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Tibetan Thangka of Chenresi, Gouache on Linen
Located in Chicago, IL
Thangkas are devotional paintings displayed by Buddhists in monasteries, temples, and even in their homes. The rich red, orange, green, and blue hues are still incredibly vibrant on ...
Category
Early 19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Linen, Silk, Gouache, Pigment
"Violet Garden 01" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Ultrablue Garden 06" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
Faster! Faster!
Located in Chicago, IL
This experimental painting entitled “Faster! Faster!” by Chicago artist Patrick Fitzgerald continues his series of abstract “track paintings,” initially born as the imagined racetrac...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Enamel
"Moss Garden 02" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Tiffany Garden 01" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Crimson Garden 01" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Ultrablue Garden 05" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Crimson Garden 02" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Ultrablue Garden 04" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Ultrablue Garden 03" Mixed Media Painting
By Patrick Burns
Located in Chicago, IL
"Concrete Gardens" is a body of work that translates Patrick Burns' deep love of the land and complicated past into richly textured, mixed-media paintings with reverberating, monochr...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Concrete
"Voyage, " Mixed Media Collage
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Based in Chicago, IL, contemporary artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites, collages and mixed media works assembled from material fragments of past and present collected in his...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Mixed Media
Materials
Fabric, Silk, Wood
Chinese Reverse Glass Painting of Taoist Immortals, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
Popularized during the Qing dynasty, reverse glass painting requires an artist to essentially work backwards, starting with details and shading before adding color and form. Lending the finished work a subtle three-dimensional effect, this exacting technique doesn't allow for any corrections, and is only revealed to its full effect when the glass pane is turned around. This example dates to the late 19th century and depicts the Taoist immortals He Xiangu...
Category
Early 20th Century Qing Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass, Paint, Wood
"Fusion, " Charcoal on Paper, 2022
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo creates dynamic compositions of people and places that communicate a rich commentary on the world around him. Depicting trees from personal encounters, Surdo’s latest body of work entitled “Tree Spirits” takes us on a foray into the forest, where leaves, branches and burls express something deeply personal. Applying his mastery of figurative realism to the natural world, he experiments with form and texture to uncover the intangible spirits of trees.
This charcoal drawing entitled “Fusion” beautifully illustrates the collision of two young birch trees. Loosely drawn with short, lateral strokes, the drawing depicts the slow process of two trees fusing together as a graceful gesture of physical touch. The horizontal motion of the sketch-like linework captures the striated texture of birch bark, punctuated by the irregular forms of its eye-shaped markings. The light-colored trees are contrasted by a dark backdrop, a void of negative that isolates the trees in space and time.
Restricting the composition to only a portion of the tree trunks, Surdo accentuates their abstract forms and focuses on the simple beauty of their graceful movements. Guided by his memory, Surdo recalls the trees as soft, gentle and calm, leaning in on each other in a tender embrace. His freeform, expressive style reveals the subjectivity of this memory and finishes the composition with a transient, dream-like atmosphere.
Charcoal on paper...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Naturalistic Landscape Paintings
Materials
Charcoal
"Channeler, " Oil on Board, 2022
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Naturalistic Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil
"Moon Spirit Dancer, " Oil on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo creates dynamic compositions of people and places that communicate a rich commentary on the world around him. Depicting trees from personal encounters, Surdo’s latest body of work entitled “Tree Spirits” takes us on a foray into the forest, where leaves, branches and burls express something deeply personal. Applying his mastery of figurative realism to the natural world, he experiments with form and texture to uncover the intangible spirits of trees.
This large-scale painting entitled “Moon Spirit Dancer...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil
"Hidden Sanctuary, " Acrylic on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Naturalistic Landscape Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Canvas
"Frozen Memories, " Oil on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Realist Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
"Birch, " Oil Paint on Olive Board
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo creates dynamic compositions of people and places that communicate a rich commentary on the world around him. Depicting trees from personal encounters, Surdo’s latest body of work entitled “Tree Spirits” takes us on a foray into the forest, where leaves, branches and burls express something deeply personal. Applying his mastery of figurative realism to the natural world, he experiments with form and texture to uncover the intangible spirits of trees.
