponibile quando un altro lo prega o gli dà ammaestramenti o cerca di dissuaderlo, e in virtù di questo ha ottenuto un risultato conforme ai suoi propositi e non ne va superbo, ma in tutte queste circostanze si comporta con temperanza ed equilibrio, accettando ciò che gli accade. Conserva queste due armonie, una violenta e l'altra
volontaria, che sapranno imitare nel modo migliore le voci di persone sventurate, fortunate, temperanti, coraggiose".
"Ma tu mi chiedi di conservare solo quelle che ho citato prima".
"Allora", ripresi, "nei canti e nelle melodie non avremo bisogno di molti suoni e di armonie complicate".
"Mi pare di no", disse.
"Perciò non manterremo costruttori di trigoni, di pectidi e di tutti gli strumenti policordi e panarmonici".
"Evidentemente no".
"E i costruttori di flauti e i flautisti, li accoglierai nella città? Non è forse questo lo strumento più ricco di suoni, e gli stessi strumenti panarmonici non sono un'imitazione del flauto?" "è chiaro", rispose.
"Allora", feci io, "come strumenti utili nella città ti rimangono la lira e la cetra, mentre nei campi i pastori avranno una specie di zampogna".
"Così almeno ci porta a concludere il discorso", disse.
"D'altronde, caro amico", aggiunsi, "non facciamo nulla di strano se preferiamo Apollo e gli strumenti di Apollo a Marsia e agli strumenti di Marsia". "Non mi pare proprio, per Zeus!".
"Corpo d'un cane!", esclamai. "Senza rendercene conto stiamo di nuovo purgando la città che poc'anzi abbiamo definito immersa nella mollezza!".
"E in ciò operiamo da persone sagge", disse.
"Su", continuai "purghiamola anche del resto. La trattazione dei ritmi si conformerà a quella delle armonie: non dovremo andare in cerca dei ritmi variegati e di metri d'ogni genere, ma considerare quali sono i ritmi di una vita ordinata e coraggiosa; e una volta che li avremo individuati, costringere il piede e la melodia a seguire il modo di esprimersi dettato da questa vita, anziché adattare la parola al piede e alla melodia. Quali poi siano questi ritmi, è compito tuo indicarlo, come nel caso delle armonie".
"Ma per Zeus", obiettò, "non ne sono capace! Potrei dire, perché l'ho osservato, che i generi da cui si combinano i metri sono tre, come nei suoni ce ne sono quattro da cui derivano tutte le melodie; ma non so dire che tipo di imitazioni siano, e di quale vita".
"Ma su questo", dissi, "ci consulteremo anche con Damone: quali metri si addicono alla meschinità e all'insolenza, o alla follia e ad altre manifestazioni di malvagità, e quali ritmi bisogna riservare ai sentimenti opposti.
Credo di averlo sentito parlare vagamente dell'enoplio, un certo metro composto, del dattilo e del verso eroico, che lui non so come ordinava con un'uguale ripartizione di arsi e tesi; e poi, mi sembra, faceva menzione di un giambo e di un altro piede, il trocheo, ai quali adattava le lunghe e le brevi. E mi pare che per alcuni di questi metri criticasse o lodasse i movimenti del piede non meno dei ritmi stessi, o qualcosa di comune a entrambi, non lo so di preciso... ma queste cose, come ho detto, rifiliamole a Damone, poiché distinguerle non è affare di poco conto. Non credi?" "Certo per Zeus!".
"Ma sei in grado di distinguere almeno questo, che la presenza e la mancanza di decoro si accompagnano alla presenza e alla mancanza di ritmo?" "Come no?" "Ma la presenza e la mancanza di ritmo seguono, per somiglianza, l'una lo stile bello, l'altra quello opposto, e lo stesso vale per l'armonia e la disarmonia, se il ritmo e l'armonia, come si diceva prima, si regolano sulla parola e non viceversa".
"Certo", confermò, "sono loro che devono seguire la parola".
"E l'espressione e i vocaboli", domandai, "non seguono il carattere dell'anima?" "Come no?" "Mentre il resto dipende dallo stile?" "Sì".
"Quindi la scelta felice dei vocaboli, l'armonia, il decoro e il buon ritmo conseguono dalla semplicità, non quella che è stoltezza ma noi addolciamo con questo eufemismo, ma quella disposizione d'animo contraddistinta da un carattere veramente buono e nobile".
"Senz'altro", disse.
"E non è forse questo che i giovani devono perseguire in ogni situazione, se vogliono adempiere il loro compito?"
"Sì , è questo".
"Ma queste qualità informano anche la pittura e le altre arti simili, la tessitura, il ricamo, l'architettura e la fabbricazione di ogni altra suppellettile, e inoltre la natura dei corpi e degli altri organismi; in tutto questo c'è decoro o bruttezza. La mancanza di decoro, di ritmo e dì armonia è imparentata con la bassezza di linguaggio e di carattere, mentre le qualità opposte sono sorelle e imitazioni dell'opposto, cioè di un carattere saggio e onesto".
"Senza dubbio", disse.
"Dobbiamo dunque sorvegliare soltanto i poeti e costringerli a rappresentare nelle loro opere la bontà di carattere, o altrimenti a non poetare presso di noi; oppure dobbiamo sorvegliare anche gli altri artefici e impedire loro di introdurre ciò che è moralmente malvagio, sfrenato, ignobile e indecoroso sia nelle rappresentazioni di esseri viventi sia negli edifici sia in ogni altro manufatto, o altrimenti non permettere di lavorare presso di noi a chi non sia capace di osservare questo
precetto, per evitare che i nostri guardiani, allevati tra immagini disoneste come tra le erbacce, cogliendone poco per volta ogni giorno una grande quantità e pascendosene, accumulino senza avvedersene un unico grande male nella loro anima?
Non bisogna al contrario cercare quegli artefici che sappiano nobilmente seguire le tracce della natura di ciò che è bello e decoroso, affinché i giovani, come chi abita in un luogo salubre, traggano vantaggio da qualunque parte un'impressione di opere belle tocchi la loro vista o il loro udito, come un soffio di vento che porta buona salute da luoghi benefici, e sin dalla fanciullezza li conduca senza che se accorgano alla conformità, all'amicizia e all'accordo con la retta ragione?"
"Questa", rispose, "sarebbe per loro l'educazione di gran lunga migliore".
"E l'educazione musicale, Glaucone", proseguii, "non è forse di estrema importanza per il fatto che il ritmo e l'armonia penetrano nel più profondo dell'anima e vi si apprendono con la massima tenacia, conferendole decoro, e infondono dignità in chi abbia ricevuto una corretta educazione, altrimenti producono l'effetto contrario? Chi è stato educato a dovere in questo campo si accorgerà con grande acutezza di ciò che è difettoso e mal costruito oppure è
imperfetto per natura, e con giusta insofferenza loderà le cose belle e accogliendole con gioia nell'anima saprà nutrirsene per diventare un uomo onesto, mentre biasimerà e detesterà a buon diritto le cose brutte sin da giovane, ancora prima di poterne capire razionalmente il motivo; e una volta acquisita la ragione la saluterà con affetto, riconoscendo la sua grande affinità con l'educazione ricevuta".
"Mi sembra", disse, "che l'educazione musicale abbia questo fine".
"Allo stesso modo", ripresi, "abbiamo acquisito una piena padronanza dell'alfabeto quando ci siamo resi conto che le lettere sono poche e ricompaiono in tutte le parole esistenti, e non le abbiamo trascurate in nessuna combinazione, piccola o grande che fosse, come se lì non occorresse individuarle, ma ci siamo sforzati di riconoscerle ovunque, perché solo così ,
e non prima, saremmo divenuti buoni conoscitori dell'alfabeto..." "è vero".
"Perciò anche le figure delle lettere, se mai apparissero nell'acqua o in uno specchio, non le distingueremo se non conosciamo già le lettere stesse, anzi ciò fa parte della stessa arte e dello stesso studio?" "Senza dubbio".
"Allora, per gli dèi!, come dico di solito, non saremo esperti di musica, noi stessi e i guardiani che sosteniamo di dover educare, se prima non riconosceremo gli aspetti della temperanza, del coraggio, della generosità, della magnanimità e di tutte le virtù loro sorelle, come pure dei vizi a loro contrari che circolano ovunque, e non avvertiremo la loro presenza e quella delle loro copie, senza trascurarne alcuna, negli esseri in cui si trovano, piccoli o grandi che siano, nella convinzione che facciano parte della stessa arte e dello stesso studio?" "è davvero necessario", rispose.
"Perciò", dissi, "quando capita che l'anima di un uomo sia fornita di nobili qualità morali e i tratti del suo aspetto siano in accordo e in armonia con esse, in quanto partecipi della stessa impronta, sarà lo spettacolo più bello che si possa contemplare?" "E come!" "E quanto più una cosa è bella, tanto più è amabile?"
"Come no?"
 "Allora il musico potrebbe innamorarsi solo di chi presenta queste doti nella forma più alta, non di chi è privo di armonia".
"No", rispose, "almeno se il difetto fosse nell'anima; se invece fosse nel corpo, lo sopporterebbe, tanto da acconsentire ad amarlo".
"Capisco", feci io, "che ami o hai amato una persona così , e te lo concedo. Ma dimmi questo: la temperanza ha qualcosa in comune con un piacere eccessivo?"
"E come può averlo", rispose, "se questo porta fuori di senno non meno del dolore?" "E con qualche altra virtù?"
"Assolutamente no!".
"E con l'insolenza e la sfrenatezza?" "Più di tutto!".
"Sai dirmi un piacere maggiore e più acuto di quello amoroso?" "No, e neanche uno più folle".
"Il giusto amore invece è la naturale inclinazione ad amare ciò che è ordinato e bello secondo la temperanza e l'armonia della musica?"
"Certamente", rispose.
"Quindi al giusto amore non bisogna accostare nulla che sia folle o affine alla sfrenatezza?" "No, non bisogna".
"Questo piacere va pertanto escluso e non deve avere relazione alcuna con un amante e un amato che si amino davvero?" "
Ma certo, per Zeus!", rispose. "Dobbiamo escluderlo, Socrate!".
"A quanto pare, dunque, nella città da noi fondata stabilirai per legge che l'amante baci l'amato, stia con lui e lo tocchi come un figlio, per un nobile fine e con il suo consenso, ma quanto al resto si comporti con la persona a lui cara in modo tale da non dare mai l'impressione che si spinga con lui troppo oltre questi limiti, altrimenti dovrà sostenere il biasimo di uomo ignorante di musica e inesperto del bello".
"Proprio così ", disse.
"Ma non sembra anche a te", chiesi, "che il nostro discorso sulla musica sia giunto alla conclusione? Esso è terminato proprio là dove deve terminare: la musica trova il suo compimento nell'amore del bello".

