Tuesday
(0)Very nice writeup here of a vast retrospective of the paintings of the Frenchman Ingres, who worked around the time of Napoleon Bonaparte. Even as I put aside my distaste for Bonaparte, I cannot but admire the man who painted so much of life in Napoleon's era so cleverly. A good excuse to take that long weekend to Paris and check out some art (not that I usually need many excuses). And meanwhile it is the 400th anniversary of the birth of Rembrandt. A nice appreciation here by Robert Hughes.
Oh, and I can seriously recommend this to China art fans.
The 1999 Ingres exhibition at the National Gallery in London should have nailed into British skulls that he was, beyond question, one of the finest portrait painters to have lived.
His technical skill, alone, was quite breathtaking. Even in a century which produced some astonishingly gifted painters, Ingres had few, if any, equals in his chosen field.
Posted by GCooper at February 28, 2006 10:19 PM
GCooper, absolutely. I went to the exhibition you mention and it was superb. There are quite a few v. good ones coming up in London over the next few months.
Posted by Johnathan Pearce at February 28, 2006 10:24 PM
