In memory of Richard Dadd: ten of his best, and thoughts about his life and work. Would we have been any better towards him even now?
Turner
The decline and fall of Medea, as her sorcery is used for murder, and she kills her own infant sons. Paintings by Delacroix, Turner, and others.
In 1864, he was transferred to the newly-built Broadmoor Asylum. Despite that disruption, he continued to paint.
When a landscape artist finds it hard to paint figures well, there is one good solution: work with a figurative painter. The results can be spectacular.
Knowing when one of Turner’s paintings is narrative can be very tricky. But there are dangers in over-interpretation. Here are some ideas to assist in their reading.
Princess, sorceress, seductress, wife, mother, and vengeful filicide – one of the most complex characters to paint. Known from her letter in Heroides, and a lost work by Ovid.
Who was Ovid, and how did he come to write so much on mythology? Illustrated with some fine paintings of his life by Poussin, Delacroix, and Turner.
Is it really futile and impossible to try to paint the wind? Here’s a selection of evidence, drawn from landscapes and marines.
Never mock Cupid. As Apollo found it, he’ll get his own back in the cruellest of ways.
He recovered some of his youthful vision in the 1860s, when he painted rich rustic views lit by the setting sun.
The Eclectic Light Company 