Contemporary artists of Spain. Ten most famous Spaniards
Picture - A dream caused by the flight of a bee around a pomegranate, a second before waking up.
Year of creation - 1944,
Oil on canvas 51× 40.5 cm
Thysenna-Barnemisza Museum, Madrid
If you believe Dali's stories, he was dozing at an easel, holding a key, a brush or a spoon in his hand. When an object fell out and hit a plate that had been placed on the floor in advance, the roar woke up the artist. And he immediately got to work, until the state between sleep and reality disappeared.
Dali said about the painting: “The goal was for the first time to depict the type of long, connected sleep discovered by Freud, caused by an instantaneous impact, from which awakening occurs.”
Freud described it as a dream, the plot of which is caused by some irritant from the outside: the subconscious of the sleeping person identifies this irritant and turns it into images that have a certain resemblance to the source of irritation. If the irritant poses a threat in reality, then in a dream it will take on a threatening appearance, which will provoke awakening.
At the bottom of the picture there is a sleeping naked woman, as if floating above a stone slab, which is washed by the sea. The sea in Dali's work means eternity. Freud compared the human psyche to an iceberg, nine-tenths submerged in the sea of the unconscious.
The woman in the picture is Gala, whom the artist considered his inspiration and second self. She sees the dream depicted in the picture and is on the border of two worlds - the real and the illusory, simultaneously being present in both.
A woman hears a bee buzzing over a pomegranate in her dream. The image of a pomegranate in antique and Christian symbolism means rebirth and fertility.
“All life-giving biology arises from a bursting pomegranate,” the artist himself commented on the painting.
The subconscious mind signals that the insect may be dangerous, and the brain reacts by conjuring up images of roaring tigers. One animal jumps out of the mouth of another, and then in turn emerges from the open mouth of a fish emerging from a huge pomegranate that hangs over the sleeping one. Sharp claws and teeth are a symbol of fear of the insect's sting, as is a gun with a bayonet that is about to plunge into the woman's hand.
“Bernini’s elephant in the background carries an obelisk and attributes of the pope,” the artist was hinting at a dream about the funeral of the Pope, which Freud had because of the ringing of bells and was cited by a psychiatrist as an example of a bizarre connection between the plot and an external stimulus.
The elephant from Piazza Minerva in Rome, created by the Baroque master Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini as a pedestal for an ancient Egyptian obelisk, was later depicted more than once by Dali in paintings and sculpture. Thin jointed legs are a symbol of the fragility and unreality inherent in sleep.
Pablo Picasso, Guernica
Painting - Guernica
Year of creation: 1937.
Canvas, oil. 349 x 776 cm
Reina Sofía Arts Center, Madrid
The painting was painted in May 1937 by order of the government of the Spanish Republic for the Spanish pavilion at World's Fair in Paris.
Picasso's expressive canvas became a public protest against the Nazi bombing of the Basque city of Guernica, when several thousand bombs were dropped on the city in three hours; As a result, the population of six thousand Guernica was destroyed, about two thousand inhabitants were trapped under the rubble.
Picasso's painting is full of personal feelings of suffering and violence.
On the right side of the picture, figures are running away from a burning building, from the window of which a woman falls; on the left, a sobbing mother holds her child in her arms, and a triumphant bull tramples a fallen warrior.
The broken sword, the crushed flower and dove, the skull (hidden inside the horse's body), and the crucifixion-like pose of the fallen warrior are all generalized symbols of war and death.
On the hands of the dead soldier are visible stigmata (painful bleeding wounds that open on the body of some deeply religious people - those who “suffered like Jesus.” The bull symbolizes evil and cruelty, and the horse symbolizes the suffering of the innocent.
Some Spaniards interpret the bull, a symbol of traditional Spanish bullfighting, as Spain itself, which turned its back on what was happening in Guernica (a reference to Franco allowing the bombing of his city).
Together, these frantic figures form a kind of collage, silhouetted against dark background, brightly lit by a woman with a lamp and an eye with a light bulb instead of a pupil. The monochrome painting, reminiscent of newspaper illustrations, and the sharp contrast of light and dark enhance the powerful emotional impact.
Francisco de Goya, Nude Maha
Painting - Nude Maha
Year of creation - 1795-1800.