Entitled “Birch,” this small-scale oil painting depicts a young birch sapling against an olive wood board. Restricting the composition to only a portion of the trunk, Surdo focuses on qualities that make the tree memorable - its narrow trunk...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Naturalistic Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil, Wood
"The Whispers in the Shadows, " Oil on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Realist Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil, Canvas
"Root, " Acrylic on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Still-life Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Mixed Media
"Passage to Town, " Oil on Board
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Old Masters Landscape Paintings
Materials
Oil, Board
"This is Not a Tree, " Mixed Media on Canvas, 2022
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Mixed Media
Materials
Mixed Media, Acrylic
"Mystic Bond, " Acrylic on Canvas
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Still-life Paintings
Materials
Acrylic, Mixed Media
"Patterned Soul, " Acrylic on Canvas, 2022
By Bruno Surdo
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based fine art painter Bruno A. Surdo is classically trained in drawing and oil painting in the tradition of Renaissance masters. With strong command of the human form, Surdo...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Expressionist Still-life Paintings
Materials
Acrylic
Korean Buddhist Guardian Mural Taenghwa Painting, c. 1800
Located in Chicago, IL
Evolving from the Korean tradition of tomb mural painting came the Buddhist practice of “taenghwa,” or hanging-painting, a form of religious painting that included hanging scrolls, framed paintings and wall murals. Influenced by Chinese and Central Asian Buddhist art...
Category
19th Century Folk Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Cotton, Paint, Pigment
Chinese Mythical Immortal Screen Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Since the 12th century, people in China have used folding screens and doors to partition and decorate their homes - the vivid scenes backing the screens added life and color to a roo...
Category
Mid-19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Ink, Pigment
Chinese Mythical Immortal Screen Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Since the 12th century, people in China have used folding screens and doors to partition and decorate their homes - the vivid scenes backing the screens added life and color to a room. This 19th-century painting is delicately brushed of gouache and ink on fabric and was originally part of a set of eight backing a wooden screen in northern China.
The figure depicted is one of the mythical Eight Immortals of Taoism. Said to have attained immortality through their studies of the natural world, each of the Eight Immortals represents a different condition in life and together they impart a blessing of prosperity and longevity. Depicted here is immortal Lan Caihe, the patron saint of florists and gardeners. Standing atop a lotus leaf in open water, they hold a gardening hoe in one hand and a basket for flowers...
Category
Mid-19th Century Qing Figurative Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Ink, Pigment
Chinese Mythical Immortal Screen Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Since the 12th century, people in China have used folding screens and doors to partition and decorate their homes - the vivid scenes backing the screens added life and color to a roo...
Category
Mid-19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Ink, Pigment
Chinese Mythical Immortal Screen Painting, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Since the 12th century, people in China have used folding screens and doors to partition and decorate their homes - the vivid scenes backing the screens added life and color to a roo...
Category
Mid-19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Ink, Pigment
Oil Portrait of a Victorian Lady, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
Painted in the 19th century, this exquisite miniature portrait wonderfully exemplifies realism in traditional oil painting. The small artwork is painted in the conventional portraiture style of the Old Masters, and achieves soft realism with fine brushwork and a subdued, neutral palette. The half length portrait depicts a fine Victorian woman dressed in all black with a delicate lace collar and bonnet. She wears a ruby broach...
Category
Mid-19th Century Old Masters More Art
Materials
Oil
"Erie (Great Lakes), " Mixed Media on Wood Panel, 2023
Located in Chicago, IL
This abstract work by Chicago artist Patrick Fitzgerald belongs to a series of “track paintings” that materialize the imagined tracks navigated by his miniature soap-box car sculptur...
Category
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Materials
Metal
"Superior (Great Lakes), " Oil on Panel, 2023
Located in Chicago, IL
This abstract work by Chicago artist Patrick Fitzgerald belongs to a series of “track paintings” that materialize the imagined tracks navigated by his miniature soap-box car sculptures. Inspired by slot-car racetracks, each painting depicts a meandering, yet cyclical path that twists and turns upon itself in an endless loop. Isolated from time and place, the painting achieves a sense of timelessness and draws a through line linking the past, the present, and the future.
