The most famous of all, with its origins in Afghanistan, the most precious and beautiful pigment. But it has caught out some of the best forgers too.
Renoir
What made images of women sewing so popular in the late 19th century? Here are some of the best from about 1885 to the Nabis in the 20th century.
From Velázquez in the 1640s to Renoir in 1882, portraits and scenes of women sewing were popular. How did they develop?
It’s not a colour at all, say some, while the Impressionists wanted to banish it from the palette. But throughout the history of painting, the blackest black has remained vital.
His masterpiece is a prime example of Naturalism, but he was a close friend of Degas and Renoir, and a major patron and collector of Impressionism.
Introduced in about 1806, it was used by Turner, Friedrich, Delacroix, Corot, the Pre-Raphaelites, the Impressionists, and many others. With examples of those works.
We don’t know their names as well, but we know the faces and bodies of those who model for artists. They achieve some kind of immortality.
Shows a selection of her paintings completed up to 1925, several influenced by Cézanne and Cubism.
Now seen as the odd man out of the Impressionists, at the time he had great influence. Here are samples of the work of those he influenced.
Looking at paintings of women doing their laundry in a landscape view in historical context.
The Eclectic Light Company 