Canvas, oil. 98x191cm
Prado Museum, Madrid
In the image of the maja - a Spanish townswoman of the 18th-19th centuries, the artist, contrary to strict academic canons, embodied the type of attractive, natural beauty. Maha is a woman whose meaning in life is love. Seductive, temperamental swings personified the Spanish understanding of attractiveness.
Goya created the image of the new Venus of his contemporary society, masterfully showing the youth, lively charm, and mysterious sensuality of the seductive model.
The young woman is depicted against a dark background, so all the viewer’s attention is drawn to the provocative nakedness of her silky skin, which becomes, in fact, the main and the only topic paintings.
By expression French writer and art historian Andre Malraux, this work “is not so much voluptuous as erotic, and therefore cannot leave any more or less sensual person indifferent.”
The painting was commissioned by Manuel Godoy, First Minister of Spain, favorite of Queen Maria Luisa, wife of Charles IV. For a long time he hid it in his office. A second painting was also painted to accompany her - the Dressed Maha, which Godoy hung on top of the Nude.
Apparently, one of the shocked guests denounced the sensualist, and in 1813 the Inquisition confiscated both paintings from Godoy, simultaneously accusing Goya of immorality and demanding that the artist immediately reveal the name of the model who posed for him. Goya, despite any threats, flatly refused to name this woman.
WITH light hand writer Lion Feuchtwanger, author of the novel “Goya, or the Hard Path of Knowledge,” a legend began to circulate around the world that the naked maja was Maria Cayetana de Silva, the 13th Duchess of Alba, with whom the artist allegedly had a love affair.
In 1945, in order to refute this version, the Alba family opened the tomb to measure the duchess's bones and prove that her proportions do not match those of Macha, but since the grave had already been opened and the duchess's body was thrown out by Napoleonic soldiers, in its current state measurements could not be taken.
Currently, most art historians are inclined to believe that the paintings depict Pepita Tudo, Godoy’s mistress.
Diego Velazquez, Meninas
Painting - Las Meninas
Year of creation: 1656.
Canvas, oil. 318 x 276 cm
Prado Museum, Madrid
Probably Las Meninas is the most famous and recognizable painting by the artist, which almost everyone knows. This large canvas is one of best works artist. The picture is impressive in its scale and versatility.
To expand the space, several workshops were used at once artistic techniques. The artist placed the characters in a spacious room, in the background of which a door is visible with a gentleman in black clothes standing on the illuminated steps. This immediately indicates the presence of another space outside the room, visually expanding its size, depriving it of two-dimensionality.
The entire image is slightly shifted to the side due to the canvas facing us with its back side. The artist stands in front of the canvas - this is Velazquez himself. He paints a picture, but not the one we see in front of us, since the main characters are facing us. These are already three different plans. But even this seemed not enough to the master and he added a mirror in which the royal couple is reflected - King Philip IV of Spain and his wife Marianne. They look with love at their only child at that time - Infanta Margarita.
Although the painting is called “Las Meninas,” that is, ladies-in-waiting at the Spanish royal court, the center of the image is the little princess, the hope of the entire family of the Spanish Habsburgs at that time. Five-year-old Margarita is calm, self-confident and even arrogant beyond her age. She looks at those around her without the slightest excitement or change in facial expression, and her tiny childish body is literally encased in the hard shell of a magnificent court dress. She is not embarrassed by the noble ladies - her meninas - who crouch before her in a deep bow according to the stern etiquette accepted at the Spanish court. She is not even interested in the palace dwarf and the jester, who put his foot on the one lying in the foreground big dog. This little girl carries herself with all possible grandeur, representing the centuries-old Spanish monarchy.
The background of the room seems to dissolve in a light grayish haze, but all the details of little Margarita’s complex outfit are drawn out in the smallest detail. The artist did not forget himself. Before us appears an imposing middle-aged man, with lush curly locks, in black silk clothes and with the cross of Sant'Iago on his chest. Because of this symbol of distinction, which could only be obtained by a purebred Spaniard without a drop of Jewish or Moorish blood, a small legend arose. Since the artist received the cross only three years after painting the canvas, it is believed that the King of Spain himself completed the painting.
El Greco, Burial of Count Orgaz
Painting - Burial of Count Orgaz
Year of creation - 1586-1588.
Canvas, oil. 480 x 360 cm.
