I love the American artist John Singer Sargent (1856-1925), and I have wanted to write an Art That Inspires Me post about him for a while. However, there are just so many things that inspire me about Sargent, and I struggled to pick a few to focus on. This is my all-time favorite Sargent painting. It depicts Lady (Gertrude) Agnew of Locknaw, the wife of a Scottish nobleman.
Category: American Art
American Artists and the American Revolution
Here in the United States, paintings play a big role in how we experience the story of our country's origins. Portraits of our Founding Fathers and other paintings of the Revolutionary War appear on our money, in our textbooks, and decorating our government buildings. These paintings have become a huge part of our national consciousness. Paul Staiti's Of Arms and Artists: The American Revolution Through Painters' Eyes is about the five American painters most responsible for depicting the Revolution era.
Art That Inspires Me: Florine Stettheimer (at DailyArt Magazine)
I just love the work of Florine Stettheimer! It's fun, colorful, and completely unique. I'm always so happy when I spot one of her paintings at a museum. Because I enjoy Florine's work so much, I wrote an article about her for DailyArt Magazine. Give it a read to learn about her one-of-a-kind life and work.
Art That Inspires Me: Still Life Painting
I recently enjoyed an art exhibition at my local library. I saw many wonderful works there, but I noticed that the majority of the pieces I was drawn to were still lives. So I started to think about why that is. Back in the days of the European and American artistic academies, still life was considered the least prestigious of the painting genres, but it's one of my personal favorites.
Art That Inspires Me: Thomas Cole
I don't think it will come as a surprise to anyone that Thomas Cole's work is on my list of art that inspires me. To talk about why I love Cole's work in general, I would probably have to write a whole book, so I'm going to focus on one particular painting that I recently saw for the first time. It's called A Snow Squall, and it was painted in 1825.
An Array of Art at Biltmore
Unlike his father, George Vanderbilt wasn't a huge art collector. He collected prints, but beyond that, he generally preferred to spend his money on his home and lands rather than paintings and sculptures. However, he still managed to acquire quite a few notable works of art that are now on display at Biltmore. Here are some of my favorites.
A Beautiful Bierstadt Painting (DailyArt Magazine)
I saw this spectacular little oil sketch at the Newark Museum, and I instantly fell in love. So, when DailyArt Magazine asked me to pick an artwork for Painting of the Week, the choice was clear.
The Romance of the Mountains at the Newark Museum
Thoughts on the Newark Museum's exhibition The Rockies & The Alps: Bierstadt, Calame, and the Romance of the Mountains (March through August 2018).
The Appeal of John Singer Sargent
Many people find John Singer Sargent's work to be very appealing, but this isn't always the case. He has received sometimes-contradictory criticism both in his own time and now. What makes Sargent's work so compelling?
The Mysterious Daughters of Edward Darley Boit
John Singer Sargent's 1882 painting The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit is compelling and a bit mysterious. While reading Erica Hirshler's book about the painting, I learned that interpretations of the work have changed over time, and Sargent's contemporaries didn't read the same tone into it that we do.
