A few years ago I had a pleasure to participate in a British project called National Inventory of Continental European Paintings: I have researched and made catalogue entries for 231 paintings in the collection of York Art Gallery, dating back from 15th century to ca. 1900. Obviously those earliest pictures…
A myth of a glorious imperial past is still vivid among many inhabitants of former Austro-Hungarian Empire and I must admit I am one of them. I very much value the fact that now and then I have a chance to participate in a party where – at certain point…
Scholars researching everyday life of the Middle Ages often use iconographic sources, that is paintings, miniatures, drawings and woodcuts. Although many of them depict religious scenes, we may find a lot of everyday objects placed in them; including items related to medieval childhood and nursery. Childhood in medieval art was…
There’s no doubt that Mona Lisa is one of the most famous paintings in the World, and it is commonly considered as priceless masterpiece that everyone recognises. A lot has been written about this painting, including popular or even sensational articles. I always wondered why one of the Leonardo’s paintings…
However strange that may sound, the fact is that at the dawn of Renaissance the artists had a strange habit of painting… flies! Both in Italy and in the Northern Europe we may find various examples of a trompe-l’œil depictions of a fly. In most cases it is assumed that it…