Church of Sao Tome, Toledo
The most famous picture The great and mysterious El Greco belongs to the heyday of his work. By this time, the artist had already developed his own style of painting, which cannot be confused with the styles of other painters.
In 1586, the master began decorating the Church of San Tome in Toledo. The central plot The legend of the Toledo saint, Don Gonzalo Ruiz, also known as Count Orgaz, who lived in the 13th-14th centuries, was chosen. A pious devout Christian, he became famous charitable activities, and when he died in 1312, Saint Stephen himself and Blessed Augustine descended from heaven to give the earth a worthy deceased.
The picture is visually divided into two parts: “earthly” and “heavenly”. The strict rhythm of the lower “floor” is contrasted with the baroque “top”. And there, at different heavenly levels, the soul of the count is met by John the Baptist, the Virgin Mary, angels and cherubs. Christ sits in the center. The flying angel is highlighted in white - it is he who lifts the count’s soul to heaven.
Christ, the angel with the departed soul and the nobleman below form a vertical axis. Geometric lines in the construction of the composition were very characteristic of El Greco.
The expositional climax is shifted to the bottom of the work, to where Stefan and Augustine, bending over, lower Orgas into the ground. The saints are dressed in golden outfits, which echo the figure of the angel and the clothes of Peter in the upper zone. Thus, the artist used gold to connect the heroes of the work, who belong to the heavenly and otherworldly world.
The painting was a huge success in Spain during the artist's time. El Greco was later forgotten and rediscovered by the Impressionists. Expressive emotional work has a huge impact on the viewer. According to eyewitnesses, Salvador Dali even lost consciousness near the canvas. Perhaps this description is exhaustive.
Spain boasts brilliant artists. But if they weren’t there, no one would be surprised.
After all, this country has almost always been conservative. And where there is excessive moral inertia, and even more so the Inquisition, innovators do not survive or are simply not born.
Therefore, I was always amazed how these artists managed to present their innovations to the world!
How El Greco was 300 years ahead of his time, working in the style of expressionism. And Velazquez began to create 200 years earlier in!
I propose to take a closer look at these talented and brilliant Spaniards.
1. El Greco (1541-1614)
El Greco. Portrait of an old man (presumably a self-portrait). 1600 Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York The Greek Spaniard or Spanish Greek Dominicos Theotokopoulos almost single-handedly pulled off spanish renaissance. If the Italians had a whole galaxy of masters. Then the Spaniards can exhale: they also had a renaissance. Thanks to El Greco.
Creating mostly religious paintings, he boldly destroyed the proposed canons.
Just look at the painting “The Removal of Christ’s Clothes.”
El Greco. The Removal of Christ's Clothes (Espolio). 1579 Toledo Cathedral in Spain Instead of several figures, there is a whole crowd. Instead of perspective there is an impenetrable wall of characters.
Instead of easy readable emotions– complex feelings. Just look at the uncomprehending look of Saint Mary. She didn't seem to realize what was about to happen. Psychologists would call it defensive reaction to extreme stress.
But this is not enough for El Greco. A few years later he created an even more amazing work. Not a picture - but the universe. From the smallest embroidery stories in the attire of saints. Until there is a clear division of the world into two halves: worldly and heavenly.
I am, of course, talking about “The Burial of Count Orgaz.”
El Greco. Burial of Count Orgaz. 1588 Church of São Tomé in Toledo And we immediately notice elongated bodies. Rather, El Greco observed such a distortion of forms from the Mannerists. At least from the same Parmigianino. Perhaps the experience of creating Byzantine icons also overlapped (after all, he was originally from Greek Crete).
Over time, he further exaggerated this feature. This is clearly visible in his late work Laocoon.
El Greco. Laocoon. 1614 National Gallery Washington The artist intuitively understood that through changes in form his characters could tell us about their feelings and experiences. After all, they are devoid of movement.
We noticed that the city landscape background also very unusual? He is closer to Van Gogh and Cezanne than to the aesthetics of the Renaissance.
Nobody before El Greco's Western painting I didn’t distort the form like that. And after him, artists strived for realistic proportions. That’s why he was considered an eccentric and incompetent for 300 years.
He was forgotten and not remembered. And only at the end of the 19th century did everyone realize how ahead of his time he was. Now the newly found El Greco in the history of art forever.
