World recognition of paintings is determined not only by the degree of talent and style of the artist. It is determined by the years through which the glory of these paintings passes. Most of the world's masterpieces are painted in oil on canvas. Having passed the test of time, they still delight millions of people, leaving a lasting impression and inspiring creativity. These works of art are stored in several galleries, where everyone can see them. Paradoxically, time is not only the main evaluator of famous paintings, but also their destroyer. In addition, world masterpieces may be stolen by professional thieves. Galleries and museums set themselves the task of ensuring the safety of world-renowned paintings, as well as restoring them to their original state, in order to preserve them for the next generation of connoisseurs of beauty.
So, before us are the ten most famous paintings in the world:
10
Whistler's mother (Paris, Orsay Museum)
The official name of this masterpiece is “Arrangement in gray and black. Mother of the artist. ” James Whistler wrote it in the early 70s of the XIX century. The picture shows his mother sitting on a chair against a wall of gray tones. There are at least two versions of creating a picture. The first suggests that the artist should paint a portrait from another model, which for some reason could not pose, therefore, at the last moment she was replaced by the mother of the master. According to another version, such a pose was not originally planned, however, it was difficult for the artist’s elderly mother to stand for several hours, so it was decided that she would pose while sitting on a chair. The painting is permanently exhibited in the Paris Museum of Orsay. At the same time, a masterpiece often “tours” around the world.
9
Persistence of Memory (New York, Museum of Modern Art)
Perhaps it would not be an exaggeration to call this picture, the most famous creation of Salvador Dali. It is known to the world under several names, but the most popular is Soft Watches. It depicts melting dials and the artist himself, depicting himself in the form of a sleeping head. According to one version, Dali was inspired by the reflection on the theory of relativity to write this picture, the master himself “blames” Camembert cheese for everything, in the form of which the dials are depicted. According to the artist, the painting took him no more than two hours. True, it is worth considering that the landscape was ready in advance, and the picture itself is quite small (24x33 cm.). At the moment, the painting is exhibited at the New York Museum of Modern Art, where it was transferred in 1934, three years after its writing.
8
Night Watch (Amsterdam, Rijksmuseum)
The story of this painting, written by the greatest artist of all time, Rembrante, is full of secrets and speculation. She was ordered by the artist rifle company. The musketeers were about to hang a picture in the newly built building of their society. The painting was painted in the first half of the 17th century, but less than a hundred years later the canvas was cut off due to its oversized size (that's right, then putting the picture under a knife was akin to cropping a photograph). Nevertheless, even now it is a huge canvas, which is perfectly visible even from afar.
The fate of the picture is quite complicated, except that it was kept by the Nazis for a long time, it was also damaged at least three times. A fragment was cut out of the canvas, it was perforated with a knife (more than 10 strokes), as well as doused with sulfuric acid. There is a version that the name “Night Watch” does not correspond to reality, since the dark background is not a varnish depicting the dark time of the day, but just soot. In favor of the version about the image of the musketeers in the afternoon speaks a shadow cast by one of the characters in the picture. At the moment, a masterpiece of world art is kept in the State Museum of Amsterdam.
7
Birth of Venus (Florence, Uffizi Gallery)
It is believed that Botticelli's “Birth of Venus” was painted for the Medici family, the most influential family in Europe for several centuries. The painting was painted over five years, from 82 to 86 years of the XV century. It depicts an episode from the ancient Roman myth (borrowed from the ancient Greeks), which tells about the birth of Venus. In the picture, one can trace the influence of Greek culture on Botticelli. This can be seen both in the pose of Venus and in the plot of the picture, partly taken from the poems of Homer.
However, many historians are inclined to question this theory, since the artist’s library could not contain the works of Homer or Ovid, who also described the birth of the goddess. It is assumed that Botticelli, who lived next to the famous poet of that time, Angelo Poliziano, learned about the myth from his friend’s poems. The picture can be seen in Florence, namely in one of the oldest galleries in Europe, the Uffizi.
6
Guernica (Madrid, Reina Sofia Museum)
This famous painting by Pablo Picasso, like many of his works, is painted in the style of cubism, which does not immediately determine the plot of this masterpiece. She tells the terrible story of the civil war in Spain, when the Basque city of Guernica was wiped out by the allies of the Franco regime, German aviation. Thousands of bombs were dropped on a tiny town (only 2 thousand inhabitants), which caused destruction on a massive scale - the city could not be put out for three days after the bombing. The peculiar manner in which Picasso portrayed the incident did not immediately appeal to critics. She was also not appreciated by the audience of the Paris exhibition in 1937, where she was put on trial to the public.
Getting started, Picasso already knew the plot and concept of the picture. He finished it in just a month, working 12 hours non-stop. An instructive story occurred during World War II. People from the Gestapo came to the artist with a copy of the picture to ask the question whether he did it. To which Picasso replied: "No, this is your doing."
Today “Guernica” is considered one of the best works of the master, which can be seen in the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid.