Raffaello - Scuola di Atene / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene -Platone / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)
Raffaello - Scuola di Atene / Raphael - The School of Athens (1509-1511)

Bob Pejman, 1963 | Neo-Romantic Realism painter

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"There are no people in my paintings, so you can imagine yourself in the scenes", explains the artist.


Born in Vienna, Bob Pejman was surrounded by art and culture from an early age. The son of an operatic composer and a concert musician, he spent his early childhood in Vienna, and then by way of England moved to the United States in 1976.
Pejman began painting by the age of seven, and by the time he was sixteen he had won numerous awards in group exhibitions. However, despite his art instructor's insistence for him to pursue an education and career in art, Pejman decided to enter the field of business management.




Upon graduating from college and after numerous years of employment at leading Software companies, Pejman secured a position as a Vice President of Marketing at Information Resources Inc, a global market research company.



However, it was not until 1988 when Pejman decided to return to the art world by opening up an art gallery. As a result of his direct exposure to fine art and contact with European masters whom he was representing at the gallery, he decided to start painting again. In 1991 he began his two year formal studies with the world renowned Russian artist, Anatoly Ivanov.






Later he attended the prestigious New York Art Students League as well as furthering his studies with the Impressionist master, Ovanes Berberian.
In 1995, the artist founded Pejman Editions, an art publishing company that would be dedicated to publishing and distributing hand embellished canvas limited editions of his works. In 1999 Pejman left his corporate career to pursue his art and publishing career on a full time basis.



Among his art instructors, Ivanov influenced Pejman the most by inspiring him to use the techniques of old masters such as Michelangelo and Rafael. Employing these almost forgotten techniques, Pejman skillfully blends impressionistic colors and techniques to achieve a classical but yet contemporary style.




Pejman's style is influenced by such artists as Sir Alma-Tadema, Thomas Cole and Maxfield Parrish. All of them sharing the attributes of technical mastery, form, and perspective. While the influence of these masters is evident in Pejman's works, it is through his unique arrangement and depiction of the subject matters that he achieves a distinctive style. One can classify his style as romantic realism, which he interestingly enough achieves by portraying beauty and solitude.





In his works, Pejman creates idyllic, tranquil worlds.
"The scenes are already romantic, but my idea is to make them even more so", explains the artist.
In doing so, he pushes the colors to make them more intense and exaggerates the sunlight.
"I don't simplify the shapes. You get into the cracks and feel the structures and the stones", he says, considering them to be marks of cultivated wisdom rather than declination.
There is romance in history, and Pejman reminds the viewer of classic beauty and emotions that transcend time, all inherent to such places as the Mediterranean.



Since his first one-man exhibition in 1993, Pejman has received national and international attention.
His works were chosen to be made into jacquard loom tapestries in Paris, France and distributed through Design Toscano in Chicago. Wall size murals are published by ScanDecor in Sweden, and Portal Publications in San Francisco is publishing a series of graphics. Pejman's works can be found in many prestigious galleries and corporate and private collections through out the world.

