2. Diego Velazquez (1599-1660)
Diego Velazquez. Meninas (fragment with a self-portrait). 1656 Velazquez's innovations are amazing to the core. Not only did he live in a very conservative society, so he was also a court artist!
This means that he had picky customers who did not care about innovation. If only it was “beautiful and similar.” In such conditions, any innovation easily languishes.
But not Velasquez. By some miracle, the customers forgave him everything, apparently intuitively understanding that thanks to this artist they would be remembered in 500 years. And they were right.
However, even Velazquez, the cruel Inquisition was not going to make concessions on everything. Painting nudes was considered a serious crime.
Yet Velazquez managed to create a masterpiece with a beautiful naked body even in such conditions.
Diego Velazquez. Venus in front of the mirror. 1647-1651 National Gallery London True, he wrote his beautiful “Venus” while in Italy. Then he secretly brought it to Spain and handed it over to an influential minister for safekeeping. And the Inquisition didn’t just break into his house looking for nudity.
Even from this “Venus” it is clear why Velazquez stood out so much. With your vitality. After all, there is no doubt that this real woman. Beautiful, but real. Her pose is so relaxed and natural.
Presumably, this is the artist’s Italian lover. He prudently protected her by turning his back to us. And he reflected his face in a cloudy mirror.
There in Italy, Velazquez painted the legendary portrait of Pope Innocent X.
Diego Velazquez. Portrait of Pope Innocent X. 1650 Gallery Doria Pamphilj, Rome Velazquez managed to very accurately convey the tough and treacherous character of the Pope.
It would seem that the 75-year-old pontiff appears to us in the most majestic form. But the prickly strong-willed gaze, compressed lips and the poisonous red color of the robe speak of true values this man.
How did Velazquez again manage to achieve vitality even in a ceremonial portrait?
The fact is that Velazquez was lucky enough to meet the Pope walking through one of the Vatican galleries. He walked alone and did not have the usual “mask” on his face. It was then that Velazquez understood his character and transferred his impression to the canvas.
Returning from Italy, Velazquez continued to perform his duties as a courtier.
But don't think that Velazquez was unhappy. He himself aspired to become the king's artist, as he was vain. Therefore, he resignedly painted countless portraits of aristocrats, and did not even disdain to take out the chamber pot for His Highness.
But among these works of the same type there are extremely unusual portrait royal family: "Las Meninas".
Diego Velazquez. Meninas. 1656 This picture contains a lot of unusual idea.
Velazquez decided to show us what his world looks like on the other side of the canvas. We see what is happening through the eyes of those who... pose for the artist.
We see the artist working on a portrait of the King and his wife. And they stand in our place (or we stand in their place) and look at the artist. And then the princess, their daughter, came into the workshop with her retinue to visit her parents.
Something like “random shots”. When an artist preferred to paint his heroes not on stage, but behind the scenes.
We notice another feature in “Las Meninas”. These are quick, vibrating strokes. At the same time, the artist does not distinguish between the background and the characters. Everything is woven as if from a single fabric. This is exactly how the impressionists will write 200 years later, the same.
Yes, skill knows no bounds... without fear of the Inquisition or stagnant morality. Imagine what Velazquez could have created if he had lived in a freer era! In, for example.
3. José de Ribera (1591-1652)
Giuseppe McPherson. Portrait of José de Ribera. 1633-1656 Royal Collection, London “The Little Spaniard” (as he was also called) Jose de Ribera moved to Italy at the age of 14. But his painting always remained Spanish, not much like Italian academicism.
Here in Italy he was amazed by painting. And, of course, I couldn’t resist working in the tenebroso technique. This is when the main character is in the dark and is only snatched out of it by a dim light.
This technique of Caravaggio was very suitable general style Ribera. He simply loved action-packed biblical and mythological stories. And it is the tenebroso that brings this action-packed plot to its climax.
His main characters are those who accept suffering for the sake of a higher goal. Like, for example, Prometheus.
Jose de Ribera. Prometheus. 1830 Private collection Ribera’s naturalism takes one’s breath away. And it’s not just a matter of very accurate representation of the real body. And also in how the wounds look and how the hero reacts emotionally to his suffering.
The fact is that Ribera visited prisons and observed with his own eyes the torture of convicts. This one is from the 17th century. Only Degas went to the theater to spy on the ballerinas. And this Spaniard went to places of detention and looked for plausibility for his martyrs.
