Mars and Venus in Embrace under the Watchful Eye of Amor, Oil on Copper, Framed

circa 1600

Willem Muys was a Dutch, 18th-century painter of history pieces, portraits and cabinet pieces. Above all, he appears to have been active as a painter of ‘wallpaper’. Until the mid-18th century, ‘wallpaper’ was not painted on paper but on coarsely woven linen. Wealthy citizens had their mansions or country estates adorned with ‘wallpaper’ with landscapes, exotic birds or chinoiseries. Willem Muys mainly painted ‘wallpaper’, which means that few of his works have been preserved. They are hardly represented in public collections. The works of his sons, Nicolaas en Robbert, both painters, are a little less rare. The painting with Rebecca and Eliezer...

Preparation for Carnival: a three day festival of insatiable eating, drinking and carousing that preceded the forty days of Lent, a period of penitence when the pious drank only wate...

Attentive observer, may I challenge you to find some unusual elements in this panel painting? One detail has to do with the symbolic use of color, the other with a later adjustment of the image. Indeed! The Blessed Virgin is not dressed in her usual sky blue cloak, which refers to her purity, but in a red robe. During the Late Middle Ages and early Renaissance, the Virgin often wore such a red garment to refer to the Passion of Christ. After all, the blessing Christ child with his orb would shed his blood for the redemption of mankind. The second strange element catches the eye when one looks closer at the little Jesus. It appears that he was originally depicted completely naked, but got on a transparent loincloth over time. In the past there were several times when nudity in art was subject to some form of censorship. For example, the supervision of Christian art was strongly encouraged by the Council of Trent (1545-1563). This assembly was dealing with the inner-ecclesiastical reform of the Roman Catholic Church. One of the important theologians who followed the council’s guidelines was Joannes Molanus (1533-1585). He did not consider the nakedness of the Christ Child to be edifying and pointed out that children could be endangered in this way. He may have been referring to the dangers of paedophilia. During the 19th century, puritanism emerged. A famous example of a moral preacher was Pope Pius IX...

The portrait represents a man, estimated to be 60 years of age, standing turned to the viewer's right, looking at the viewer with a commanding expression. He has a moustache and beard and wears a high fur cap. He wears a brown mantle over a whitish shirt and, over it, a heavy gold chain...

As the Dutch painter Philips Wouwerman often did, this artist painted travellers stopping at an inn or a farm. One of the men got off his horse to urinate against the facade of the building. The motif of a peeing man was far from an exception in Dutch genre paintings...

Richard Durando-Togo (Buenos Aires, 1910- ?) is a painter of Argentine origin who spent most of his life in Italy and France, in the latter country he settled permanently in 1934. He...

This is an exemplar of a "mortaretto d'allegrezza", meaning "fire-craker/mortar fireworks of happiness" that was used during festivities (for exemplar, triumphal entries of kings or ...

The hair is made of actual gold leaf (imitation), so the hair shines and sparkles nicely in light. Original painting. Acrylic, oil, paper and gold leaf on high quality linen canvas s...

The Coronation of Venus draws the viewer into a mystical forest where Venus, the goddess of love, is crowned by four angels. The angel of trust, on the left, gazes deeply into the eyes of Venus. Perseverance crowns her from above. Kindness is at her shoulder, and patience rests on her lap eager for guidance. As Venus looks into the distance, there is both joy and melancholy in her mysterious lips. Technical: 114” x 78”. Oil on panel with 24k gold water-gilded frame. Painting and frame produced by artists Justas and Vilius Varpucanskis. This piece utilizes the "rules of craftsmanship" as outlined in Cenino Cennini's l Libro dell'Arte. 21st century contemporary artwork that employs techniques, philosophy, and visual language of the Italian High Renaissance...

Our Lady of Mercy, 8x14 inches. Oil on panel with water-gilded frame. Painting by artist Justas Varpucanskis. This piece utilizes the "rules of cra...

Oil, enamel, and ink on canvas Signed in black, l.r. This artwork is offered by ClampArt, located in New York City. Inscriptions read: THE WALL, NOGALES In Nogales, I walk across...

Daniel Tavares considers his oil paintings part drawing and part painting. His artwork is a visual synthesis of his life experiences reflecting the influence of comic books - which ...