Visiting the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, May 2022. it houses mainly (but not quite exclusively) French works from the latter half of the 19th century to WWI. So, a lot of Impressionists and post-Impressionists like Van Gogh
Un enterrement à Ornans (“A Burial in Ornans”) — Gustave Courbet, 1850.
One of two flippin’ huge paintings by Courbet on display together, this is a big middle finger to the Academy of Fine Arts and its sensibilities, and a manifesto for realism in art. Whereas official juries preferred fine details and soft tonal gradients, here the tones are harsh, the brushwork rough, and the blacks overwhelming. Instead of idealised mythology or history, the subject matter is mundane and the figures are aggressively unartistic — in fact, many were modelled on people the artist knew from the real Ornans, his home town.
Le pont du chemin de fer à Argenteuil (“The Railway Bridge at Argenteuil”) — Claude Monet, 1874
Like other Impressionists, Monet’s works were usually clearly rooted in the here and now, including depictions of France’s industrialisation.
Le bal du moulin de la Galette (“Dance at Le moulin de la Galette”) — Pierre Auguste Renoir, 1876
This just brings me so much joy. The depiction of regular folks having fun, the dappled sunlight filtering through the trees, and also I learned that Montmartre used to have windmills back then? Which totally makes sense of course, since it’s the highest spot in Paris. The Moulin de la Galette was a flour mill that sold little round breads (the eponymous galettes), and later expanded into a drinking establishment with outdoor dancing space. Back then Montmartre was still pretty rural, and city folks would come up to enjoy the country atmosphere and fine views of Paris.
La nuit étoilée (“The Starry Night”) — Vincent Van Gogh, 1888
Not the other and more famous work by that name (which is displayed in NY's MoMA), this one was painted in Arles, Provence, and manages to beautifully capture the city, illuminated by gaslight and starlight.
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Street art in Antwerp
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Five faces, Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico:
Part of a clay and ceramics exposition in the Albert Van Dyck museum, Schilde, Belgium
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On the promenade in Torri del Benaco (Lake Garda), Italy
An art installation in Lyon, France has a somewhat similar theme
The Belgian painter René Magritte in front of one of his paintings, on a photo by Lothar Wolleh, on display in Museum Prinsenhof, Delft, Netherlands
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Art is in the eye of the beholder
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Henry Moore in the Albertinum, Dresden
Remains of the Jeroen Bosch year in 's-Hertogenbosch (Netherlands)
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Say A to art
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The earth, Bischofshofen, Austria
One of the many statues on the townhall of Leuven (Belgium)
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Inside the Cologne Cathedral
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Funny art (but mainly for photographers)
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Visiting the Musée d'Orsay in Paris, May 2022. it houses mainly (but not quite exclusively) French works from the latter half of the 19th century to WWI. So, a lot of Impressionists and post-Impressionists like Van Gogh
Un enterrement à Ornans (“A Burial in Ornans”) — Gustave Courbet, 1850.
One of two flippin’ huge paintings by Courbet on display together, this is a big middle finger to the Academy of Fine Arts and its sensibilities, and a manifesto for realism in art. Whereas official juries preferred fine details and soft tonal gradients, here the tones are harsh, the brushwork rough, and the blacks overwhelming. Instead of idealised mythology or history, the subject matter is mundane and the figures are aggressively unartistic — in fact, many were modelled on people the artist knew from the real Ornans, his home town.
Le pont du chemin de fer à Argenteuil (“The Railway Bridge at Argenteuil”) — Claude Monet, 1874
Like other Impressionists, Monet’s works were usually clearly rooted in the here and now, including depictions of France’s industrialisation.
Le bal du moulin de la Galette (“Dance at Le moulin de la Galette”) — Pierre Auguste Renoir, 1876
This just brings me so much joy. The depiction of regular folks having fun, the dappled sunlight filtering through the trees, and also I learned that Montmartre used to have windmills back then? Which totally makes sense of course, since it’s the highest spot in Paris. The Moulin de la Galette was a flour mill that sold little round breads (the eponymous galettes), and later expanded into a drinking establishment with outdoor dancing space. Back then Montmartre was still pretty rural, and city folks would come up to enjoy the country atmosphere and fine views of Paris.
La nuit étoilée (“The Starry Night”) — Vincent Van Gogh, 1888
Not the other and more famous work by that name (which is displayed in NY's MoMA), this one was painted in Arles, Provence, and manages to beautifully capture the city, illuminated by gaslight and starlight.
Blog: https://figureoutthesea.ca
Store: https://nicolasdemers.smugmug.com/
"Either we'll figure out the sea, or we'll keep finding beautiful places."
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A statue by Jean-Michel Folon in the abbey-ruin of Villers-la-Ville (Belgium)
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Wood carving in the east of Germany
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Canoe art in Steelville, located in the Ozarks of southern Missouri with many more examples throughout the town:
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