After some time, the master begins to move away from Caravaggism. However, fighters for high ideals are still his main heroes. And one of these masterpieces is “The Martyrdom of St. Philip.”
Jose de Ribera. Martyrdom of Saint Philip. 1639 Prado Museum, Madrid We see the saint a few seconds before he is strung up on the rack. The worst thing in physical terms has not yet arrived. But there is an opportunity to empathize with the impending inevitable end and admire the humility of the saint.
Ribera enhances the drama by depicting the martyr strictly diagonally. His figure, lean and long, barely fits into the picture. It’s as if Gulliver (spiritually) was captured to be torn to pieces by small, pathetic people.
Ribera also became famous for painting people with anomalies. Lame legs, dwarfs and women with beards are also frequent heroes of his paintings.
But do not think that this was his painful desire. Such were the customs at court. The aristocracy loved to keep such people as jesters and essentially slaves. And the artists painted them, again for the amusement of the guests.
One of the most famous of these works by the master is “Magdalena with her husband and son.”
Jose de Ribera. Magdalena Ventura with her husband and son ( Bearded woman). 1631 Tabera Hospital in Toledo, Spain A 37-year-old woman experienced a hormonal imbalance and as a result she began to grow a beard. The customer demanded to draw her with a baby in her arms. Although by that time she was already over 50. Her sons had grown up long ago, and her breasts were clearly not so lush. But the baby and the breast made this mistake of nature more eloquent.
But unlike the customers, Ribera only sympathized with such people. And the eyes of the unhappy woman express the artist’s true attitude towards her.
4. Francisco Goya (1746-1828)
Vicente Lopez Portanha. Portrait of Francisco Goya. 1819 Prado Museum, Madrid. Goya’s mother told her son, “You were born not as a rose, but as an onion. You’ll die with a bow.” This is about the obstinate and pugnacious character of her son. Yes, Francisco Goya was a very temperamental person.
The stories about how he left his signature on... the dome of St. Peter's Cathedral in Rome, and also kidnapped and seduced a nun from the monastery speak volumes.
He received a superficial education and wrote with errors all his life. But this did not stop him from becoming the greatest artist. He was able to achieve the almost impossible.
He painted a naked woman, but did not fall into the clutches of the Inquisition. However, Velasquez did this trick first.
He managed to remain a court artist almost his entire life. But at the same time he actively expressed civil position in his works. And the monarchs seemed not to notice anything.
He seduced one beautiful aristocrat after another, despite poor health and deafness.
This is one of the most brave artists, whose brush is like a sword, and whose colors are bold words. However, Goya also took part in real duels and verbal skirmishes more than once.
Let's take a look at his most outstanding works.
Thinking about Goya, we, of course, immediately remember his “Nude Maja”.
Francisco Goya. Maha naked. 1795-1800 Prado Museum, Madrid. For the first time, nudity appeared not like Velasquez’s, furtively and on the sly, but in all its shameless splendor. No pretense, just sensuality and outright eroticism.
Goya worked at court for a long time, however, he did not tolerate ingratiation and lies. Just look at his canvas.
Francisco Goya. Portrait of the family of Charles IV. 1800 Prado Museum, Madrid. How much irony there is in relation to royalty! In the center, the author depicts Queen Mary, clearly hinting that she, and not Charles, rules the country.
It’s amazing how the artist was allowed to create such a contrast: between the clothes of the royal couple and their faces! The luxury and shine of gold cannot hide the mediocrity of the heroes and the outright “simpleness” of the king.
And of course, one cannot ignore his work “Execution on May 3rd”. This is a picture about the heroism of ordinary Spaniards during the occupation by Napoleonic troops.
Francisco Goya. May 3, 1808 in Madrid. 1814 Prado, Madrid In the moment before the salvo, each of the doomed rebels looks different: someone humbly waits, someone prays, someone cries.
But one Spaniard in a white shirt is ready to face death without fear. The artist brought him to his knees. And if you imagine that he gets up, he turns out to be just a giant. And the guns of the French soldiers seemed to be aimed only at him.
So Goya for the first time showed the feat and courage of a common man. Before him, it was not commoners who were portrayed as heroes. This is absolutely A New Look on historical painting.
