Gustav Igler's "The Newborn"

Nationality: German

Born-Died: 1842-1908

Size: 29.33 × 34.6 in. (74.5 × 88 cm)

Creation Date: 1872

Media: Oil on canvas 

Location: Private collection

I don't recall ever seeing it before but it was in my files so I must have seen it.  When I saw it this morning, I though, "Wow, that's beautiful."  I was really struck by the color, the value contrast (meaning light and dark, not philosophical values), the gestures of the figures and the overall arrangement of the shapes.  Then, I started noticing the various narrative elements such as the cat NOT playing with the ball of string and instead staring at the boy drinking milk.  The little girl is lovingly gazing into the face of her new sibling and it seems as if the maid(?) is trying to return the child to the mother.  However, the mother isn't looking so good--she is quite shadowy.  The more I look at this image, the more questions I have.  What is the significance, if any, of the clock's time?  What is the basket above the bed?  Is the mother going to die?  I'm going to look at it a while longer.

Jean-Léon Gérôme's "Woman with a Veil"

Nationality: French

Born-Died: 1824-1904

Creation Date: c. 1891

Size: 23.8 x 12.8 in (60.5 x 32.7 cm)

Media: Bronze 

Location: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, Ohio, USA

Luc Travers' Pick: Jules Bastien-LePage's "Sarah Bernhardt"

Nationality: French

Born-Died: 1848-1884

Creation Date: 1879

Size: 43.125 x 32.25 in (109.7 x 82 cm)

Media: Oil on canvas

Location: Private Collection

Today's post is brought to you by a very special guest: art historian, Luc Travers.  If you enjoy this selection and what he has to say, I would encourage you to check out Luc's website which has information about upcoming museum tours, information about his book Touching the Art, videos and more!  It's definitely worth visiting.

"The elegantly dressed woman sits staring at an object in her hand. The object is a statuette, seemingly ancient, of a lyre player raising his head in song. 

The woman tenderly holds the memento, her lowered eyes affectionately gaze upon it, and her mouth is parted--almost a sigh, perhaps singing. Maybe she's just realized something about the object's significance to her, or maybe she is singing in response to the statuette's quiet melodies.

Her name is Sarah Bernhardt, the most famous actress of the 19th century. As for the possible meaning of the statuette to her: theatre was born in Ancient Greece from musician-poets playing the lyre.

In her portrait, Madame Bernhardt communes with a symbol of her craft and passion. What would you tenderly hold and passionately look upon in your portrait?"

- Luc Travers

Sarah Bernhardt by Jules Bastien-LePage

The Cult of Beauty exhibit at the Legion of Honor, San Francisco

For more of my favorites from the "Cult of Beauty" exhibit, please visit: http://www.luctravers.com/cult-of-beauty-exhibit.html

To learn how to make art more personally powerful check out the book, Touching The Art.

Herbert James Draper's "Gates of Dawn"

Nationality: English

Born-Died: 1617-1694
Creation Date: 1900

Size: 78 x 40 in (198 x 100 cm)

Media: Oil on canvas

Location: The Drapers' Company Collection, London, UK

Great news, art lovers!  This blog has a new store where you can buy prints of your favorite works from 1OAOotD!   Draper's "Gates of Dawn" is now for sale for only $9.99!  Check it out.

This Print + Your Wall = Awesome

Antonio de La Gandara's "Madame Pierre Gautreau"

Nationality: French

Born-Died: 1861-1917
Creation Date: 1898

Size: 29 x 24.5 in (74.9 x 62.2 cm)

Media: Oil on canvas

Fans of John Singer Sargent's "Madame X" might enjoy this portrait of the same woman.

Osman Hamdi Bey's "The Tortoise Trainer"

Nationality: Turkish
Born-Died: 1632-1675
Creation Date: 1906Size: 87.2 × 47.2 inch (221.5 x 120 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: The Pera Museum, Istanbul, Turkey

This wonderful painting seems to have some kind of message and I wish I knew what it was.

George Inness' "Winter Evening"

Nationality: American
Born-Died: 1825-1894

Creation Date: 1887

Media: Oil on canvas

Jules Joseph Lefebvre's "Chloe"

Nationality: French
Born/Died: 1836-1911

Creation Date: 1875
Size: 41.375 x 29.5 in. (105.09 x 74.93 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: Private Collection

I think this is Lefebvre's best painting.

