Daily Dose of Art

So much beauty!

Detail from the background of “The Unicorn Rests in a Garden” from circa 1495-1505.

This is the millefleur background. Some of the identifiable flowers include violets, lilies, forget-me-nots, thistles, bistort, daffodils, and wild orchids. If you look closely, you can find little hidden details, such as a dragonfly drinking nectar from a lily, and a frog hidden among some violets.

This post taught me the word "millefleur"...

millefleur: having an allover pattern of small flowers and plants

“The Unicorn Rests in a Garden” is a tapestry made from gilded thread, silver silk, and wool. Made in the Southern Netherlands between 1495 and 1505, it is one of the finest pieces of artworks still in existence from the Middle Ages. From the style of art, it is believed to have been designed in Paris, France and created in the vicinity of Brussels, Belgium.

This is one of seven tapestries that make up 'The Unicorn Tapestries', also known as 'The Hunt of the Unicorn'. It is the most well-known of the series. It is still unclear what order the tapestries were intended to be in, but the series details the entrapment of a unicorn by a virgin, which is subsequently hunted, and killed. This tapestry is placed either at the beginning or end of the series. From its docile manner within the fence, many believe it shows the unicorn as tamed.

In this piece, a unicorn is laying down within a wooden fence. It wears a blue color and is chained to a pomegranate tree, also within the enclosure. The tree is ripe with fruit, with some fruit overripe and opening. Some evidence of pomegranate seeds and juice rest on the coat of the unicorn.

The setting is rich and dense with flowers of all kinds and colors, known as the millefleur background style, which was popular from around 1400 to 1550, and which William Morris revived with his tapestries in the late 1800s. Some of the identifiable flowers include violets, lilies, forget-me-nots, thistles, bistort, daffodils, and wild orchids. If you look closely, you can find little hidden details, such as a dragonfly drinking nectar from a lily, and a frog hidden among some violets.

“The Unicorn Rests in a Garden” is currently on display at The Cloisters, a branch of the Metropolitan Museum of Art, in New York City, in the United States.

And now some epic art...

"The Knight at the Crossroads” is an oil on canvas painting by the Russian artist, Viktor Vasnetsov, from 1882. It is one of Vasnetsov’s most famous pieces.

In this painting, Vasnetsov paints a knight atop his white horse. He is dressed for battle, with a helmet, full armor, shield, a quiver full of arrows, and a spear in his right hand. Both the knight and his horse look weary, with slouched positions and their heads angled downwards.

The knight and horse are standing at a crossroads as the knight reads a sign etched upon the stone. The text on the stone, written in archaic Russian in stylized phrasing, reads, “If you ride straight ahead — you will not remain alive — there is no path for the traveler by road, nor for the passerby on foot, nor for the flyer through the air.”

To add to the drama, in a letter he wrote about the painting, Vasnetsov had said that there are two more choices written on the stone, though they are obscured by moss and partially erased by age, so the hero doesn’t see them. The other choices are ride to the right to be married, or ride to the left to be wealthy. The knight only sees the path forward that leads to his death. Does he heed the sign or go forward?

The setting of the painting is the great expanse of the Russian steppe as the sun sets in the distance. The foreboding landscape is riddled with rocks and boulders, along with the bones of humans and animals. Ravens fly nearby and stand upon the rocks, looking at the knight and his horse, adding to the ominous scene. It appears that many have come here only to die.

The knight is believed to be a representation of the folk hero, llya Muromets, who was one of the bogatyrs, or knights from Rus folklore, and was a major character in Russian bylina, or epic poems.

“The Knight at the Crossroads” is part of the collections of the State Russian Museum in Saint Petersburg, Russia.

For more on Viktor Vasnetsov, please visit his short biography here:
https://www.myddoa.com/artists/viktor-vasnetsov/

I love the Last of the Mohicans film from 1992 with Daniel Day-Lewis. And I can't help but think that it was somewhat visually inspired by the illustrations that N.C. Wyeth made for the 1919 publication of the book.

The top is a still from the 1992 film, the bottom is "The Meeting of the Generals" by N.C. Wyeth, from 1919. So good...

It is really interesting to see Vincent van Gogh through someone else’s eyes.

“Portrait of Vincent van Gogh” is an oil on canvas painting by the Australian impressionism and post-impressionism artist, John Russell, also sometimes referred to as John Peter Russell. It was made in November 1886.