Undoubtedly, Goya still amazes today with his courage, eccentricity and humanism. He was a master with a special attitude.
For us he is an artist of special power, like spiritual leader. Who will not flatter those in power, will not ignore the heroism of the common man, and will not turn away from beauty, even if it is considered sinful and base.
5. Pablo Picasso (1881 – 1973)
Pablo Picasso. Self-portrait. 1907 National Gallery of Prague Picasso is considered the most famous artist in the world. True, most people know him as a cubist. Although he did not work in the style of pure cubism for long. He was both an expressionist and a surrealist. He was a chameleon artist.
It doesn't really matter what style he worked in. Its main feature is numerous experiments with form. He crumpled the shape, pulled it out, squeezed it, crushed it and showed it from all sides.
He began with careful experiments, imitating El Greco. It was from him that he spied deformed forms. And just like El Greco, he stretched out his figures during his.
Pablo Picasso. Two sisters. 1902 Hermitage Cezanne looked for opportunities to express the essence of a thing in color, form and perspective. Picasso, with the help of Cubism, brought this idea to completion.
By using different angles vision and elements of the subject, he tried to trigger an associative series in the viewer: to show the essence of the thing, and not its image.
Pablo Picasso. Composition with cut pear. 1914 Hermitage In the painting “Pear” we do NOT see an image of a pear. But we see speckled pieces of canvas: we have a memory of a similar texture of pear pulp. Delicate beige and brown are also associated with pear. Not to mention the character arc.
All these fragments of the image of a pear evoke in us not only a visual memory of the pear, but also of its taste and how it feels to the touch.
It is this concept of expressing the essence, and not the image, that is leading in Picasso’s painting. Even when he moves away from the typical “cubes” and writes in a style close to surrealism.
These include portraits of Marie-Therese Walter.
Pablo Picasso. Dream. 1932 Private collection During his exhausting and crumbling marriage to Khokhlova, Picasso accidentally met the young Marie-Therese.
He always depicted it as colorful and wavy, with cubist elements. After all, her face is shown simultaneously from two points of view: both in profile and full face.
Thus, he turns all her sensuality and tenderness, extreme femininity inside out. And this despite the fact that there was something masculine in her figure. But the forms are meant to emphasize the essence, and not to depict the outer shell of the model.
Picasso is a great experimenter. His main test subject is the form. She was subject to changes in a huge number artist's works. After all, he was also one of the most prolific artists in the world. As he himself said about himself: “Give me a museum, and I will fill it with my paintings.”
Five great painters, five Spaniards are among the creators contemporary art. Despite the fact that most of them lived 200-300 years ago.
They draw inspiration from their work contemporary artists. They provide an impulse that still fuels world culture.
We can only be grateful, cherish their legacy and, of course, admire them.
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It is more than beautiful pictures, this is a reflection of reality. In the works of great artists you can see how the world and the consciousness of people changed.
Art is also an attempt to create an alternative reality where you can hide from the horrors of your time, or a desire to change the world. The art of the 20th century rightfully occupies a special place in history. The people who lived and worked in those times experienced social upheavals, wars, and unprecedented developments in science; and all this found its mark on their canvases. 20th century artists took part in creating the modern vision of the world.
Some names are still pronounced with aspiration, while others are unfairly forgotten. Someone was so contradictory creative path, that we still cannot give it an unambiguous assessment. This review is dedicated to the 20 greatest artists of the 20th century. Camille Pizarro- French painter. An outstanding representative of impressionism. The artist’s work was influenced by John Constable, Camille Corot, Jean Francois Millet.
Born July 10, 1830 in St. Thomas, died November 13, 1903 in Paris.
The Hermitage at Pontoise, 1868 
Opera passage in Paris, 1898
Sunset at Varengeville, 1899
Edgar Degas - French artist, one of the greatest impressionists. Degas' work was influenced by Japanese graphics. Born on July 19, 1834 in Paris, he died on September 27, 1917 in Paris. 
Absinthe, 1876
Star, 1877
Woman combing her hair, 1885
Paul Cezanne - French artist, one of the greatest representatives of post-impressionism. In his work he strove to reveal the harmony and balance of nature. His work had a tremendous influence on the worldview of artists of the 20th century. Born January 19, 1839 in Aix-en-Provence, France, died October 22, 1906 in Aix-en-Provence.
