Materials determine what is possible in painting, and pigments are central to that. This series looks at the history and use of different pigments, with extensive examples of their use.
history of painting
An illustrated timeline and overview of how the human visual environment, and perception of it, has changed from ancient times to virtual reality.
In the past, people have accepted the reality of mythical creatures, such as winged angels, unicorns, and dragons. When did we start being more objective in our belief of what we see?
If Brunelleschi had introduced Cubism instead of perspective projection, would that have altered human visual perception?
Those artists who did visit and paint the women of North Africa show very different pictures, here seen in depictions of the Ouled Naïl people.
Paintings of odalisques, slave markets, and Turkish baths became popular in the nineteenth century. What was the Orientalist fantasy, and why?
Paintings on walls and ceilings created a virtual reality long before the term was coined. Even now, they can be breathtaking in effect.
In the year ahead, Gustav Klimt, Ferdinand Hodler, Tintoretto, Egon Schiele, and several others: anniversaries which I will celebrate here.
A look back at some of my favourite articles on painters and painting, from Moreau and Salome, to Merson’s tame wolf.
He was remarkably successful, a truly self-made artist, who rose from nothing to international renown. But did he ‘occasion a revolution in the art’?
The Eclectic Light Company 