L'Artista Bob Pejman è noto per i suoi dipinti di luoghi classici europei come Venezia, Lago di Como e la Costiera Amalfitana in Italia.
Figlio di un compositore operistico e concertista, Pejman era circondato da arte e cultura sin dalla più tenera età. ha trascorso l'infanzia a Vienna. Attualmente risiede negli Usa dove si è trasferito nel 1976.
Ha conseguito il Bachelor of Arts presso la Rutgers College. Ha studiato arte e pittura con il rinomato artista russo Anatoly Ivanov, noto per il suo elaborato stile classico.
Proprio da Ivanov ha preso la tendenza a utilizzare le tecniche dei vecchi maestri quali Michelangelo e più ancora Raffaello. Pejman ha saputo fondere le tecniche di questi più importanti artisti con lo stile impressionistico, ottenendo un effetto di classicità, indubbiamente moderno.


Lo stile di Pejman dalla fine del 1980 in poi può essere caratterizzato come realismo romantico o neorealismo.
Hanno contributo alla realizzazione di questi effetti anche l’influenza di altri artisti, come Alma Tadema, Thomas Cole e Maxfield Parrish.
Con questi artisti Pejman condivide, oltre che elementi tecnici, di forma e prospettiva, anche una determinata sensibilità poetica.



Romee Kanis, 1953 | Figurative bronzes sculptor

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Romee Kanis was born in Jutphaas in 1953. Currently she lives in St. Maartensbrug in Zijpe in a farmhouse, where her sculpture garden and her studio are located and she also works in her workshop in Schermerhorn. At age 18, Romee began in Spain and France with drawing portraits. On the Place du Tertre in Paris and by working in the major cities of Europe, she got a good look at the people around her.









The ever-changing conditions which they faced and the ever changing light and the environment led to her adapting and improving her technique. Over the years she has also met many painters and learned printing techniques until Romee became acquainted with the are of sculpting in the late 1980’s. There appeared to be her passion.
From that time she worked under the guidance of various renowned artists, steadily to what for her is the ultimate form of visual expression.
Romee works in bronze and makes figures and portraits of both humans and animals.
Her work is distinguished from others by a female approach and always gracefully shaped. In the figures, whether or not stripped, she shows man in its natural beauty without having to create an ideal sculpture. Portraying the feeling is the most important thing.
Only ff the people are touched she is satisfied. In her portraits she always captures something of the personal character.





This is what gives her work depth and which has made many people to find their way to her studio. Romee also produces sculptures for people who have lost a loved one. A tangible reminder of a person for which the survivors are searching. The expression on a tomb or a statue made as an urn is all part of the possibilities.
She makes her sculptures from a model in wax or clay. Together with her watering can Romee guarantees a good end product. What I imagine and feel I illustrate in sculptures.
Training in sculpture: Karel Gomes Academie - Badhoevedorp, Marian Sanders- Amstelveen, Masterclasses Richard Macdonald - Monterey, CA















































Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain / Narciso alla fonte, c. 1500-1510

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Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain,
Uffizi Gallery, Florence

Description: Narcissus at the Fountain;
Painted: shortly after 1500;
At the Uffizi: since 1894;
Author: Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (1467-1516);
Framework: Tempera on wood, 19x31;
Located in: The Correggio Room, Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain,
Uffizi Gallery, Florence, (detail)
Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London

There is a London-based copy, attributed to a follower of Boltraffio, where you can also see the water basin in which the young man reflected.

In Greek mythology, "Narcissus" fell in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. It is unusual for him to be given modern dress and for the pool to be a raised basin. The painting may be a poetic portrait and the pool an afterthought.
The type of effeminate male beauty, the loose curls and the distant lake are all derived from the work of Leonardo da Vinci. Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio was Leonardo's main pupil in Milan. | © The National Gallery, London

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)


Wiki /In Greek mythology, Narcissus (Greek: Νάρκισσος, Nárkissos) was a hunter from Thespiae in Boeotia who was known for his beauty. He was the son of the river god Cephissus and nymph Liriope. He was proud, in that he disdained those who loved him.
Nemesis noticed this behavior and attracted Narcissus to a pool, where he saw his own reflection in the water and fell in love with it, not realizing it was merely an image. Unable to leave the beauty of his reflection, Narcissus lost his will to live. He stared at his reflection until he died. Narcissus is the origin of the term narcissism, a fixation with oneself and one's physical appearance.
Several versions of the myth have survived from ancient sources. The classic version is by Ovid, found in book 3 of his Metamorphoses (completed 8 AD); this is the story of Echo and Narcissus. One day Narcissus was walking in the woods when Echo, an Oread (mountain nymph) saw him, fell deeply in love, and followed him.
Narcissus sensed he was being followed and shouted "Who's there?".
Echo repeated "Who's there?".
She eventually revealed her identity and attempted to embrace him. He stepped away and told her to leave him alone. She was heartbroken and spent the rest of her life in lonely glens until nothing but an echo sound remained of her. Nemesis, the goddess of revenge, learned of this story and decided to punish Narcissus. She lured him to a pool where he saw his own reflection. He didn't realize it was only an image and fell in love with it. He eventually recognized that his love could not be reciprocated and committed suicide.
An earlier version ascribed to the poet Parthenius of Nicaea, composed around 50 BC, was recently rediscovered among the Oxyrhynchus papyri at Oxford. Like Ovid's version, it ends with Narcissus committing suicide. A version by Conon, a contemporary of Ovid, also ends in suicide (Narrations, 24).
In it, a young man named Aminias fell in love with Narcissus, who had already spurned his male suitors. Narcissus also spurned him and gave him a sword. Aminias committed suicide at Narcissus's doorstep. He had prayed to the gods to give Narcissus a lesson for all the pain he provoked.
Narcissus walked by a pool of water and decided to drink some. He saw his reflection, became entranced by it, and killed himself because he could not have his object of desire. A century later the travel writer Pausanias recorded a novel variant of the story, in which Narcissus falls in love with his twin sister rather than himself (Guide to Greece, 9.31.7).

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)

Follower of Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio | Narcissus at the Fountain
National Gallery, London (detail)


"Il Narciso alla fonte"è un dipinto a olio su tavola (19x31 cm) di Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (Milano, 1467 - Milano, 15 giugno 1516), databile al 1500-1510 circa e conservato nella Galleria degli Uffizi a Firenze.
L'opera mostra chiari influssi leonardeschi, con elementi comuni ad altri colleghi del Boltraffio (come Bernardino Luini o Andrea Solario), che hanno causato spesso difficoltà attributiva. Un giovane di profilo, interpretato come Narciso per il suo guardare in basso, si trova in un paesaggio che ricorda da vicino quello della Vergine delle Rocce.
La bellezza malinconica, lo sfumato morbido e l'ambiguità dei volti sono tutti elementi leonardeschi, trattati però, come avviene nelle opere della scuola, in maniera abbastanza superficiale, tanto che si è parlato anche di un certo "accademismo" leonardesco. Inusuale è il taglio orizzontale dell'opera, forse dovuto a una riduzione del bordo inferiore.

La Seconda copia, la londinese, che si trova presso la National Gallery, London, è stata attribuita ad un seguace del Boltraffio, in cui si vede anche il bacino d'acqua in cui il giovane si riflette. /Wiki



La fonte storica di questa opera è la favola del mito di Narciso tratta dalle Metamorfosi del poeta latino Ovidio (i secolo a.C.), ripreso da numerosi autori medioevali.

