Was it a diplomatic gift? Is it even a Rubens? Many questions surround this work; technical analysis can help.
A-Level: Baroque mythological painting
From the setting sun to the ancient tomb, Poussin’s subject is time passing. We sense his longing for a lost past.
Nicolas Poussin, Et in Arcadia Ego
The myth is ancient, but these figures couldn’t be closer. Rubens’s virtuoso brushwork and color are on display.
Peter Paul Rubens, The Rape of the ...
Embracing his own reflection, Narcissus falls in love with himself—and into the water. Good thing it’s just paint!
Caravaggio, Narcissus at the Source
Don’t strike the messenger! Interrupted at his forge, a horrified Vulcan looks ready to hammer Apollo.
Diego Velázquez, Vulcan’s Forge
Velázquez lends immediacy and gritty realism to a mythological subject. We are right there, ready to partake.
Diego Velázquez, Los Borrachos (The Drunks), or ...
Aurora’s chariot brings forth a new day, but Reni’s classicism looks back to the art of ancient Greece and Rome.