Category: Painting and Sculpture

Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Berthe Morisot

Berthe Morisot (1841-1895) was a French painter who was one of the handful of female artists in the Impressionist group. Her oeuvre is largely made up of domestic scenes, many of which depict members of her own family, including her husband Eugène Manet and their daughter Julie. Scenes of street life and urban entertainment, which were depicted by many of her male colleagues, would have … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Berthe Morisot

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Gustave Caillebotte

Gustave Caillebotte was a French painter and art collector who is best-known for his scenes of urban life in Paris, including The Floor Scrapers, Paris Street, Rainy Day, and Le Pont de l’Europe. He joined the Impressionists in the 1870s and helped with both the funding and organising of their exhibitions. Caillebotte shared their interest in modern life, bright colours, and natural light, but combined … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Gustave Caillebotte

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Jean-François Millet

Jean-François Millet (1814-1875) was a French painter who is famed for his depictions of peasant life. He was a leading figure in the Barbizon School, a school of painting that was very influential in bringing Realism to landscape painting in France. The school was named after the village of Barbizon, where Millet arrived in 1849 and would spend most of the rest of his life. … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Jean-François Millet

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Georges Seurat

Georges Seurat (1859-91) was a French painter who is best known for pioneering Pointillism, a neo-Impressionist technique in which countless tiny dots are applied to the canvas. His most famous works are his scenes of suburban leisure: Bathers at Asnières and A Sunday on La Grande Jatte. However, he also produced excellent landscapes and seascapes during his various summer vacations, as well as numerous scenes … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Georges Seurat

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Camille Pissarro

Camille Pissarro (1830-1903) was a Danish-French painter who was a leading figure in the Impressionist movement. He is best known for his landscape paintings, but also produced excellent works depicting urban areas, such as the industrialised waterfront in Rouen and the new boulevards in Paris. Although his artistic career was largely dominated by Impressionism, Pissarro also experimented with other styles, including Pointillism. He began to … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Camille Pissarro

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Sculptures by Auguste Rodin

Auguste Rodin (1840-1917) was a French sculptor who has long been hailed as a modern-day Michelangelo. His body of work includes some of the most renowned sculptures in Western art, such as The Thinker, The Kiss and The Age of Bronze. By the beginning of the 20th century Auguste Rodin had achieved fame throughout the world, and a museum dedicated to his artwork was even … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Sculptures by Auguste Rodin

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Jacques-Louis David

Jacques-Louis David was a pioneer of the neoclassical art movement, and France’s most acclaimed painter at the peak of his career. He rose to fame in the 1780s with his Salon paintings of classical subjects, including the famed The Oath of the Horatii. However, he is also remembered for his role in the French Revolution, particularly in its most extreme and violent phase. He was … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Jacques-Louis David

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Henri Rousseau

Best known for his jungle paintings, Henri Rousseau (1844 – 1910) was very much an outsider in the art world. He was a self-taught artist, and didn’t paint in the traditional academic style of the Salon and French Academy. Rather, his artwork expressed an untrained style, featuring bold colours and flat figures. This style became known as “naïve” or “primitive”, and although it was often … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Henri Rousseau

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Pierre-Auguste Renoir once remarked “Why shouldn’t art be pretty? There are enough unpleasant things in the world.” It’s not surprising then, that most of his paintings depict the delights of modern life: dancing, theatre, boating, dining, bathing, and music. Originally, he painted these scenes in an Impressionist style, and was in fact a leading member of the movement. However, in the 1880s, he shifted away … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir

Michael Partridge
Painting and Sculpture, The Arts in France

Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Edgar Degas

Edgar Degas (1834-1917) was a French artist who is most celebrated for his scenes of contemporary life: he depicted ballerinas, laundresses, women in millinery shops, and those at the bottom of Parisian society. Although he preferred to call himself a “Realist” or an “Independent”, Degas exhibited his paintings with the Impressonists, and is often grouped with them. His artwork formed a bridge between academic tradition … Continue reading Ten of the Most Famous Paintings by Edgar Degas

Michael Partridge