Qui conta come Narcis s’innamorò dell’ombra sua

Narcìs fu molto buono e bellissimo cavaliere. Un giorno avenne ch’elli si riposava sopra una bellissima fontana, e dentro l’acqua vide l’ombra sua molto bellissima. E cominciò a riguardarla, e rallegravasi sopra alla fonte, e l’ombra sua facea lo simigliante. E così credeva che quella ombra avesse vita, che istesse nell’acqua, e non si accorgea che fosse l’ombra sua.
Cominciò ad amare e a innamorare sì forte, che la volle pigliare. E l’acqua si turbò; l’ombra spario; ond’elli incominciò a piangere. E l’acqua schiarando, vide l’ombra che piangea. Allora elli si lasciò cadere ne la fontana, sicché anegò.
Il tempo era di primavera; donne si veniano a diportare alla fontana; videro il bello Narcìs affogato. Con grandissimo pianto lo trassero della fonte, e così ritto l’appoggiaro alle sponde; onde dinanzi allo dio d’amore andò la novella. Onde lo dio d’amore ne fece nobilissimo mandorlo, molto verde e molto bene stante, e fu ed è il primo albero che prima fa frutto e rinnovella amore. / Metamorfosi, Ovidio

Daniel Dell'Orfano | Romantic Realism painter

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I aspire to blend old fashion artistic integrity with modern perception. My paintings depict life, not as it may be, but more as it is remembered- a snapshot, not of a particular moment, but of an overall memory. It is the beauty of the emotion felt at an exacting time that I attempt to portray. Trying to capture the romantic yet realistic view one has of everyday life is at the root of all my work”.





Daniel Del Orfano was born and raised on Long Island, New York, Daniel decided to stay close to his roots and attend Dowling College in Oakdale, NY.
There he received his BFA in Art Education and was teaching full time by the fall of 2001. After teaching at the prestigious Knox Boarding School, Daniel took a position in the public school system where he taught art to children of all ages. Though extremely rewarding, this was not his true calling.
It was at this time Daniel decided to divert his attention from teaching art to creating art, and in the summer of 2005, he formed The Renaissance Workshop.
Specializing in all things art, The Renaissance Workshop gave Daniel the opportunity to expand his horizons, creatively.







As demand for commissioned work increased, Daniel began developing his expressive style, implementing techniques that emphasized texture over realism. Though the work depicted realistic scenes, the effects produced an almost ethereal feeling. The imagery began to take a back seat to the memory of which the image represented.
Daniel Del Orfano’s work depicts life, not as it may be, but more as it is remembered- a snapshot, not of a particular moment but of an overall memory.
































Daniel dell’Orfano è un pittore newyorchese che aspira di fondere il fascino dell’antico, con una percezione artistica moderna. Tende a riportare sulla tela "attimi" della vita di tutti i giorni, ma in particolare quelli romantici.

Daniel Del Orfano, nato e cresciuto a Long Island, New York, dopo aver insegnato presso la prestigiosa Scuola Knox Boarding, si è integrato nel sistema scolastico pubblico, dove ha insegnato arte a bambini di tutte le età.
Ma, anche se estremamente gratificante, questa non era la sua vera vocazione.
Nell'estate del 2005, fonda il Laboratorio Rinascimento, con l'obbiettivo di espandere creativamente i suoi orizzonti.
Poiché la domanda di lavoro commissionato diventava sempre maggiore, Daniel inizia a sviluppare il suo stile espressivo, attuando delle tecniche che enfatizzano il realismo.
Anche se il suo lavoro raffigura scene realistiche, gli effetti sono di una sensazione quasi eterea.
Orfano inizia a creare degli elementi simbolici per le sue tele.
Un dettaglio simbolico, comunemente raffigurato nei lavori dell'Orfano, diventa l'ombrello rosso.
Del Orfano è stato a lungo affascinato dal fatto che, mentre si cammina a New York, se colti da un temporale improvviso, la salvezza era a solo un isolato di distanza: un venditore d'ombrelli.
Con pochi dollari, si può continuare il cammino protetti dagli agenti atmosferici.
L'ombrello, simbolo di protezione e sicurezza, mentre il rosso - passione e determinazione.

"... Aspiro a fondere l'integrità dell'arte d'epoca con la percezione artistica moderna. I miei quadri raffigurano la vita non come può essere, ma come la si ricorda, intesa non in un momento particolare, ma in una memoria globale. 
E' la bellezza della emozione provata in un momento impegnativo che cerco di ritrarre, cercando di catturare la visione romantica ma al contempo realistico che si ha della vita quotidiana".






Boltraffio | The Virgin and Child / Madonna col Bambino, c. 1493-1499

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  • Artist:Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (1467-1516);
  • Full title: The Virgin and Child;
  • Date made: probably about 1493-1499;
  • Medium and support: Oil on walnut;
  • Dimensions: 92.7 x 67.3 cm;
  • Located: National Gallery London;
  • Acquisition credit: Bought, 1863;
  • Inventory number: NG728.



"The Virgin and Child" displays the influence of Leonardo da Vinci, in whose Milanese studio Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio was working by 1491. Among the decorative motifs picked out in gold on the cloth of honour are the inscriptions 'AVE' and 'MARIA' (Hail Mary).

Both, the Virgin and the Christ Child, poised to suckle at her breast look down, suggesting that the painting may be a fragment of an altarpiece which hung quite high up. | © The National Gallery, London



"Madonna col Bambino" è un dipinto di Giovanni Antonio Boltraffio (1467-1516).
Eseguito probabilmente nell'ultimo decennio del quattrocento, è conservato nella National Gallery di Londra.
  • Descrizione
Questa "Madonna col Bambino" rivela una certa influenza leonardesca, derivata dell'attività del Boltraffio nella bottega milanese del maestro toscano.
Sia la Vergine che Gesù hanno lo sguardo rivolto verso il basso, a suggerire un'originaria collocazione piuttosto in alto. | Wiki




Amaldus Nielsen | Naturalist painter

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Amaldus Clarin Nielsen (23 May 1838 - 10 December 1932) was a Norwegian painter.
Early life
He was born in Halse as a son of shipmaster and merchant Niels Clemetsen Nielsen (1795-1845) and his wife Andrea Marie Møller (1802-1866). He grew up in Mandal in Vest-Agder county, Norway. He lived most of his childhood and adolescence without a father. He received some tuition from a traveling drawing teacher and traveled to Copenhagen to study in 1854.




  • Career
After one year of painting studies in Copenhagen, he enrolled at the Academy of Art in 1855. He failed to progress in the academy's system, but with financial support from his brother and business owner Diderik Cappelen (1856-1935), he studied under Hans Gude at the Düsseldorf Academy from 1857-1859.
He spent the years 1859-1863 travelling over Western and Southern Norway, and spent 1863-1864 in Düsseldorf again. He is associated with the Düsseldorf school of painting.
He then travelled home due to illness, moved to Christiania where he sealed a deal to make paintings that the Christiania Kunstforening would sell at auctions, securing a steady income. He spent the years 1867-1868 in Karlsruhe before finally settling at Majorstuen in 1869.


