Life of Escher, the artist of impossible universes

Tuesday October 25th, 2022 , Artists and Works

LIFE OF ESCHER, ARTIST OF IMPOSSIBLE UNIVERSES

Escher’s life has been as fascinating as his visionary works.
His impossible universes, made of optical illusions and real but seemingly virtual landscapes, have influenced the modern imagination and are still a source of inspiration for contemporary creatives.

Escher was born and died in Holland but for many years he lived in Rome and there are many exhibitions dedicated to his work (the last one in Florence).
Curious about everything, a brilliant experimenter and a unique artist in the artistic panorama of the 20th century, Escher is the creator of impossible and fantastic worlds that have anticipated the cinematic tales of our times.

Escher Life

Experimentation and colour in the works of Raoul Dufy

Monday October 17th, 2022 , Artists and Works

Raoul Dufy (1877-1953). “30 ans ou la vie en rose”. Huile sur toile, 1931. Paris, musée d’Art moderne.

EXPERIMENTATION AND COLOUR IN THE WORKS OF RAOUL DUFY

Raoul Dufy was born into a humble family of modest economic circumstances.
His father was an organist and passed on his passion for music to his son Raoul, which the artist cultivated for the rest of his life and transferred into his works.

In Raoul Dufy’s works there is experimentation and colour, a constant desire to communicate through light and through what life had in store for the man who was one of the greatest interpreters of art history, straddling Impressionism and Fauvism.

The works of Raoul Dufy

The art of recycling in the works of Enrica Borghi

Wednesday October 12th, 2022 , Artists and Works

Enrica Borghi, Architettura di Luce (dettaglio), 2004, bottiglie di plastica sezionate, sacchetti in polietilene. Photo Courtesy dell_artista

THE ART OF RECYCLING IN THE WORKS OF ENRICA BORGHI

In Elena Borghi’s works, recycling becomes art thanks to the mosaic technique.
Her artistic research, in fact, is based on a virtuous use of materials that are actually fragments and waste elements.

The works of Enrica Borghi

Raphael’s portrait of Pope Julius II: analysis and curiosities

Tuesday October 4th, 2022 , Artists and Works

Raffaello Sanzio: Ritratto di papa Giulio II, 1511-1512, Tavola, cm 108×80,7. Londra, National Gallery

THE PORTRAIT OF POPE JULIUS II BY RAFFAELLO: ANALYSIS AND CURIOSITIES

There are two versions of Raphael’s portrait of Julius II.
The first is currently in London and was painted in 1511, while the second is in Italy, dated around 1512 and is kept in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence.

In this post, I describe the work that is in London.

Raphael’s portrait of Pope Julius II: analysis and trivia

ELISABETTA SIRANI. Painter in seventeenth-century Bologna

Monday October 3rd, 2022 , Artists and Works

Elisabetta Sirani (1638 – 1665), Maddalena penitente. Olio su tela. 105 x 80 cm (firmata e datata 1658). Dettaglio

ELISABETTA SIRANI. PAINTER IN 17TH CENTURY BOLOGNA

The career of Elisabetta Sirani as a painter is encompassed within a decade.
Born on 8 January 1638, she made her debut at the age of seventeen, in 1655, when she began to record the paintings she was commissioned to paint.

Having succeeded her father in the family workshop, Elisabeth is one of those women artists of whom we have known nothing for too long.
Her workshop is an all-female one, and now an exhibition sheds light on her life and works.

Elisabetta Sirani painter