Enjoy this photo, sent in by a reader, of a charming gargoyle depicting a Saint Bernard dog from the cathedral of Saint-Just and Saint-Pasteur in Narbonne, France.
Category: French
Chatting About Notre-Dame de Paris on Jo’s Art History Podcast
Listen to me chat about Notre-Dame de Paris with Jo McLaughlin of Jo's Art History Podcast.
Yearly Updates on the Notre-Dame de Paris Restoration
On April 15, 2019, a devastating fire tore through the cathedral of Notre-Dame de Paris, the most beloved and iconic of all Gothic buildings. Largely through the heroic efforts of Paris firefighters, the building was spared the total destruction that at one point seemed inevitable. However, the damage was extensive. Despite early negative forecasts and complications due to the pandemic, the reconstruction of Notre-Dame de Paris is well underway, and the restored building will look as much like the old one as possible. Almost every year since the fire, I have written something about the cathedral's current condition and the status of the restoration. You can find it all in this post.
Art is a Tyrant – an Entertaining Biography of Rosa Bonheur
I wasn't planning to review Art is a Tyrant: The Unconventional Life of Rosa Bonheur (London: Icon Books, Ltd., 2020), Catherine Hewitt's new biography of French animal painter Rosa Bonheur. But after enjoying it so much, I decided to spread the word.
Art That Inspires Me: The Paintings of Paul Cézanne
In his Cézanne: A Life, Alex Danchev claims that admirers of Cézanne's work can't really explain why they like it. Since I love a good challenge, I've done my best to prove him wrong. He are my thoughts about Cézanne.
Still Life Paintings by Anne Vallayer-Coster
Anne Vallayer-Coster (1744-1818) was an 18th-century French artist who specialized in still life painting. She was so good at it that she became official painter to Marie-Antoinette.
Charles Meryon’s “Le Stryge” (a Grotesque)
Charles Méryon (1821-1868) was a very talented French etcher who is best known for his series of prints depicting Paris. (Etching is a form of printmaking.) One of his most famous prints depicts a grotesque on the façade of Notre-Dame de Paris. Apparently, Méryon's image is a big part of how this grotesque became so iconic.
The Oxen of Laon Cathedral
A charming story about Laon Cathedral, an important early Gothic church, and why it has sixteen life-sized statues of oxen on its towers.
A Guide to Romanticism
What is Romanticism in art? Learn about the different themes and stylistic attributes of Romantic painting, sculpture, and architecture. Find out how it's different from Neo-Classicism, the style that preceded it.
St. Bernard and Gargoyles: A Fun Fact
St. Bernard of Clairvaux, founder of the Cistercian order, definitely wasn't a fan of gargoyles and grotesques. This tells us some interesting things about how they were understood in their own time.