Entitled "Superior," this track painting is one of five compositions inspired by the Great Lakes...
Category
2010s Abstract Mixed Media
Materials
Wood, Oil
Chinese Eternal Youth Sign of Honor, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This monumental lacquered elmwood sign of honor was carved in northern China during the mid-19th century. The large central characters read as "Wu Zheng Ever Green", and - loosely tr...
Category
Mid-19th Century Qing More Art
Materials
Wood, Paint
Vintage Chinese Cigarette Advertisement Poster, c. 1930
Located in Chicago, IL
This poster from the 1930s draws from a well known Chinese opera scene. It melds the meticulous detail of traditional Chinese painting with the craft of color lithography. These advertisements, influenced by the Art Deco movement in the west, recall the economic boom of early 20th century Shanghai, an international center of business and trade. Layered with imagery of traditional Chinese life, the poster is nonetheless an advertisement for the modern cigarette industry, with several tobacco brands displayed in the top left corner, including Lan Ting, Hong Chun, and Jade Rabbit...
Category
Early 20th Century Art Deco Figurative Drawings and Watercolors
Materials
Paper, Ink
Pair of Framed Chinese Ancestor Portraits, Ink and Pigment on Paper
Located in Chicago, IL
Believing that the departed continue to hold influence over the lives of the living, many Chinese households honor their ancestors in private family rituals, invoking their spirits for long life, health, and prosperity. Commemorative portraits, which came into vogue in the late Ming and Qing dynasties, were commissioned specifically for ancestor worship and were believed to house the spirits of the deceased. When properly cared for, one's ancestors were believed to be a powerful source of honor, protection, and good luck.
This pair of ancestor portraits was hand-painted in the mid-19th century and beautifully depicts a Qing-dynasty couple. While some ancestral portraits offer a more stylized representation of one's ancestors, this particular pair is painted with incredible realism and life-like expressions. Rather than depict the pair in a regal hall wearing elaborate finery, the couple is shown in a quiet home environment, seated at either end of a square tea table. Their surroundings are minimal, practically undecorated, and they wear simple, matching blue silk robes...
Category
Mid-19th Century Qing Portrait Paintings
Materials
Ink, Pigment, Paper
Yangtze River Bridge Reverse Glass Painted Mirror, c. 1969
Located in Chicago, IL
This reverse glass mirror painting depicts the Yangtze River Bridge, the first heavy bridge designed and built solely by the Chinese and a great s...
Category
20th Century Contemporary Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paint
"Tranquil River" Watercolor Painting
Located in Chicago, IL
This charming watercolor is composed in the style of traditional ink calligraphy and depicts two ducks resting on a river bank. Tall grass and leafy sprouts dot the rocky terrain and...
Category
20th Century Contemporary Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paint, Ink
"Denizen No. 21, " Oil Paint and Collage
Located in Chicago, IL
This colorful painting by Chicago-based artist Patrick Fitzgerald belongs to a body of work he calls his “Neighborhood of Infinity.” Fitzgerald use...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Oil, Board
"Denizen No. 15, " Oil on Paper
Located in Chicago, IL
This colorful painting by Chicago-based artist Patrick Fitzgerald belongs to a body of work he calls his “Neighborhood of Infinity.” Fitzgerald use...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Oil, Board
Chinese Reverse Glass Portrait of a Young Woman, c. 1900
Located in Chicago, IL
With exquisite detail and sparkling color, this portrait of a young woman is a remarkable example of reverse glass painting. Lending the finished work a subtle three-dimensional effe...
Category
Late 19th Century Qing Portrait Paintings
Materials
Glass, Paint
Qing Dynasty Floral Bed Canopy Painting
Located in Chicago, IL
Thoughts of a long, happy life greeted the young couple who gazed up from their bed on this canopy panel. Adorned with chrysanthemums and peaches, both symbols of longevity, the lyri...
Category
19th Century Qing Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paint, Wood Panel, Lacquer
Chinese Yangliuqing New Year Painting of Beauty and Baby, c. 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese New Year paintings (nian hua) are colorful folk paintings created to celebrate the annual Spring Festival. Drawn or printed by folk artists in regional studios, nian hua paintings featured exaggerated characters with bright and contrasting colors. Put up around the home to beckon luck and happiness in the coming year, most paintings depicted mythical guardians, scenes from folk operas, or auspicious symbols of good luck.