He painted in the naturalist style, and has been called "Norway's first naturalist painter".
Important paintings include Hvalørhei (1874), Skovbillede (1896), Morgen ved Ny-Hellesund (1885, one of several from Ny-Hellesund), Ensomt sted (1901), Fra Bankefjorden (1910) and Kveld på Jæren (1925) Most of his paintings portrayed Western and Southern Norway, but also Østfold.
He participated almost annually in the Autumn Exhibit between 1883-1911, and held notable exhibitions in Christiania Kunstforening (1895, 1906, 1924, 1931), at the 1862 International Exhibition, the Exposition Universelle of 1889 and in Munich in 1913.


Eleven of his works are owned by the National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design. He is also represented in Mandal Kunstforening and Mandal Bymuseum, but is perhaps best known for the collection of about 300 works which was donated to Oslo municipality by Nielsen's heirs in 1933.
Since 1994 this collection is on permanent exhibit in the Stenersen Museum. Nielsen was also decorated as a Knight, First Class of the Royal Norwegian Order of St. Olav in 1890. The square Amaldus Nielsens plass, which includes a bust of Nielsen, was named after him.
  • Personal life
In October 1868 in Christiania he married Johanne Nicoline Augusta Vangensteen, born 1845 as a daughter of district stipendiary magistrate Ove Bodvar Hussein Vangensteen (1806-1859). The couple had eleven children.
Both his wife and three children died in March 1886 from a diphtheria epidemic. After a period of grief, he married Laura Tandberg (1857-1928) in February 1888 in Risør. Nielsen died in December 1932, aged 94, from pneumonia.






Artista: Amaldus Clarin Nielsen
Data di nascita: 23 maggio 1838, Mandal, Norvegia
Data di morte: 10 dicembre 1932, Oslo, Norvegia
Periodo: Naturalismo
Libri: Amaldus Nielsen: Kunstnernes Hus, Oslo, 28. juni - 8. August 1971

Amaldus Clarin Nielsen, il più importante artista della costa meridionale, rappresenta un punto di svolta del passaggio dal Romanticismo al Naturalismo. La più grande collezione pubblica in Norvegia delle opere di Amaldus Nielsen, si trova al Bymuseum, il Museo della Città di Mandal, costruito nel 1801, che si trova lungo la costa meridionale della Norvegia.


Antoine Blanchard | Paris painting

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Antoine Blanchard is the pseudonym of the French painter, Marcel Masson [1910-1988]. Blanchard was often introduced to collectors as the foremost artist of Parisian street scenes of his day. Like his predecessors, the French masters Galien-Laloue, Cortes, Loir, Utrillo and Francois Gerome, Blanchard has made an impact on contemporary art.Born in 1910 in a small village near Blois in the Loire Valley, Blanchard was encouraged at a young age to enter the arts. His parents first sent him as a young boy to an art school in Blois, and then relocated the entire family to Rennes in Brittany so that young Antoine could study there at the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. Three years later, in 1932, the young artist moved to Paris in order to Study at its world famous Ecole des Beaux-Arts. Upon completion of his studies, Blanchard was awarded the Prix de Rome, an honor rarely given to an artist of his young age.
The following years were spent in Paris recording scenes of the city’s bustling streets characterized by glowing street lamps, flower vendors pushing carts full of brilliantly-colored bouquets and fashionable pedestrians crowding the sidewalks. The artist, whose works were an immediate success, favored the styles of Eugene Galien-Laloue and Edouard Cortes. Indeed, critics have compared his works to the traditional Paris street scenes painted in the late 1800’s and early 1900’s in both style and subject matter. It is, however, important to note that Blanchard’s pieces are more delicate in brushwork, more generous in color and more alive in movement than those of his predecessors.
Combining his years of classical training with innovative techniques of the 20th century, Blanchard was a trend-setter. The artist’s works executed throughout his fifty year long career are witness to his gradual development in technique, moving from heavy and dark tones similar to those of the old masters, to a new style using numerous strokes of color lightly applied to the canvas. With immense imagination, profound understanding of color and light and accuracy in architectural detail, Blanchard has continually delighted the art world with his compositions.
In 1979, his large canvas Le Café de la Paix won the Premier Grand Prix at the first art competition held in Paris’ famed Café de la Paix on the bustling Boulevard des Capucines. That work is now part of a major collection in Salt Lake City, Utah.
Spanning five decades of ceaseless hours spent in front of the easel, Blanchard’s career was fired by a pressing goal to continually excel. This strict discipline did not, however, harden his work – it proved only to refine it. Along with Utrillo, Loir, Guys, Galien-Laloue and Cortes, Antoine Blanchard is one of the great Impressionists of modern times.






























Antoine Blanchard è lo pseudonimo sotto il quale il pittore Francese, Marcel Masson (1910-1988) dipinse le sue immensamente popolari scene di strada parigine, seguendo la scia di Eugène Galien-Laloue ed Édouard-Léon Cortès.
Nato il 15 Novembre 1910 in un piccolo villaggio sulle rive della Loira, si è formato all'Accademia di Belle Arti di Rennes, in Bretagna.
Si trasferisce poi a Parigi nel 1932, dove si iscrive all'Ecole des Beaux Arts. Ha vinto il Prix de Rome.
Nel 1950 cominciò a dipingere Parigi, traendo spesso i suoi soggetti da cartoline d'epoca. Dipinge scene di strada, riprendendo lo stesso soggetto in varie stagioni e condizioni climatiche. I temi sono le strade in giornate nuvolose e affollate di passanti e vetrine luminose che si riflettono sulle strade bagnate.
Antoine Blanchard muore nel 1988.
I suoi dipinti vengono oggi riprodotti all'infinito per essere venduti nei negozi di souvenir della Ville Lumière.

Paul Renard | Paris painting

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French artist Paul Renard (1871-1920) was studied at Rotterdams Academy of Art.
He spent most of his career painting narrative street scenes of Paris for which he became renowned.
His is a well listed artist and his work can be found in galleries throughout the world.



























Paul Renard (1871-1920) è stato un pittore Francese, ha studiato presso l'Academie voor Kunst in Rotterdam (NL). Dipinse molte vedute di strada parigina, che lo ha reso molto famoso. Sue opere sono presenti in collezioni in tutto il mondo.




Shakespeare | Shall I compare thee to a summer's day.. / Dovrei paragonarti a un giorno d'estate..

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  Sonnet 18
Shall I compare thee to a summer's day?
Thou art more lovely and more temperate:
Rough winds do shake the darling buds of May,
And summer's lease hath all too short a date.
Sonetto 18
Dovrò paragonarti ad un giorno estivo?
Tu sei più amabile e temperato:
cari bocci scossi da vento eversivo
e il nolo estivo presto è consumato.