This was painted in the realism style, before Russell’s shift towards impressionism. It is believed by art historians to be the portrait that has the most likeness to what van Gogh actually looked like. Russell had originally painted van Gogh in a blue striped suit against a plain monochromatic background. The painting has darkened over time, obscuring that detail. Vincent holds a pencil in his right hand and looks askance at the viewer. His gaze is piercing. Above Vincent’s head, painted in red, Russell wrote the text “Vincent, in friendship”.

Russell met van Gogh at the atelier of the history painter, Fernand Cormon, in Paris where the two were taking studio classes. Both being outsiders in Paris, they formed a friendship and stayed connected for several years. When van Gogh wanted to start an art colony in Arles in southern France, Russell was someone he considered inviting to live with him, before settling on Paul Gauguin. Unfortunately, like most of van Gogh’s friendships, the relationship was strained. The two artists wrote letters to each other until van Gogh’s death in 1890.

After completing the painting, Russell gave it to van Gogh who insisted on trading art for it, a practice that Vincent did with all his artist friends. In 1886, van Gogh sent this portrait to his brother, Theo van Gogh, to take care of. In 1889, the painting was still on his mind, and he wrote to his brother, saying “take good care of my portrait by Russell, which means a lot to me.”

“Portrait of Vincent van Gogh” is part of the collections of the Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam, the Netherlands.

For more on John Russell, please visit his short biography here:
https://www.myddoa.com/artists/john-peter-russell/

Today, a lovely double portrait...

“Portrait of the Artist’s Daughters” is an oil on canvas painting made by the English artist, Thomas Gainsborough, from 1763 to 1764.

This was painted during Gainsborough’s time in Bath, England during which he became a highly sought after portrait artist. He added a touch of the fanciful rococo style to his portraits, which created a more romantic style of art. Gainsborough's most famous painting is “The Blue Boy”.

In this painting, Gainsborough paints a loving portrait of his two daughters, Mary and Margaret. They were around 14 and 12 years old at the time. Mary, the older of the two, is seated and looking straight at the viewer while Margaret looks off to the side. The two girls were the only children of Gainsborough and his wife, Margaret, to survive infancy. Gainsborough depicts them each holding an art portfolio with drawing papers shown within. Mary is holding a pen stylus. In the background, two Grecian statues are standing on top of the furniture to the left. They are presumably in his art studio.

As part of their education, Gainsborough taught his daughters how to draw and paint landscapes. He was optimistically hoping they would become artists in their own right when they grew up, which they did not pursue.

"Portrait of the Artist's Daughters", from 1763 to 1764, is part of the collections of the Worcester Art Museum in Worcester, Massachusetts, in the United States.

For more on Thomas Gainsborough, please visit his short biography here:
https://www.myddoa.com/artists/thomas-gainsborough/

Artists find the beauty in the everyday...

I found this great historic photo of the avenue lined with chestnut trees at Cézanne's family’s estate in Aix-en-Provence in southern France. Compared with his painting of the same scene, you can really see how he added a little magic to make an ordinary scene extraordinary.

“Chestnut Trees at Jas de Bouffan”, Paul Cézanne, 1885-1886, oil on canvas.

And now, to southern France…

“Chestnut Trees at Jas de Bouffan” is an oil on canvas painting by the French artist, Paul Cézanne. It was made between 1885 and 1886.

Cézanne’s unique art style was a huge inspiration for cubism and the abstract art movement of the early twentieth century. Today, his art and influence are seen as the bridge between Impressionism and Cubism.

In this painting, Cézanne depicts an avenue lined with chestnut trees at his family’s estate in Aix-en-Provence in southern France. He paints the avenue from its side in a direct and horizontal manner, collapsing the depth of the scene. The trees on opposite ends of the road, quite far apart, appear to be in line. The straight vertical orientation of the trees is in striking contrast with the avenue and wall behind them. The building, grassy field, and mountain in the background add a complexity to the canvas. The bare branches of the chestnut trees show this is a winter scene.

Cézanne was born and raised in Aix-en-Provence near Marseille in southern France. Throughout his career, he continuously left Paris to paint the scenery back home, creating 36 oil paintings while there. He eventually retired there. Much of his inspiration was from his family’s estate.

With this piece, Cézanne wanted to show the natural geometry of nature. He used multiple viewpoints in painting the trees and concerned himself with creating strong horizontal and vertical planes, a sort of geometric landscape. Away from Paris and the impressionist artists, and strengthened by working in his hometown, he was emboldened in his landscapes.

“Chestnut Trees at Jas de Bouffan” is part of the collections of the Minneapolis Institute of Art in Minneapolis, Minnesota in the United States.

For more on Paul Cézanne, please visit his short biography here:
https://www.myddoa.com/artists/paul-cezanne/