The world of childhood of the XIX century in the paintings of Gaetano Cierizi
Many viewers are interested in everyday painting of old masters of the past centuries, who knew how not only to reliably capture the life of their people in the smallest…

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Did Leonardo da Vinci have a second Mona Lisa: The Riddles of the “Iselworth Mona Lisa”
For many decades, there has been debate about whether the Iselworth Mona Lisa is a genuine, earlier version of Leonardo da Vinci's most famous work, which attracts millions of visitors…

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Other worlds in pastel-candy paintings with mysterious subjects
Syd Bee is an artist from Seattle whose work seems to have been torn straight from the world of dreams. Bee uses rich, pink tones in many of his works,…

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visual impression

As in the Sistine Chapel, the shame was also painted over other cases of strange censorship in the history of art

Censorship is sometimes unpredictable. For example, Facebook has been seen more than once in censorship scandals … naked antique sculptures, once during an advertising campaign for an international exhibition of statues. And on Iranian television athletes are covered up during competitions in rhythmic and artistic gymnastics (which is puzzling – because then there is no point in watching the competitions). It is impossible to embrace the history of censorship, but it has its own significant events.

There is a team: hide behind

In Novosibirsk, in one of the universities in 2018, students suddenly found all antique statues placed along the corridors draped in impenetrable bedspreads. So the university has prepared for a visit by representatives of the Russian Orthodox Church. Continue reading

Two brides for one groom: The riddle of a picturesque plot about the mystical betrothal of St. Catherine

Among the works of Renaissance masters and later periods in the history of painting, there are often those that depict “the mystical betrothal of St. Catherine.” At the same time, the essence of what is happening may seem vague – after all, betrothal in the usual sense of modern man does not occur on canvas. It turns out that two different women could be brides in such paintings, but the groom is always alone.

First bride – St. Catherine of Alexandria

St. Catherine of Alexandria lived in Egypt in the 3rd century AD. Before the adoption of Christianity, she bore the name of Dorothea and was the daughter of the ruler of Alexandria. The girl was famous for her extraordinary beauty, wisdom, spiritual qualities, and was, of course, an enviable bride, but in grooms she wanted only the most worthy – the one who will surpass her in everything. Then Catherine’s mother took her to the old hermit, who was praying in a cave near the city. He told the girl that he knew the one who is better in everything. Continue reading

Why did the famous socialist realist Heliy Korzhev begin to write mutant-turliks and paintings on biblical motifs

In recent years, in the world of art, interest in the work of Soviet artists has revived. And there was a time when their work was written off to a landfill, and their names were vilified by newfangled critics and art historians of a new formation. From the Soviet period, the legacy of only a few artists remained untouched, among which the name of Helium Korzhev, who had an amazing gift of vision and was able to masterfully convey in one gesture, in the expression on his face, what the whole generation was thinking.

A bit about the artist

Helium – in translation the God of the Sun. His parents wanted to name their son Tractor, but since he was born in a sultry summer, he was named Helios. And if more officially, then Heliy Korzhev is a Soviet painter, teacher, professor, a bright representative of the “severe style”. As well as an academician of the Academy of Arts of the USSR, a national artist, a laureate of several State Prizes. Continue reading

What is encrypted in the paintings of the most mysterious artist of the Golden Age: Alphabet of painting by Jan Vermeer
One of the most famous artists of the Golden Age of Holland. His refined painting technique, experiments with optics and perspective, the unique way of transmitting light and the poetic…

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Two seasons of love by Paul Gauguin: Virtuous Danish and passionate Tahitian
Paul Gauguin was passionate and enthusiastic, he could instantly be inflamed with passion, but his feelings passed as quickly as they appeared. Only two women left a deep mark on…

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What riddles Claude Monet left in his painting "Poppies"
Claude Monet is an artist whose name is inseparable from impressionism. He painted landscapes, water lilies, poplars, ladies in the garden, women with umbrellas, the London parliament, boats, the Normandy…

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