Raimundo de Madrazo y Garetta's "Masqueraders"

Nationality: Spanish
Born/Died: 1841-1920

Creation Date: 1875–78
Size: 40 x 25.5 in. (101.6 x 64.8 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, New York, USA

I just discovered this wonderful painting and instantly fell in love with it. It seems to be a corner of a costume party that has just started getting a little out of hand. Coats have been shed, gloves slipped off, and already a little foot-rest has been knocked over.

Photos by me.

Albert Herter's "Young Girl"

Nationality: American
Born/Died: 1870–1950

Rosa Bonheur's "The Horse Fair"

Nationality: French
Born/Died: 1822-1899
Creation Date: 1853
Size: 96 1/4 x 199 1/2 in. (244.5 x 506.7 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York City, New York, USA



Detail shots by me.

Henri Regnault's "Execution without Trial"

On this Day in the History of Art: Rosa Bonheur died (1899), "Star Wars" released (1977)

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1843-1871
Creation Date: 1870
Media: Oil on canvas
Size: 119 x 57.5 in. (302 x 146 cm)
Location: Musee d'Orsay, Paris, France



This is a grim painting with many artistic virtues, but one in particular involves the technique with which it was painted. Of course the paintings of Jackson Pollock do not qualify as art from the Objectivist standpoint (instead I would call them terrible works of design), but it wasn't because of his splatter/drip technique. While most of the subjects depicted here were rendered in a more-or-less traditional way, some of the blood was rendered by dripping and splattering the paint in a way that is not essentially different from Pollock's technique. The difference is that in Regnault's painting the paint has been carefully integrated into the subjects.

Bouguereau x 2 Week - "The Oreades" and "The Harvester"

On this Day in the History of Art: Jacob Jordaens born (1593), Nathaniel Hawthorne died (1864), Oscar Wilde released from prison (1893)

This is the last day for Bouguereau week--apologies for the delays in posting! Today I am posting two images of Bouguereau’s work, one piece that I don't like and one that I do.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905



The Oreades
Creation Date: 1902
Media: Oil on canvas

To me, this painting is an absurd farce and almost all of these figures look like they were painted from sketches of women that were lying down. Once again, this is a cheap trick available to painters that is difficult to swing without making the figures appear stiff. The figure at the very top of the floating wave of bodies is not anatomically correct and I suspect this is what happened when Bouguereau momentarily abandoned his camera lucida. The subject here is intended to be part of a ring of fairies, which I imagine was a mildly entertaining fantastical idea that was popular at the time.

Bouguereau x 2 Week - "The Little Marauder" and "Pastourelle"

On this Day in the History of Art: Dante Gabriel Rossetti born (1828)

This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I like and one that I don't.

Short and sweet--one I like and one I don't.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905

The Little Marauder
Creation Date: 1900
Size: 48.75 x 27.5 inches (124 x 70 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: Private Collection

Bouguereau x 2 Week - "The Curtsey" and "Sewing"

On this Day in the History of Art: Sandro Boticelli died (1510), A. J. Casson born (1898)
This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I don't like and one that I do.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905

These two paintings are similar in that they both depict simple, ordinary actions performed by similar subjects, but I prefer the second piece to the first. The Curtsey appears artificial and posed whereas Sewing appears naturalistic. The artificiality of the pose in Curtsey is particularly annoying because the subject is supposed to be cute. The second model was probably posed with just as much artificiality, but because more consideration was applied to the details of the pose, it appears much more natural. The fictional world of Sewing seems more plausible and contained whereas the girl in Curtsey seems like she is "smiling for the camera."

Both paintings are rendered with great care and in particular the varied textures of the fabric were nice touches. I find the not-quite-centered but not-quite-to-the-side composition of the first painting to be without purpose or interest, but the more energetic lines of the second are wonderfully integrated into the image and add a spice to an otherwise uneventful scene.



The Curtsey
Creation Date: 1898
Media: Oil on canvas
Size: 29.33 x 54.33 in. (74.5 x 138 cm)
Location: Private collection

Bouguereau x 2 Week - "The Virgin With Angels" and "Little Esmeralda"

On this Day in the History of Art: Vilhelm Hammershøi born (1864), Emily Dickinson died (1886)

This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I don't like and one that I do.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905



The Virgin With Angels
Creation Date: 1900
Media: Oil on canvas

This painting is an example of artistic second-handedness that would rival the likes of Peter Keating.

