Another six of the best, from the battle of the Lapiths and Centaurs to the assassination of Julius Caesar, from Rubens to Turner.
Turner
From Constable and Turner’s views of London’s parliament ablaze, to Edvard Munch’s painting of a local manor house in flames.
The final article in this series looks at Augustus and Cleopatra, the emperor’s patronage of Virgil, and how Ovid’s own legacy has been transformed in paintings.
Boy meets girl but has to swim a mile in treacherous waters to keep meeting her. When she tells him how she burns with passion, he pushes his luck in the sea.
The story of Ulysses’ encounter with the Cyclops Polyphemus is told by a survivor from the Odyssey. Superb paintings by Turner, Böcklin, Reni, and others.
Girl meets boy on a mission; boy cannot deviate from mission; boy leaves girl; girl heartbroken. But was this relationship doomed from the start by others?
It isn’t really a pigment at all, was reportedly used by all the Masters from Titian to Delacroix, and destroys the paint layer. But it has actually been found in very few paintings.
Two interlinked stories about the Sibyl, who will live for a thousand years but age until she is just a voice. Painted by Turner (three magnificent works shown), and Claude.
The tragic story of Jason’s first wife, whom he abandoned in favour of Medea, the sorceress. In the end, Hypsipyle got her revenge on him.
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.
The Eclectic Light Company 