Favorite Painting
 

There wasn't a thread for favorite paintings and since I have a new one, I thought I'd make a make a thread.


The Abbey in the Oakwood by Caspar David Friedrich-1810

I have too many. Definately not just one. :(

Burnt Out Europe, Manuel Ocampo

HM, because I am obsessed with this story

John Quidor, The Headless Horseman Pursuing Ichabod Crane, 1858

I can have a single favorite painting because I'm more of a sculpture person. I doubt I could make of a short list of less than a dozen each marble and bronze.

See, I didn't get sculpture until I was in Rome last year, and then suddenly it hit me. I think Britain is very bad for sculpture, if I've seen it the setting has been awful. I mean, I was reduced to tears by Michaelangelo's Pieta in the Vatican, just unbelievable. But 'classical' sculpture seems to be featured very begrudgingly in Britain, while someone like Rachel Whiteread gets a brilliant treatment. This is either an odd thing or I am wrong, which given my general rubbishness with art, the latter is more likely.

Painting-wise, I can't think of one painting that jumps out as my favourite. I see galleries more as part of an experience than I look for something to call my favourite.

God... I'd have to narrow down a list of at least 20 painters and many more paintings to one work... impossible, no?

I was mildly interested until I spent 2 days in Florence. The bronzes in one of the main plazas (Veccihio? not sure) and the David changed it all. I spent literally 30 minutes walking in circles around the David, completely absorbed in it.

So, to summarise: Italians are easily swayed by iffy politics, but they do sculptures better than other people. I will one day visit Greece and have some kind of comparison between the two. Internet-wise, we could just have Marras and Nefeli argue. Awesomest.

American Gothic

a lot of mondrians early works;


gustave courbets desperate man;


lucian freud's nudes with drapery;



can I just keep posting paintings/series I like?

I think whether you allow yourself to enjoy contemporary scultpure more than classical or not, has not much to do with which is 'better?"

what is wrong with whitereads work? I don't personally enjoy her more recent ones, but the internal space sculptures are quite wondreful to experience..

Post away. I'll probably digress into posting sculpture before much longer.

I can't rep you for the desperate man. :( that's amazing looking.

I was originally intending to allow the painting speak for itself, but I think I'd enjoy writing a paragraph or two, explaining everything that I adore about this particular work of art.

First of all, it is simply a classic. A painting that has over-time nearly transformed itself into pop art in the same sense as the Mona Lisa, or Munch's The Scream. I strongly enjoy the distinct familiarity I feel with this image.

With that being said, this painting not only depicts the grass-roots of American culture, but the bare foundation of human existance. The farmer and his wife's faces are incredibly stale and disinterested. Perhaps, even bored and weathered.

The standard framing of the married couple resembles a modern day photograph taken on someone's front lawn during an important event (think prom pictures). But this is not a special day of any sort, and these faces are not cheerful, nor full of optimism. Instead we have life caught off-guard by the artist's brush; and are staring it's dullness, and hardships right in the eye.

This painting, to me, fully represents the cold truth of our existences.

(Edited because I jumped to a point without researching it thoroughly.)

It could be his wife or daughter, Wood never said.

I couldn't write more before because I needed to get in a taxi, but just on the british/italian sculpture comments..

Italian renaissance sculpture is what it is, because of the materials and money available to artists at the time in the area. Yes there are wonderful timeless peices, in the sense they are eternally aesthetically pleaseing ( what man could ever say an image of himself isnt... beautiful.. it is human nature, no? ) but they exist all the more magestically due to the context of their creation. I am assuming you have some knowledge of art history here, if you don't then please read up, because time is very relevant to a piece's impact on the art world around it. The same pieces created now would not have the same impact on the art world.

Also, I'm not sure why contemporary Britain would ever champion the work of old italian sculptures over those currently working from its own country. Art is big bizness now.. in a very different way to back then.

I find american gothic to be incredibly vulgar, personally.

Please do explain further.

For someone who studied in europe, it's a fairly bland painting. I guess it embodies everything I find constrictive about american culture at the time in its subject matter? To me it isnt even interesting in a satirical way.. which the artist has denied in any case. It's become quite popular for clearly being a crappy work of art(yes, in my opinion), that happens to connect/did connect with a lot of people who were surrounded by conservative views and roots. It's popular because some people thought it was a funny depiction of how dull simple life is.

but again.. only my opinion. :)