Bouguereau x 2 Week - "Nymphs and Satyr " and "Lost Pleiad"

On this Day in the History of Art: Jean-Léon Gérôme born (1824), Jean-Baptiste Carpeaux born (1827), Walter Goodman born (1838), Salvador Dalí born (1904)

This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I like and one that I don't.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905



Nymphs and Satyr
Creation Date: 1873
Size: 102.4 x 70.9 in. (260 x 180 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: The Clark Art Institute, Williamstown, Massachusetts, USA

Although I will never hang a reproduction of this painting on my wall, there are things I enjoy and respect about it. It has brilliant lighting with a wonderful and inviting warm cast. Although only one large beam lights the scene, through clever artistry, Bouguereau painted each figure with a different overall lighting scheme from the others. The reflected light that bounces off the environment and the pale figures onto other figures is handled with superb sensitivity to both stylistic effect and realism. The same can be said for the clever use of the background tonalities, which range from having high value contrast on the left to more unified tonalities on the right. Despite the sharp clarity with which the figures are represented they do not appear unnaturally stiff.

Bougeureau x 2 Week - "Meditation" and "The Bather"

On this Day in the History of Art: Nazi's and students express their intellectual impotence by burning the books they don't like (1933)

This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I don’t like and one that I do.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905

Meditation
Creation Date: 1885
Size: 34.06 x 52 in. (86.5 x 132 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Nebraska, USA



What I find extremely annoying about this painting is the title. There is no good reason for it--there is no necessary connection between the idea of meditation and this image. A terrible reason to give this image this title, which I suspect was the actual reason, is that Bouguereau believed his audience would be impressed by it—that it would be a quick and easy way to lend a sense of loftiness or a higher purpose to what was for all intents and purposes an image of a pretty girl. This painting could have been just as appropriately entitled Bored or Pretty Model Dressed Up as a Peasant.

Bougeureau x 2 Week - "Evening Mood" and "The Wave"

On this Day in the History of Art: Dante Alighieri born (1265), Samuel Cousins born (1801), Friedrich Schiller died (1805), J.M. Barrie born (1860), Muppets by Jim Henson are premiered on TV (1955)

It would not be too unusual to hear advocates of Objectivist philosophy claim that the art of William-Adolphe Bouguereau visually embodies Ayn Rand’s philosophy more than any other painter and in many ways they would be correct. However, I have many mixed feelings about his body of work. I find some of his work to be exquisitely beautiful and yet others seem incredibly bland or even antithetical to my values. This week I'm going to post two images per day of Bouguereau’s work--one piece that I like and one that I don’t.

I admit that I have some hesitations about criticizing his work. Not only was his technical rendering skill far superior to mine (and I could certainly benefit from some of his criticisms), but I don’t think art criticism is a particularly useful field of endeavor (despite some of the lengthy commentary I often post here--I sometimes can't help myself.) In truth, I have no interest in convincing anyone that his work is either good or bad, or that they should or should not enjoy it. That being said, the idea of comparing fourteen paintings simply seems fun, interesting and educational for me, which is the purpose of this blog. So perhaps you will just enjoy his work and/or my comparisons and commentary regardless of your opinion of Bouguereau’s works.

Nationality: French
Born-Died: 1825-1905



Evening Mood
Creation Date: 1882
Size: 81.6875 x 42.5 in. (207.5 x 108 cm)
Media: Oil on canvas
Location: National Museum of Art, Havana, Cuba

The first painting here is my favorite of Bouguereau’s works. I love the pose of the figure and how the shape of her body relates to the shapes of the black cloth. I appreciate the way the dark cloth and the pale body are integrated into a compositional design. The transparency of the cloth is painted with great subtlety, as is the moon in the sky. I love the way her single toe supports her, and on the surface of water no less. Effort has been put into conveying the idea that she has almost no weight and her pose is simple, but fantastically elegant. The view of life is incredibly positive. In this world, life is positive, vivid, relaxed, and beautiful. As with most works of art that I appreciate, I don’t have much more to say about it except that I think it's absolutely wonderful.

Alfred Seifert "A Young Beauty in a Doorway"