5
Girl with a Pearl Earring (The Hague, Mauritshuis)
This work of art was written by Jan Vermeer, a Dutch artist who worked in the 17th century. Since the picture was not stamped, historians for a long time found it difficult to answer the question in which year it was painted. At the moment, everyone is leaning towards 1665. On the canvas is a portrait of a girl with a turban on her head and a pearl earring in her ear. The ambiguous facial expression of the girl gave rise to many speculations, and also allowed contemporaries to call the girl Dutch or northern Mona Lisa. Recently, there has been a lot of talk about the main subject of the painting - a pearl earring, which the artist wanted to emphasize with the name of the canvas. It is assumed that in the girl’s ear there cannot be earrings made of natural pearls, since it doesn’t have such sizes, and its highlight can be a rough “blot” of the restorer. Also, the wire for attaching to the ear is not visible in the picture. Now this picture with a fairly average size (44.5 x 39 cm) is stored in the Hague Gallery Mauritshuis.
Do you think the girl has an earring in the picture? Write your answers in the comments to the article.
4
Scream (Oslo, National Gallery)
This painting is considered one of the most famous in the world. Edward Munch wrote a series of paintings under this name, and one of them, kept in private hands, has long been considered the most expensive work of art. The most famous painting in this series depicts a screaming man, more like an embryo or skeleton. Art critics still can not come to a consensus, which made the artist paint such a picture. There is also debate over the plot. The landscape behind the screaming man repeats the outlines of his head, creating the impression of undulating, as if nature itself shuddered from the scream.
On the other hand, it may seem that the cry of nature puts so much pressure on a person that he is horrified by what is happening. The painting was painted at the end of the XIX century, and became a kind of harbinger of two world wars and environmental problems. Almost all versions of “Scream” were stolen at least once. The most famous of them was stolen in 1994 from the National Museum. However, in the same year they found it and again put it on display, where it is still stored.
3
Starry Night (New York, Museum of Modern Art)
It is noteworthy that one of the most famous paintings by Vincent Van Gogh, the artist himself was not appreciated too much. He painted this picture while in a psychiatric hospital. The canvas is a view from the master’s window on the night sky with many stars, stylization of the moon and a fictional village, which, according to art critics, symbolizes the artist’s longing for his homeland. The painting was painted in just one day in 1889, however, before starting work, Van Gogh made several sketches, one of which is also stored in New York.
Interestingly, when the artist sent several of his paintings to his brother, he did not send “Starry Night,” because he did not consider it valuable, and decided to save on expenses. He also spoke unflatteringly about this canvas several times, not considering it outstanding and of any value. The picture changed hands several times in the hands of private owners until it settled in the New York Museum of Modern Art.
2
The Last Supper (Milan, Monastery of Santa Maria delle Grazie)
Although The Last Supper is not a picture, we cannot pass by this work of art. Perhaps it can not be attributed to the frescoes, since Leonardo da Vinci painted on a dry wall. This masterpiece is the most important element of the Renaissance, along with another work of the master. The painting was done at the end of the 15th century on the refectory wall of one of the monasteries in Milan. The picture shows the last meal of Jesus and his disciples before the arrest. It is believed that the image captures the moment when Jesus foretells his betrayal by one of the disciples.
The painting began to crumble after 50 years, after it was applied to the wall. The fresco was repeatedly restored, which did not produce the intended effect. During the Napoleonic Wars, French soldiers began to use the refectory as a warehouse for weapons. They showed acts of vandalism, destroying stone painting and even scratching the eyes of the apostles. In the first half of the XIX century, another attempt was made to restore the painting. Before you realize that this is not a fresco at all, the master spent a lot of time, and also pretty much damaged one of the elements of the picture. After many misfortunes, including the bombing during World War II, the painting was successfully restored. A lot of time and effort was spent on the restoration (more than 20 years), but now it pleases the eye of visitors, as it did 500 years ago.
By the way, on our site thebiggest.ru there is an interesting article about the most popular inventions of Leonardo da Vinci. We highly recommend reading.
1
Mona Lisa (Paris, Louvre Museum)
It is no exaggeration to call this picture, the most famous painting in the history of mankind. Interestingly, the full name of the masterpiece sounds like “Portrait of Madame Lisa Giocondo”. After heated debate and the promotion of various versions, art critics agreed that the portrait depicts a rich Florentine girl Lisa Gerardini. It is noteworthy that this is one of the few paintings, the creation of which Leonardo da Vinci took up with great desire. Usually he delayed the time or did not want to fulfill orders for painting, but this one took a special place in his collection. It took 3 years to write the portrait, and even after his departure to France, the great representative of the Renaissance took it with him.
Rumors were constantly swarming around the picture, starting from the portrait object and ending with the years of its writing (according to the official version it was finished in 1505, some sources claim that da Vinci did not consider the work completed). It got to the point that the theory of a self-portrait of a master who hid himself under the "Mask" of Gioconda began to advance. You can be a supporter of one of the thousands of theories of the significance of this canvas, but there is no doubt that the mysterious smile of a girl will delight millions of connoisseurs of beauty for hundreds of years.
Posted by: gunner1886