A Scholarly Skater
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A Skating and Art Fun Fact
This painting depicts a fashionable way to ice skate in the 18th and 19th centuries. Find out why I don’t recommend skating that way today.
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American Artists and the American Revolution
In the USA, paintings help us experience the story of our country’s origins. Paul Staiti’s book talks about five major painters of the American Revolution.
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What Are Votives? They’re Not Just Candles.
When I saw Agents of Faith: Votive Objects in Time and Place, the show was almost over. Instead of writing a review, I’ll explain what votives are.
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The Self-Portrait: A Cultural History, by James Hall
James Hall’s The Self-Portrait: A Cultural History is an interesting, well-thought-out assessment of self-portrait painting as a cultural phenomenon.
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Still Life Paintings by Anne Vallayer-Coster
Anne Vallayer-Coster was an 18th-century French artist who specialized in still life. She was so good that she became official painter to Marie-Antoinette.
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Art That Inspires Me: Still Life Painting
Back in the days of the artistic academies, still life was considered the least prestigious of the painting genres, but it’s one of my personal favorites.
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Art That Inspires Me: Japanese Buddhist Deity
This installment of Art That Inspires Me features a Japanese Buddhist statue that appeared on a poster sent to me by the Yale University Art Gallery.
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Lyndhurst at Christmastime
Over the weekend, I visited Lyndhurst, a 19th-century Gothic Revival mansion in Tarrytown, NY, to take the delightful Christmas tour.
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Why Museums Don’t Display All the Art They Own? (and Related Questions)
Somebody recently asked me why most museums display only a small portion of their collections. Here are my answers to that and some related questions.
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How to Enjoy an Art Museum When You Didn’t Study Art
For anyone who’s ever felt frustrated or unsure in an art museum, here are a few strategies to make museum visits more enjoyable and fulfilling.
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A Matter of Perspective
When Leonardo da Vinci painted his famous The Last Supper fresco, he used some cool tricks to make the painting seem to be part of the room itself.
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The Mystery of the Disappearing Velasquez (maybe)
The Vanishing Velasquez tells the wild but true story of a man who believed that he owned a lost Velasquez masterpiece. It’s still an unsolved mystery.