Nydia Lozano
Nydia Lozano, 1947 ~ Impressionist Figurative painter

L’occhio del cielo è spesso troppo caldo
e la sua faccia sovente s’oscura,
e il Bello al Bello non è sempre saldo,
per caso o per corso della natura.
Ma la tua eterna Estate mai svanirà,
né perderai la Bellezza ch’ora hai,
né la Morte di averti si vanterà
quando in questi versi eterni crescerai.
Finché uomo respira o con occhio vedrà,
fin lì vive Poesia che vita a te dà.

Nydia Lozano, 1947 ~ Impressionist Figurative painter
Nydia Lozano, 1947 ~ Impressionist Figurative painter

Sometime too hot the eye of heaven shines,
And often is his gold complexion dimmed,
And every fair from fair sometime declines,
By chance, or nature's changing course untrimmed:
But thy eternal summer shall not fade,
Nor lose possession of that fair thou ow'st,
Nor shall death brag thou wander'st in his shade,
When in eternal lines to time thou grow'st,
So long as men can breathe, or eyes can see,
So long lives this, and this gives life to thee.



Nydia Lozano, 1947 | Impressionist Figurative painter

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Spanish painter Nydia Lozano was born in Alginet, a small town of the Ribera of Valencia. The name Nydia recalls the character created by Bulwer-Lytton in his The Last Days of Pompei when the local priest refused a baptism with a pagan name so that Nydia had to be baptized as Laura.
Nydia grew up in the huerta landscape, in which life translates itself in a strong luminous atmosphere and in the bright colors of rice fields and of orange and lemon trees. Everything that her sensitiveness kept accumulating in youth manifested itself in her affection for painting.


Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano’s first works were landscapes depicting Alginet and the places that her family used to visit in the summertime, places like Torremanzanas in the Sierra de Alcoy; she also painted portraits of her friends and relatives. When her father noticed the intensity of her affection for painting he visited José Espert in order to know his opinion of her drawings. The Alginet master José Espert had inherited the vision of the great Valencian School, just as Romero Ressendi (who was a friend of his) had defined the evolution of Andalusian painting.
Espert was impressed with the drawings and invited José Lozano to bring his daughter to his atelier. Nydia spent many hours there watching the master paint and listening to his opinions about painting. She learned much more than a technique; she learned the way to look and to understand; she learned the concept of pictorial synthesis that the 19th century masters had achieved and that in the early 60s, after the deaths of Manuel Benedito and Salvador Tuset (to name two valencian masters, both Sorolla’s disciples) had fallen into oblivion and conscious neglect.

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Actually, the movement to adopt in Spain the artistic trends developing in the United States and Europe had one of its main points of focus in Valencia with Estampa Popular and later the renowned Equipo Crónica. At that time, finding someone who quoted Sargent, Zorn, Laszló, Pinazo or Sorolla was almost impossible, but Espert had no need to prove to anyone his modernity and through him one came to understand the significance of this new historical movement in all of its various dimensions.

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

In 1965, Nydia Lozano entered the San Carlos Fine Arts School of Valencia, where she met her husband-to-be, the painter Leopoldo Sánchez. The School (now a Faculty of the Polytechnic University) was then located in the ancient Convent of El Carmen.
Among their professors were the two great figures of post-war Valencian painting: Genaro Lahuerta and Francisco Lozano, although José Ros or Calatayud, who loved their students as much as painting, figured as more influential teachers. During the years spent at the School, Nydia and Leopoldo came in contact with the avantgarde, then the commanding artistic presence: Equipo Crónica, José Iturralde, Eusebio Sempere, Fernando Zóbel, Gustavo Torner, etc.


Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Their first exhibition was a collective showing with Vicente Silvestre at the Ateneo Mercantil of Valencia in January, 1969. Around that time Nydia won several awards such as the Ciudad de Játiva in 1965, the Caja de Ahorros del Sureste Plastic Arts Biennal Medal in 1968 and, in the same year, the Education and Science Ministery Silver Medal which granted her a stipend in order to paint in Segovia. In 1970 she was awarded a grant in Rome by the Castellblanch Foundation.

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

After finishing their studies in 1971, Nydia Lozano and Leopoldo Sánchez got married, leaving Valencia for Barcelona in 1974.
From there they began an exhibiting carreer all over Spain: Madrid (Ingres and Zúccaro galleries, Mellado in San Lorenzo del Escorial and Patto’s in Becerril de la Sierra), Valencia (Benlliure, Puchol and Pizarro), Bilbao (Iris), Barcelona (Segura Viudas) and other Spanish capitals such as Zaragoza, Burgos, Logroño, Albacete or Málaga.
While living in Barcelona, Nydia and Leopoldo made numerous travels around Spain which often served as a thematic source for their pictures.
They felt especially attracted by the life and the landscapes of the Andalusian province of Cádiz, acquiring a house in the town of Vejer de la Frontera.




In the summer of 1991, they settled in Galifa, a small valley in Murcia’s southern coast.
From there they continued their work exhibiting in galleries in Spain and abroad: Ambassador Galleries in New York, Adamson-Duvannes Gallery in Los Angeles and Simic-New Renaissance in Carmel-by-the-Sea, California and Addison in Boca Raton, Florida, as well as in the galleries Espace Raub in Brest, Euroarte in Lisbon and Inter Arte in Porto.
In Spain they have been invited to participate in several art fairs such as Artexpo (Barcelona), Interarte (Valencia) and Artesantander (Santander).
In 1996, together with their friend Philippe Martin, they founded in Murcia La Galería de Arte Convard, filling thereby the need for a gallery devoted to Spanish realist art.



























Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Lydia Lozano è nata nel 1947 in Alginet, una piccola località di Ribera in Valencia, Spagna. Le prime opere di Nydia erano paesaggi raffiguranti Alginet.
Quando suo padre si accorse del suo interesse per la pittura, si rivolse al maestro pittore algerino José Espert per avere da lui una valutazione del talento di sua figlia.
Espert ne fu colpito ed invitò José Lozano a portare la figlia nel suo atelier. Nydia trascorse molte ore a guardare la tele del maestro e ad ascoltare le sue opinioni sulla pittura.
Ha imparato molto più di una tecnica; ha imparato il modo di guardare e di capire; ha imparato il concetto della sintesi pittorica dai maestri del XIX secolo.
Nel 1965, Nydia Lozano entra nella Scuola di Belle Arti di Valencia, dove ha incontrato suo marito, il pittore Leopoldo Sánchez. Tra i loro professori c'erano due grandi figure della pittura valenzana del dopoguerra: Genaro Lahuerta e Francisco Lozano.
Durante questi anni, Nydia e Leopoldo entrano a contatto con l'avanguardia artistica: Equipo Crónica, José Iturralde, Eusebio Sempere, Fernando Zobel, Gustavo Torner, etc.

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter | Ladies with flowers

Nydia Lozano 1947 | Spanish Impressionist Figurative painter

Eugene Galien-Laloue | Paris painting

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French painter Eugène Galien-Laloue [1854-1941] was born in Paris on 1854. He was a populariser of street scenes, usually painted in autumn or winter. His paintings o f the early 1900s accurately represent the era in which he lived: a happy, bustling Paris, la Belle Époque, with horse-drawn carriages, trolley cars and its first omnibuses. Galien-Laloue's works are valued not only for their contribution to 20th century art, but for the actual history, which they document.



