Tackled by several Masters, this well-known story has also been well-shown. Which painting provides the best narrative?
Rubens
Unheard of now outside Germany, his narrative paintings look straightforward at first. But when you try reading them…
We still associate brushmarks with sketchiness, speed of painting, spontaneity, bravura, and panache – and smooth paint surfaces, assembled from multiple layers and glazes, as being heartless mechanical essays in technique.
A glance through some of the unofficial history of visible brushstrokes and other painter’s marks.
A brief glance through the history of painting trees in the landscape, from Rubens and Poussin to van Gogh and Pissarro.
No matter how old and jaded you get, you can always appreciate the breath-taking view from the top of a hill, as the earth sweeps out in myriad details, as far as the distant horizon.
The Eclectic Light Company 