Great Paintings

Great Piece of Turf - Durer

I was reading through the Globe and Mail selections of gift books and saw a title I couldn't resist - Great Paintings:  The World's Masterpieces Explored and Explained.

I picked it up on the way home tonight.

A tour of 66 groundbreaking works from galleries around the world, the illustrations are lavish with pull-out details that deepen appreciation for the artists' skills and talents.

The realistic, almost photographic watercolour of turf was created by Durer more than 500 years ago, but it looks surprisingly modern to me... it was one of the first great nature studies.

Arcimbaldo is here! And Michaelangelo, Raphael, Rothko, Tom Thompson, Warhol....

Although there is a focus on Western and European art, the Qingming Scroll is here, and so is this Cypress Tree.  Akbar's Adventures with the Elephant, too (1561)

The Dance - Paula Rego

I'm looking forward to hours of unhurried pleasure as I rediscover some familiar faces and get introduced to some new.

This is the first time I've seen anything by Paula Rego. I like the fact it can be interpreted as a dance through the stages of a woman's life, from childhood to old age.

And it has a full moon in the sky, one of my favourite subjects.