His work can be seen at the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Louvier; Musée des Beaux-Arts, La Rochelle; Mulhouse, France. A typical Galien-Laloue painting depicts sidewalks and avenues crowded with people or tourists mingling before the capital's monuments. He also painted the landscapes of Normandy and Seine-et-Marne, as well as military scenes he was commissioned to produce in 1914. The Republic of France selected Galien-Laloue to work as a war artist, both during the Franco-Prussian War and World War I, chiefly in watercolor.






























Eugène Galien-Laloue (1854-1941) è stato un artista Francese di genitori franco-italiani, nato a Parigi.
A volte giudicato duramente come molti pittori della Belle Epoque, chiamati "Pompiers", Eugène Galien-Laloue, con la sua pittura dell'Ottocento, ha rappresentato scene della vita parigina con grande delicatezza.
Le sue opere si caratterizzano per l'imitazione minuziosa dei dettagli architettonici degli edifici parigini, come pure per la rappresentazione ricca di virtuosismo degli effetti di luce che si riflettono nelle vetrine dei grandi magazzini e nelle pozzanghere.
Allievo di Charles Laloue, questo artista rimane un vero cantore della pittoresca Parigi durante l'epoca felice degli omnibus e delle carrozze, evocando l'atmosfera di Parigi nel 1900.
Questo innegabile fascino non poteva passare inosservato a lungo, ed è per questo che rimane oggi un pittore famoso e ricercato, noto fotografo dei battiti di cuore della vecchia Parigi.
Eugène Galien-Laloue continuò la grande tradizione delle vedute veneziane di Canaletto e Guardi. Questo spiega l'elevato numero di gouache ed acquerelli realizzati "su motivo" nella sua opera pitturale.
Galien-Laloue era già un pittore molto richiesto al suo tempo. Diversi contratti esclusivi firmati con piů commercianti sembrano spiegare la pluralità di pseudonimi con cui firmava dipinti ad olio come pure paesaggi eseguiti nello stile di Barbizon, scene di paese e di porto.



Canaletto | London paintings, 1746-1755

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The revered Venetian landscape painter Giovanni Antonio Canal (28 October 1697 - 19 April 1768), known as Canaletto, enjoyed a roaring trade from English visitors to Italy in his early career, but by 1740 the War of the Austrian Succession had taken hold and tourism was dwindling. In 1746, Canaletto decided to move to London to be closer to his market.
At this time Britain was flourishing under newfound wealth.

Canaletto - A self-portait with Saint Pauls in the Background, 1746



A series of landmark architectural and engineering projects saw widespread construction of houses, castles, bridges and churches, changing the national landscape dramatically. In fact, thanks to the clear influence of Mediterranean styles, London earned the title 'the new Venice'.
In a series of works dating between 1746-1755, Canaletto captures Britain in its flourishing glory. This exhibition marks the first time they have ever been brought together.



Many of his pictures were sold to Englishmen on their Grand Tour, often through the agency of the merchant Joseph Smith (who was later appointed British Consul in Venice in 1744).
It was Smith who acted as an agent for Canaletto, first in requesting paintings of Venice from the painter in the early 1720s and helping him to sell his paintings to other Englishmen.
In the 1740s Canaletto's market was disrupted when the War of the Austrian Succession led to a reduction in the number of British visitors to Venice. Smith also arranged for the publication of a series of etchings of "capricci" (or architectural phantasies) (capriccio Italian for fancy) in his vedute ideale, but the returns were not high enough, and in 1746 Canaletto moved to London, to be closer to his market.


He remained in England until 1755, producing views of London (including several of the new Westminster Bridge, which was completed during his stay) and of his patrons' castles and houses. His 1754 painting of Old Walton Bridge includes an image of Canaletto himself.
He was often expected to paint England in the fashion with which he had painted his native city. Canaletto's painting began to suffer from repetitiveness, losing its fluidity, and becoming mechanical to the point that the English art critic George Vertue suggested that the man painting under the name 'Canaletto' was an impostor.
The artist was compelled to give public painting demonstrations in order to refute this claim; however, his reputation never fully recovered in his lifetime.
After his return to Venice, Canaletto was elected to the Venetian Academy in 1763 and appointed prior of the Collegio dei Pittori. He continued to paint until his death in 1768. In his later years he often worked from old sketches, but he sometimes produced surprising new compositions. He was willing to make subtle alternations to topography for artistic effect. | Wiki


















Il venerato paesaggista veneziano Canaletto, aveva goduto di affari d'oro da parte dei visitatori inglesi in Italia, nella sua carriera, ma dal 1740, la Guerra di successione austriaca (1741-1748) portò a un forte decremento dei visitatori britannici a Venezia. Smith non riusciva più a garantire l'elevato numero dei clienti di un tempo, anche perché ormai tutti i più importanti committenti inglesi che frequentavano Venezia avevano acquistato un elevato numero di opere di Giovanni Antonio Canal.

Joseph Smith (personaggio che si rivelò poi decisivo per la carriera dell'artista. Smith, ricchissimo collezionista d'arte e poi console britannico a Venezia tra il 1744-1760, diventa il principale intermediario tra il Canaletto e i collezionisti inglesi) non era quindi più in grado di garantirgli committenze e nel 1746 il Canaletto decide di trasferirsi a Londra: l'artista scrive una lettera al suo primo "agente", Owen McSwiny pregandolo di introdurlo presso il Duca di Richmond, che tra l'altro era già stato cliente del Canaletto durante gli anni venti.

Il Canaletto comincia quindi a creare i rapporti con i suoi nuovi clienti, tra i quali figuravano il principe boemo Johann Georg Christian von Lobkowitz e il nobile inglese Hugh Percy, futuro Duca di Northumberland. Accolto con iniziale diffidenza, riesce a ricevere comunque diverse commissioni da parte dell'aristocrazia inglese: tra le opere di questi anni si segnala Il Parco di Badminton da Badminton House, del 1748, realizzato per Charles Somerset, quarto duca di Beaufort.

Si tratta di un dipinto interessante perché mostra un Canaletto diverso: se infatti l'artista era abituato a dipingere gli scorci urbani di una Venezia ricca di edifici e piena di persone indaffarate, in Inghilterra il Canaletto comincia a raffigurare i tipici paesaggi calmi e privi di architetture complesse della brughiera inglese. Esemplificativi in tal senso sono anche alcuni dipinti come Il castello di Warwick, realizzato per Francis Greville Brooke, futuro duca di Warwick, e alcune vedute del Tamigi, nelle quali il pittore poteva utilizzare gli artifici di cui si serviva per raffigurare i canali e i bacini di Venezia.
Interessante è anche un dipinto conservato presso l'Abbazia di Westminster che raffigura l'abbazia stessa con la processione dei cavalieri dell'Ordine del Bagno: si tratta di un dipinto a scopo celebrativo nel quale Giovanni Antonio Canal poteva servirsi della sua esperienza maturata nel dipingere le lussuose feste della Repubblica di Venezia. Dopo aver interrotto il soggiorno inglese una prima volta nel 1750 e una seconda volta nel 1753, il Canaletto torna a Londra e stringe rapporti con Thomas Hollis, uno dei più importanti committenti del periodo inglese: per lui l'artista dipinge il Ponte di Walton e L'interno della Rotonda di Ranelagh, quest'ultimo uno dei rari interni realizzati dal pittore.