Gamblers, 1893
Modern Olympia, 1873
Still life with skulls, 1900
Claude Monet- an outstanding French painter. One of the founders of impressionism. In his works, Monet sought to convey the richness and richness of the surrounding world. For his late period characterized by decorativeism and The late period of Monet’s work was characterized by decorativeism, an increasing dissolution of object forms in sophisticated combinations of color spots.
Born November 14, 1840 in Paris, died December 5, 1926 in Jverny.
Welk Cliff at Pourville, 1882
After Lunch, 1873-1876
Etretat, sunset, 1883
Arkhip Kuindzhi - famous Russian artist, master landscape painting. Lost his parents early. WITH early years A love for painting began to manifest itself. The work of Arkhip Kuindzhi had a huge influence on Nicholas Roerich. Born on January 15, 1841 in Mariupol, died on July 11, 1910 in St. Petersburg.
"Volga", 1890-1895
"North", 1879
"View of the Kremlin from Zamoskvorechye", 1882
Pierre Auguste Renoir - French artist, graphic artist, sculptor, one of the outstanding representatives of impressionism. He was also known as a master of secular portraiture. Auguste Rodin was the first impressionist to become popular among wealthy Parisians. Born on February 25, 1841 in Limoges, France, died on December 2, 1919 in Paris.
Pont des Arts in Paris, 1867
Ball at the Moulin de la Galette, 1876
Jeanne Samary, 1877
Born June 7, 1848 in Paris, died May 8, 1903 on the island of Hiva Oa, French Polynesia.
Breton landscape, 1894
Breton village in the snow, 1888
Are you jealous? 1892
Saints' Day, 1894
Wassily Kandinsky - Russian and German artist, poet, art theorist. Considered one of the leaders of the avant-garde of the 1st half of the 20th century. He is one of the founders of abstract art.Born on November 22, 1866 in Moscow, died on December 13, 1944 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, France.
Couple riding on horseback, 1918
A colorful life, 1907
Moscow 1, 1916
In grey, 1919
Henri Matisse - one of the greatest French artists and sculptors. One of the founders of the Fauvist movement. In his work, he strived to convey emotions through color. In his work he was influenced by the Islamic culture of the Western Maghreb. Born on December 31, 1869 in the city of Le Cateau, he died on November 3, 1954 in the town of Cimiez.
Square in Saint-Tropez, 1904
Outline of Notre Dame at night, 1902
Woman with a Hat, 1905
Dance, 1909
Italian, 1919
Portrait of Delectorskaya, 1934
Nicholas Roerich- Russian artist, writer, scientist, mystic. During his life he painted more than 7,000 paintings. One of prominent figures culture of the 20th century, founder of the “Peace through Culture” movement. Born on October 27, 1874 in St. Petersburg, died on December 13, 1947 in the city of Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, India.
Overseas guests, 1901
The Great Spirit of the Himalayas, 1923
Message from Shambhala, 1933
Kuzma Petrov-Vodkin - Russian artist, graphic artist, theorist, writer, teacher. Was one of the ideologists of the reorganization art education in USSR. Born on November 5, 1878 in the city of Khvalynsk, Saratov province, died on February 15, 1939 in Leningrad.
“1918 in Petrograd”, 1920
"Boys at Play", 1911
Bathing the Red Horse, 1912
Portrait of Anna Akhmatova
Kazimir Malevich- Russian artist, founder of Suprematism - trends in abstract art, educator, art theorist and philosopher Born on February 23, 1879 in Kyiv, died on May 15, 1935 in Moscow.
Rest (Society in Top Hat), 1908
"Peasant women with buckets", 1912-1913
Black Suprematist Square, 1915
Suprematist painting, 1916
On the boulevard, 1903
Pablo Picasso- Spanish artist, sculptor, sculptor, ceramic designer. One of the founders of Cubism. The work of Pablo Picasso had a significant influence on the development of painting in the 20th century. According to a survey of Time magazine readers Born October 25, 1881 in Malaga, Spain, died April 8, 1973 in Mougins, France.