This New Year painting depicts a young woman with a child and is hand-painted in a palette of red, blue, and purple. Belonging to a genre known as 'beauties and babies,' the painting represents a harmonious family life. The early 20th century painting is from the town of Yangliuqing, one of the leading producers of traditional New Year's paintings known for its combination of woodblock printing...
Category
Early 20th Century Folk Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Ink, Pigment
"Rome, " Pointillist Woodcut
Located in Chicago, IL
This exquisite painting on wood entitled "Rome" was made by internationally renowned Chinese contemporary artist Ren Hui. Using a style that he calls "uncomplicated and honest, he ce...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pointillist Figurative Paintings
Materials
Plywood, Acrylic
"The Adventure II, " Archival Marker on Canvas, 2019
By Jan Pieter Fokkens
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based artist Jan Pieter Fokkens uses his work as a means of processing the incomprehensible. Navigating the relationship between algorithmic abstraction and the tangible qualities of pattern and color, Fokkens meditates on how we as viewers negotiate our realities.
Entitled "The Adventure II," this vibrant drawing depicts a still from the Italian classic film...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Abstract Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Archival Ink
"Urbane Profile, " Mixed-Media Tile, 2007
Located in Chicago, IL
Liverpool-based artist Pauline Hughes takes a fluid approach to her ceramic practice, integrating techniques of painting, collage, and printmaking into ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Surrealist Mixed Media
Materials
Ceramic, Paper, Acrylic
"Vijay Path, " Ghanaian Hand-Painted Movie Poster
Located in Chicago, IL
Vijaypath was a Bollywood action hit in 1994. It's critically acclaimed soundtrack topped charts across the world and became one of the most recognizable in India's history. The film's international success is evident in this hand-painted advertisement...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pop Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Fabric, Acrylic, Wood Panel
"The Adventure, " Archival Ink on Canvas, 2019
By Jan Pieter Fokkens
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based artist Jan Pieter Fokkens uses his work as a means of processing the incomprehensible. Navigating the relationship between algorithmic abstraction and the tangible qualities of pattern and color, Fokkens meditates on how we as viewers negotiate our realities.
Entitled "The Adventure," this vibrant drawing depicts a still from the Italian classic film...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Abstract Paintings
Materials
Archival Ink, Canvas
"Akshobhyavajra, " Acrylic on Canvas
Located in Chicago, IL
An expression of devotion, this mesmerizing painting is the result of months of dedicated work. Thousands of careful brushstrokes surround the central image of the Tibetan Buddha Aks...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Figurative Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
"Study for Messier 17, " Acrylic on Paper
By Jan Pieter Fokkens
Located in Chicago, IL
Entitled "Study for Messier 17," this painting by Chicago-artist Jan Pieter Fokkens offers a representation of the spectacular star-forming region Messier 17, also known as the Omega Nebula or Swan Nebula. A vast region of gas, dust and hot young stars, Messier 17 lies in the heart of the Milky Way, tucked within the constellation of Sagittarius (the Archer).
Inspired by telescope images of deep space, contemporary computer compression algorithms and early non-representational art...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Abstract Paintings
Materials
Paper, Acrylic
"Tiananmen Lion, " Oil on Canvas
Located in Chicago, IL
This painting, like most of Ren Hui’s exquisite artworks, celebrates his subjects using a style that he calls “uncomplicated and honest.” The beautiful pattern of gold on a bright red field, featured here, is called "Tiananmen Lion." The artist uses a pure and deliberate approach by highlighting a polarizing place and moment in Chinese history...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pointillist Landscape Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
"The People People 4, " Acrylic Paint and Watercolor on Paper, 2006
Located in Chicago, IL
In this series entitled "The People People," Tracy Crump uses washes of grey, white and aqua to both conceal and reveal sensitively drawn figures. Each figure stands alone as an indi...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Outsider Art Figurative Drawings and Water...