Victor Gilbert | The Flower Seller | Academic /Genre painter

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The mid-nineteenth and early twentieth century saw the introduction of art based on daily life, a depiction of everything from the street vendors to the homeless in and around France. Artists were often deeply embroiled in the social issues of the time and sought to free themselves from the imposing historicism that had stifled art production for decades.
The movement known as "Realism" found supporters in the progressive art critic Jules Castagnary and artists such as Victor Gilbert promoted a realistic display of modern life in its many permutations. Gilbert became one of the artists who carried Realism further into the twentieth century and who also fell under the influence of the Impressionist movement by searching for new methods of representation, often less gritty than his earliest work.






Victor-Gabriel Gilbert was born February 13, 1847 in Paris, just shortly before the 1848 Revolution which brought about reforms in the Salon system that allowed more artists to introduce new work. Since Gilbert’s parents did not have enough money to send him to the École des Beaux-Arts for training, the typical route for aspiring artists, he instead began working as an apprentice at thirteen to Eugène Adam, a painter decorator.
At night he would also take lessons at the École de la Ville de Paris, which was his only form of official artistic training. As many of the École des Beaux-Arts ateliers relied on a more rigidly academic form of training and style of painting, his lack of extensive studies may have forced him to look towards daily life for his inspiration.



Gilbert debuted at the Salon of 1873 with Les Apprêts du Diner (Preparing Dinner) and Avant le Bal (Before the Ball), just a year before the Impressionist group showed their paintings at the first "Impressionist" exhibition at the photographer Nadar’s studio. During the mid 1870s Gilbert was supported financially by Père Martin who owned an art shop on the rue Lafitte and who was an important supporter of the Impressionist movement and the promotion of young and promising artists.
He secured several of Gilbert’s works for himself and in return, Gilbert executed Portrait of Mme. M…(Portrait of Madame M…), which was exhibited at the 1875 Salon. From then on Gilbert was well-established enough as a painter that he no longer had to complete decorative work for textile manufacturers (The Realist Tradition: French Painting and Drawing 1830-1900, ex. cat., Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1980, pg. 294).
Many artists came to rely more and more on art dealers for sale of their images. Martin’s sponsorship of Gilbert’s work helped in the dissemination of his realist images; making him more popular with a larger audience that continued to respond to these easily recognizable and understandable images. This also placed Gilbert among some of the most progressive artists of the period.



Early in his career Gilbert focused on still lifes but towards the end of the he turned more and more towards typical themes of Realism.
He became the painter of Les Halles, an area in Paris that still exists today but which then was a center for street vendors and markets, a busy and bustling area of Paris. Many of these scenes were fish markets, and one of his works, that of Un Coin de la Halle aux Poissons; le matin (A Corner of the Fish Market; morning), exhibited at the 1880 Salon, garnered him his first medal, a second-class award; it was also purchased by the State.

"Since Gilbert was familiar with Naturalist literature, specifically with the novels of Émile Zola, he was aware of the author’s view of Les Halles as a symbol of the dynamism and energy of Paris", a point explained in The Realist Tradition suggesting that Gilbert was equally interested in combining literary texts with his compositions and was inspired by literature as well as daily life for the execution of his compositions.
It is further noted that:
Victor Gilbert’s ability to capture different work activities and social types is another aspect of his style. Gilbert’s frequent visits to Les Halles enabled him to witness many activities. Stressing the actuality of the scene, his visual description helped make him the renowned master of Les Halles by 1885.






Gilbert had created a niche for himself and for his work in the realistic depiction of the aspects of Parisian life; he had also become popular with the State as not only was his 1880 painting purchased by them, but his 1884 (Porteurs de Viande - Meat Haulers) Salon entry was as well.
As his style progressed, Gilbert did not neglect solely bourgeois scenes, such as Marché aux Fleurs (Flower Market), linking him more intimately with Impressionist painters, especially Pierre-Auguste Renoir and his interest in beautiful bourgeois women taking part in their leisurely activities, paintings that were a far cry from the work of many of the earlier Realists. With this shift in theme, Gilbert also moved towards a lighter toned palette, instead of the dark palette reminiscent of earlier Realists such as Théodule Ribot and François Bonvin.








Gilbert continued to submit regularly to the Salon until 1933.

In 1926 he received the Prix Bonnat. Earlier in his career, in 1897, he was also named Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur and was also a Salon juror at one point.
Gilbert died on July 21st, 1935, and is now buried at the Montmartre cemetery in Paris.

Victor Gilbert was not only influenced by Realism, but also by Impressionism.
His life and Salon career lived through a period of consistent stylistic transitions, influenced by the times.
His early career was preoccupied by Realist themes, scenes of daily life, but as the Impressionist had made there mark and La Belle Époque had come and gone, he moved more towards genre scenes including elegant bourgeois women and family, and especially young children, devoid of the gritty and less "picturesque" vision of daily life.
As more of Gilbert’s works become known, perhaps further influences will come to light and the oeuvre of this artist will become even more diverse. | © Rehs Galleries






























Victor-Gabriel Gilbert [1847-1933]è stato un pittore Francese. Sin dall'infanzia Gilbert mostrò una spiccata capacità artistica, ma purtroppo la sua famiglia non ebbe abbastanza denaro per inviare il giovane Victor all' École des Beaux-Arts. Gilbert venne messo, perciò, a bottega da Eugene Adam, come pittore artigiano e decoratore. La sua educazione si formò ai corsi serali con Pierre Levasseur presso l' École.
Forse grazie alla sua totale immersione nella vita parigina, i temi fondamentali delle sue tele furono scene di vita quotidiana, dei mercanti e delle strade della capitale francese.
Nonostante la mancanza di una formazione ufficiale, Gilbert venne ammesso al Salon del 1873 e dell'anno successivo dove le sue opere vennero accolte favorevolmente dal pubblico e dalla critica a sostegno del movimento impressionista.
Gilbert emerse ufficialmente come pittore nel 1880 e nello stesso anno, in occasione del Salon, ottenne una medaglia e vendette una delle sue tele più famose "Un angolo di mercato del pesce di mattina".
L'intera produzione è scandita da tele di grandi dimensioni raffiguranti le varie sezioni del più grande mercato di Parigi, Les Halles. I suoi stili di pittura spaziano dal Naturalismo della fine del XIX secolo e la tecnica vibrante della luce en plein-air dell'Impressionismo.
Ottenne un'altra medaglia d'oro nel 1889 e nel 1926 il Premio Bonnat.
La sua reputazione è stata confermata dalla nomina per la Legion d'Onore nel 1897.




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