Edgar Degas (July 19, 1834 – September 27, 1917)

                                                                                            

Woman Combing Her Hair

1886

Degas was an absolutely gifted artist, who coming out of an early string of academically pleasing artworks surprised and divided critics with his experimentations. As for Degas the man, he was a bachelor, known for his cruel humor, ludditism and strong anti-Semitism; and there are numerous reports, from acquaintances, of Degas' unpleasantness. Still, as I think he should be, he is remembered for the inventiveness and beauty of his works. 

Blue Dancers

1890

Steep Coast

1890-1892

Miss La La at the Cirque Fernando

1879 

Mademoiselle Fiocre in the Ballet 'La Source'

1867-1868

Georges Braque (May 13, 1882 – August 31, 1963)

                                                                                                    

Castle at La Roche-Guyon

1909 

Braque worked alongside Picasso to develop the extremely influential art form of Cubism. Besides being a father of Cubism, he was also an extremely accomplished Fauvist. But it was the merging of the two styles, which I love most, such as in the painting Patience below, where the vivid colors of Favism are poured into the more rigid outlines of Cubism. 

Patience

1942

Harbor in Normandy

1909

Often times I don't note this specifically, other than in the labels section, but earlier pieces by artists are usually of varying styles. Still I love to include them in a post to show the range and evolution of various artists. The piece below is in the Impressionist style. It was completed when Braque was around 18 years old.

Grandmother's Friend

1900

The Port of Antwerp: the Mast

1906 

Chuck Close (July 5, 1940)

Big Self-Portrait

1967-1968

One of the most famous Photorealists, Close is especially interesting to me, because, through him, we can see the evolution of a contemporary artist. The paintings here are listed in chronological order and the changes to Close's style are apparent. It is a change from Photorealism to what I can only describe as Pointillistic Photorealism and finally to Post-Impressionism. Strange how artists change, especially if you compare Close with the other renowned Photorealist, Estes, you'll see that the latter really didn't depart from his style, though both are still painting to this day. 

Lucas

1986-1987 

Lyle

2002

Selfportrait

2007

Paul Cezanne (January 19, 1839 – October 22, 1906)

                                                                                                              

Self-Portrait Before a Pink Background

1875-1877

Cézanne, along with van Gogh and Gauguin, ranks as one of the greatest Post-Impressionists. At times he's also cited as the greatest influence on Picasso and Matisse: various sources claim Picasso or Matisse said, "Cézanne is the father of us all;" myth or not, you need only look at those two artist's works to see Cézanne influence strongly resonating. Of all his works, I often prefer his still-lifes, which seem to come wrapped in all sorts of emotions. The still life hanging in the center of this post is, to me, one of the darkest and most melancholy paintings I've ever beheld. 

The House of Père Lacroix in Auvers

1873

Still-Life

1866

Afternoon in Naples

1872-1875

Lake Annecy

1896

Frida Kahlo (July 6, 1907 – July 13, 1954)

                                                                                          

Self-Portrait with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird

1940

It's difficult to write about Frida Kahlo, because her tragic life has been romanticized and scandalized to such proportions that her biography has exceeded, to a certain extent, her work in repute. So instead let me talk briefly about her work: as you stare into Kahlo's paintings, you'll notice that she tended to depict and focus on herself; but why? "I paint myself because I am so often alone and because I am the subject I know best." And a lot of her work is lonely and tragic and very much more a substantial statement on her thoughts than tabloid stories on her life. Though she had quite an exciting life ... 

What I Saw in the Water

1938

My Nurse and I

1937

Two Nudes in the Wool

1939

Self-Portrait

1948 

Eugène Delacroix (April 26, 1798 – August 13, 1863)

                                                                                        

Self-Portrait

1837

Eugène Delacroix was one of the greatest Romanticists. His abilities to display complex emotions and capture the wild motions of his characters were extremely sharp. Delacroix was incredibly intelligent and witty, and produced one of my favorite aphorisms on Art: “What moves those of genius, what inspires their work are not new ideas, but their obsession with the idea that what has already been said is still not enough.”

Still-Life with Lobster

1826-1827

Girl Seated in a Cemetery

1824

Turkish Women Bathing

1854

The Death of Sardanapalus

1827

Robert Rauschenberg (October 22, 1925 – May 12, 2008)

                                                                                          

Harbor

1964

One of the most important Pop Artists, Rauschenberg actually began as an Abstract Expressionist (see Red Paint below) and moved towards the Pop Art style he would become famous for. I should note that Pop Art is often separated from Neo-Dadaism (when Neo-Dadaism is recognized at all), and such a separation would probably put Rauschenberg square in the Neo-Dadaist movement; since it's debatable, I've included both as labels to the post. The final piece is Rauschenberg's most famous statement, he took a drawing made by his good friend, Willem de Kooning, and erased it; in the spirit of an open idea: think what you will of it.

Quote

1964

Red Paint

1953

Ace

1962

Canyon

1959

Erased de Kooning Drawing

1959

Rembrandt van Rijn (July 15, 1606 – October 4, 1669)

                                                                                                    

Self-Portrait

1659

One of the most important artists of the Baroque period, and often sited as the greatest painter of the Western tradition, Rembrandt's paintings are dark, extremely well-detailed and exceedingly emotive. As an interesting note, many of his paintings' authenticities are highly disputed. One of my favorites is his late self-portrait, posted above, which displays a growing set of tragedies resting on the great artist's brow; one reason of his melancholy was that Rembrandt, though a prolific and applauded artist, was constantly falling into financial problems, so much so that, when his lover, Hendrickje Stoffels, died in 1662, he was forced to sell his wife's, Saskia van Uylenburgh's, grave just to rent one for Hendrickje (his wife's death was another tragedy in Rembrant's life). 

The Sacrifice of Isaac

1635

Jeremiah Lamenting the Destruction of Jerusalem

1630

Philosopher in Meditation

1632

The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp

1632

Giacomo Balla (July 18, 1871 – March 1, 1958)

                                                                                      

Street Light

1909

I'm a great fan of Futurism and Balla was one of the movement's most important artists. Two of the paintings here illustrate the striving, within the Futurist movement, towards the visualization of motion, whether it be centered on the walking of a dog or on the shooting light of a street lamp. Besides progressing the Futurist movement, I've included several of Balla's wonderful Post-Impressionist pieces.

The World's Fair at Night (Luna Park)

1900 

Dynamism of a Dog on a Leash

1912

Self-Portrait

1902

Lord Frederic Leighton (December 3, 1830 – January 25, 1896)

                                                                

Daedalus and Icarus

1869

Lord Leighton–he was actually an extremely short-lived lord, dying a day after his peerage was bestowed on him–was one of the greatest painters of the Classicist movement. The movement itself was founded in Greco-Roman aesthetics and owed a great deal of its style to the Pre-Raphaelites. Leighton's works was extremely beautiful and full of a romantic elements; even the artist's face at fifty charmingly exudes a romantic air. 

Old Damascus: The Jewish Quarter

1873-1874

The Light of the Harem

1880

Mother and Child (Cherries)

1865

Self-Portrait

1880

Philip Guston (June 27, 1913 – June 7, 1980)

                                                                                                    

A Day's Work

1970

Guston was one of the first Abstract Expressionists, actually attending and befriending Jackson Pollock in high school. He viewed himself, at least as he was approaching artistic maturity, as someone who was going against the academic establishment. His art is very visceral–I mean that literally–often using colors and shapes that look unbelievably organ-like. There's little happiness on his canvases.

Flame

1979 

Book

1968

Native's Return

1957