Fascinating Facts about few of the World’s most Famous Paintings
For laymen, good paintings are works of art that are pleasing to the eyes with a mix of colours placed artistically on a canvas. For connoisseurs and true patrons of art, it is much more than that. It is a seamless blend of an artist’s thought, emotions, feelings and ideas put together by shapes, lines, colours, tones and textures to create masterpieces that never cease to dazzle people with their sheer brilliance and aesthetical nuances.
The Renaissance period had painters whose works of art were superb and remarkable — eternal and timeless in their beauty and in their ability to cast a lasting impression. However, there were few things that were not revealed at the time and some gave rise to certain controversies and debates that refuse to die to this date. Here we present a few world famous paintings of all time and some little-known facts about them.
Mona Lisa — Leonardo Da Vinci
It is rare to find someone who may not have heard about Mona Lisa. People often refer to her smile as “the perfect smile” or “Mona Lisa smile”, — a nonpareil smile that a genius like Vinci could only capture. However, for centuries people have been curious about the painting asking questions like: Why is it that she has no eyebrows? How was she related to Da Vinci? According to some, she is the female version of Da Vinci and others claim her to be Lisa Gherardini.
Research has revealed that Mona Lisa was indeed Lisa Gherardini, a doting mother of two sons and wife of a wealthy silk merchant living in Florence. And as for the eyebrows, Da Vinci was a perfectionist who was unable to finish the portrait.
Starry Night — Vincent Van Gogh
The famous painting was completed in 1889 with oil paint on a canvas. The legendary Dutch artist known for his legendary work as well as his eccentricities painted this while he was admitted for mental illness at Saint Remy de Provence. The painting depicted the night view of the sky as seen from his hospital bed, but interestingly he painted it during day time.
The Scream — Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch’s most famous work, The Scream has technically five versions painted through the years. The first two were created in 1893, the third and the fourth in 1895, and the final one in 1910. The painting was stolen in 2004 and made all the kind of wrong headings. Fortunately it was found in 2006.
The Girl with the Pearl Earring — Johannes Vermeer
One of Vermeer’s most remarkable work of art, this painting is also known as the “Dutch Mona Lisa” or “Mona Lisa of the North”. Initially it was called “The Girl with a Turban” and in the second half of the 20th century, the name was changed to “The Girl with the Pearl Earrings”. It is believed the girl in the portrait is Maria, Vermeer’s eldest daughter who was about twelve or thirteen years old at the time of the painting.
Conclusion
Despite the enigma, mystery or the controversies surrounding these paintings, there is not even an iota of doubt that these are priceless treasures inspiring generations of artists and enthralling millions of people with their beauty and grace. These paintings have been the inspiration to modern art and have served as motivation for artists everywhere ever since they came into existence.
Author’s Bio
Angela Gulbenkian is one of the most well-known art collectors and entrepreneurs who dissects high-end paintings and sculptures with an entrepreneurial eye. Active in the arts and cultural space for the past 20 years.
Passionate and committed to maintaining the integrity and trust of the experience of buying art, Angela has built an impeccable reputation of facilitating thousands of shipments for the art and luxury world in a transparent, ethical and efficient manner. Her experience and expertise in oil paintings and sculpture have won her a trusted network of buyers who fully trust her authentication, inspection, condition assessment and market trends analyses when it comes to the sale and purchase of fine art.
