Friday, June 27, 2014

Simeon Solomon, English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Night 1890


Simeon Solomon (1840-1905) was born into a prominent Jewish family in England. He was the 8th & last child born to merchant Michael (Meyer) Solomon & artist Catherine (Kate) Levy. Solomon was a younger brother to painters Abraham Solomon (1824–1862) & Rebecca Solomon (1832–1886). His first exhibition was at the Royal Academy in 1858, where he continued to exhibit until 1872. In addition to literary paintings favored by the Pre-Raphaelite school, Solomon's subjects often included scenes from the Hebrew Bible & genre paintings depicting Jewish life. In 1873 his career was cut short, when he was arrested in a public urinal in London & charged with attempting to commit sodomy & was fined. He was was arrested again in 1874 in Paris, after which he was sentenced to spend 3 months in prison. In 1884 he was admitted to the workhouse, where he continued to paint; however, his talent was blighted by alcoholism. Twenty years later in 1905, he died from complications of his alcoholism.


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Dawn


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Marguerite 1866


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Mother of Moses 1860


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Love Dreaming by the Sea 1871


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Beatrice


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Autumn


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Toilette of a Roman Lady 1869


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Priestess Offering Poppies


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Bacchus


Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Allegorical Self Portrait 1873Simeon Solomon (English Pre-Raphaelite Painter, 1840-1905) Self Portrait 1860

Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Women by French Painter Jacques-Emile Blanche 1861-1942


"he is liable to twist things he hears."  He seems to twist many of his sitters into similar predicaments.

Jacques-Emile Blanche (French Painter, 1861-1942) Femme en 1887

Jacques-Emile Blanche (French Painter, 1861-1942) Donna Olga Caracciolo dei Duchi di Castelluccio, later Baroness de Meyer, 1889.

Jacques-Emile Blanche (French Painter, 1861-1942) Eugenia Huicidi Errazuriz

Jacques-Emile Blanche (French Painter, 1861-1942) Portrait of a Lady

Monday, June 23, 2014

The delicate, slightly unsettling portraits of British artist Madeline Emily Green 1884-1947



Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) The Young Man


Artist Madeline Green was a long-term resident of the borough of Ealing and completed many of her works in her studio at The Mall in Ealing. Ealing is London's third largest borough, which is located in the heart of west London. Madeline Green was a figurative artist whose style is lively & fluid, bringing her characters to life & infusing her work with a sense of grace & humour. Madeline Emily Green exhibited regularly at Britain's Royal Academy & the Society of Women Artists between 1912-1943.


Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) Two Children in a Stable


Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) Kate and Another


Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) Glasgow


Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) The Model c 1915


Madeline Green (British painter, 1884-1947) The Chenille Net

Tuesday, June 17, 2014

Inadvertently Sharing the Harvest - 1600s Food for hungry dogs, cats, monkeys, squirrels, & a random parrot



Adriaen van Utrecht (Flemish Baroque Era Painter, 1599-1652) Still Life with Dog and Monkey (and parott) 1644



Unknown Dutch artist, The Cat's Meal. 1625-50



Frans Snyders (Dutch artist, 1579-1657) Monkeys Stealing Fruit



Adriaen van Utrecht (Flemish Baroque Era Painter, 1599-1652) Still Life with Dog and Cat (and squirrel)



Frans Snyders (Dutch artist, 1579-1657) Still Life with Lobster, Poultry, & Fruit (and cat!)



Giuseppe Recco (Italian, Neapolitan, 1634–1695) Cat Stealing Fish



Balthasar van der Ast (Dutch Baroque painter, 1593-94–1657) Still Life with Macaws 1622


Sunday, June 15, 2014

The sad, wealthy Victorian women of English artist George Frederic Watts (1817-1904)


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Alice Ellen Terry


George Frederick Watts created both portraits & symbolist paintings. He intended that his symbolist paintings would form part of an epic symbolic cycle called the "House of Life," in which the emotions & aspirations of life would all be represented in a universal symbolic language. He also painted portraits, such as these, of the most powerful & wealthy English men & women of the era, intended to form a "House of Fame." In his portraits Watts sought to create a tension between disciplined stability & the power of action. He was known for emphasising the signs of strain & wear on his privileged sitter's faces. Oh, the oppressive burden of power & wealth...


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Julia Margaret Cameron


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Dorothy Tennant Later Lady Stanley


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Choosing


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Lilian MacIntosh


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Eveleen Tennant (Mrs F W H Myers)


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Mrs Arthur Sassoon


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Portrait of a Lady


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Josephine Elizabeth Gray Butler


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Violet Lindsay


George Frederic Watts (English artist, 1817-1904) Self Portrait 1834


Monday, June 9, 2014

Order, pattern, & William Morris 1834-1896


The most famous 19C English pattern & craft devotee was William Morris (1834-1896), who believed that art & society are inextricably linked.

1876 Pimpernel

Art for Morris meant not only the fine arts of painting & sculpture but "that great body of art by means of which men have at all times ... striven to beautify the familiar matter of everyday life."

1885 Fritillary

He believed that such art arose from a basic human instinct to create, & was "a joy to the maker & user alike" which satisfied personal creative talent & enriched society as a whole.

1873 Acanthus Wallpaper

But the traditions upon which such art rested - the skills of the artist-craftsman, which Morris saw exemplified in medieval workshop practice & the guild system - had been eroded.

1874 Larkspur Wallpaper, polychrome version

Since the Renaissance, the concept of the artist as a unique & special genius had led to a diminution in status of the craftsman & an inevitable division between the fine & decorative arts.

1881 St. James

This distinction had a particularly adverse effect on applied art, especially during the 18th-century, when the rise of an affluent middle class led to an increased demand for furniture & furnishings. In 1861, William Morris founded the decorative arts firm of Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co to undertake carving, stained glass, metal-work, paper-hangings, chintzes (printed fabrics), & carpets.

1876 Chrysanthemum Wallpaper

Morris revived old crafts & traditions, often immersing himself in historical texts or seeking out craftsmen from whom he could learn dying arts. The company's offerings soon extended to include, besides painted windows and mural decoration; furniture; metal & glass wares; cloth & paper wall-hangings; embroideries; jewelery; woven & knotted carpets; silk damasks; & tapestries.

Saturday, June 7, 2014

English painter John Everett Millais 1829-1896 & my granddaughters...


John Everett Millais (English painter, 1829-1896) Raking Leaves 1856

This painting so reminds me of our 5 grandaughters who love to rake leaves up here in the woods in the fall. They gather the noisy leaves into enormous piles and then run and jump into them, scattering them back across the ground.


Thursday, June 5, 2014

The bold women of Polish painter Franciszek Żmurko 1859–1910


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)

Polish painter Franciszek Zmurko (1859-1910) was born in Lvov, Poland, & received his first lessons in drawing from painter Franciszek Tepa there. He followed with lessons from Jan Matejko at the Fine Arts School in Krakow. In 1877, Zmurko moved to Vienna to enter the Academy there & traveled to Munich for lessons from Aleksander Wagner. In 1880, he returned to Krakow, & finally settled in Warsaw in 1882. Zmurko made several trips to Milan (1894); Paris (1884-85 & 1889); & St. Petersburg (1883-84). He died in Warsaw, Poland, in 1910.
 

Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910) Portret kobiety z wachlarzem i papierosem 1891


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910)


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910) Girl with Red Ribbons


Franciszek Żmurko (Polish painter, 1859–1910) Self-Portrait with Palette