Materials
Paper, Ink, Acrylic, Watercolor
"Day Turns to Night, " Mixed Media Kite
By Michael Thompson
Located in Chicago, IL
Chicago-based artist Michael Thompson creates unique kites crafted from split bamboo frames covered with stretched muslin and a collage of vintage Asian ephemera—including fragments ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Abstract Paintings
Materials
Muslin, Ink, Rice Paper, Silk
"We, " Pointillist Woodcut
Located in Chicago, IL
Entitled "We," this exquisite woodcut by Chinese artist Ren Hui celebrates joy and the beauty of humanity with a crowd of smiling faces. Using a style he calls “uncomplicated and honest,” the artist creates beautiful compositions by carving small notches into a painted wood background.
Ren Hui's artworks reflect the artist’s richness of experience - he’s been a soldier, a factory worker, and a photographer documenting life from Nanjing to Tibet. He says, “We have family, friends, ourselves, history, culture, trees, flowers, buildings, demolition—all of which are reflected in my work. This is my life.” Full of bold colors and high-contrast imagery, Ren Hui's modern pointillism...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Pointillist Figurative Paintings
Materials
Plywood, Oil
Chinese Yangliuqing New Year Painting, Ink and Lacquer on Paper
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese New Year paintings (nian hua) are colorful folk paintings created to celebrate the annual Spring Festival. Drawn or printed by folk artists in regional studios, nian hua paintings featured exaggerated characters with bright and contrasting colors. Put up around the home to beckon luck and happiness in the coming year, most paintings depicted mythical guardians, scenes from folk operas, or auspicious symbols of good luck.
This New Year painting depicts a young woman holding a vase filled with peony blossoms. This combination of motifs is a visual idiom for "may you have peace and prosperity" (ping'an fu gui). The early 20th century painting is from the town of Yangliuqing, one of the leading producers of traditional New Year's paintings known for its combination of woodblock printing...
Category
Early 20th Century Folk Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Ink, Pigment
Yangliuqing Longevity New Year Painting, c. 1920
Located in Chicago, IL
Chinese New Year paintings (nian hua) are colorful folk paintings created to celebrate the annual Spring Festival. Drawn or printed by folk artists in regional studios, nian hua pain...
Category
Early 20th Century Folk Art Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paper, Ink, Pigment
Chinese Bed Canopy of Phoenix and Fruits, Paint on Wood Panel, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
The owners of this work of art were likely the only two people in the world lucky enough to have access to its beauty. The experience of art itself can be an intimate one, and this bed canopy, hand-painted 100 years ago by an artist in Canton, was more intimate than most. It brings to life symbols of prosperity and good fortune for a married couple...
Category
19th Century Qing Animal Paintings
Materials
Paint, Wood Panel
Chinese Bed Canopy Painting of Peonies and Pheasants, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
The experience of art itself can be an intimate one, and this bed canopy, hand-painted over 100 years ago by an artist in Canton, was more intimate than most. Delicately painted pheasants...
Category
19th Century Qing Figurative Paintings
Materials
Paint, Wood Panel
Tibetan Thangka of Sakyamuni, c. 1880
Located in Chicago, IL
Historically in Buddhist Tibet, patrons and monks commissioned thangka art, or sacred painting, to focus their meditations and prayers. This 19th-century Tibetan Thangka, painted in rich red, green, and blue pigments, still maintains incredible vibrancy.
The central figure is the Sakyamuni Buddha, seated in the diamond position with alms bowl...
Category
19th Century Figurative Paintings
Materials
Linen, Silk, Pigment
"Study for Tarantula Nebula, " Acrylic on Canvas
By Jan Pieter Fokkens
Located in Chicago, IL
Entitled "Study for Tarantula Nebula," this painting by Chicago-based artist Jan Pieter Fokkens offers a representation of the gigantic star-forming region of the same name. Located in the Large Magellanic Cloud, nearly 160,000 light years from earth, it's the birthplace of an astonishing number of massive stars, some roughly 100 times the mass of the Sun.
Inspired by telescope images of deep space, contemporary computer compression algorithms and early non-representational art...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Abstract Geometric Abstract Paintings
Materials
Canvas, Acrylic