Girl on a ball, 1905
Portrait of Ambroise Vallors, 1910
Three Graces
Portrait of Olga
Dance, 1919
Woman with a flower, 1930
Amadeo Modigliani - Italian artist, sculptor. One of the brightest representatives of expressionism. During his lifetime he had only one exhibition in December 1917 in Paris. Born July 12, 1884 in Livorno, Italy, died January 24, 1920 from tuberculosis. World recognition received posthumously; received worldwide recognition posthumously. 
Cellist, 1909
The couple, 1917
Joan Hebuterne, 1918
Mediterranean landscape, 1918
Diego Rivera- Mexican painter, muralist, politician. He was the husband of Frida Kahlo. I found shelter in their house a short time Leon Trotsky. Born December 8, 1886 in Guanajuato, died December 21, 1957 in Mexico City.
Notre Dame de Paris in the rain, 1909
Woman at the Well, 1913
Union of Peasants and Workers, 1924
Detroit Industry, 1932
Marc Chagall- Russian and French painter, graphic artist, illustrator, theater artist. One of the greatest representatives of the avant-garde. Born on June 24, 1887 in the city of Liozno, Mogilev province, died on March 28, 1985 in Saint-Paul-de-Provence.
Anyuta (Portrait of a Sister), 1910
Bride with a Fan, 1911
Me and the Village, 1911
Adam and Eve, 1912
Mark Rothko(present Mark Rotkovich) - American artist, one of the founders of abstract expressionism and the founder of color field painting. The artist's first works were created in a realistic spirit, however, then by the mid-40s, Mark Rothko turned to surrealism. By 1947, a major turning point occurred in the work of Mark Rothko, he created own style- abstract expressionism, which moves away from objective elements.
Born on September 25, 1903 in the city of Dvinsk (now Daugavpils), died on February 25, 1970 in New York.
Untitled
Number 7 or 11
Orange and yellow
Salvador Dali- painter, graphic artist, sculptor, writer, designer, director. Perhaps the most famous representative surrealism and one of greatest artists XX century. Designed by Chupa Chups.
Born May 11, 1904 in Figueres, Spain, died January 23, 1989 in Spain.
Temptation of Saint Anthony, 1946
last supper, 1955
Woman with a Head of Roses, 1935
My wife Gala, naked, looking at her body, 1945
Frida Kahlo - Mexican artist and graphic artist, one of the brightest representatives of surrealism. Frida Kahlo began painting after a car accident, which left her bedridden for a year.
She was married to the famous Mexican communist artist Diego Rivera. Leon Trotsky found refuge in their house for a short time.
Born July 6, 1907 in Coyoacan, Mexico, died July 13, 1954 in Coyoacan.
Embrace of Universal Love, Earth, Me, Diego and Coatl, 1949
Moses (Core of Creation), 1945
Two Fridas, 1939
Andy Warhole(present Andrei Varhola) - American artist, designer, director, producer, publisher, writer, collector. The founder of pop art, is one of the most controversial personalities in the history of culture. Several films have been made based on the artist’s life. Born on August 6, 1928 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, died in 1963 in New York.
Great Spanish artists in their works touched on topics that concern every person, so their names have remained for centuries. Starting with El Greco, we can distinguish nine such masters who lived from the 16th to the 20th centuries. The highest flowering is the 17th century. Otherwise it is also called Golden. This is the Baroque period.
Sixteenth century
The first to glorify the Spanish school was the Greek Domenico Theotokopoulos (1541-1614), who was nicknamed El Greco in Spain. In those days, fires often burned over heretics. Therefore, secular topics were practically not touched upon. Easel and fresco painting- these are types of illustrations to the Holy Scriptures. But even here great caution had to be exercised. Traditional interpretations were required.
El Greco combines religious themes with amazing beauty and splendor color scheme, which precedes the emergence of the Baroque. One of his masterpieces, “Apostles Peter and Paul” (1582-592), is kept in Russia. It depicts a simple illiterate fisherman Peter and the creator of all Christian doctrine, the highly educated Paul, naturally, with the Bible. Christianity in the first centuries won all hearts with its love for people, mercy and simplicity - it was enough just to believe, and any person, educated or not, poor or rich, became a Christian. Spanish artists We learned a lot from the painter, who had a unique style associated with eye disease. However, for a long period his painting was forgotten and rediscovered three centuries later.
Baroque - Golden Age
As nowhere else, Catholicism is still strong, moreover, it represents a powerful and formidable force that requires a person to mortify carnal desires and joys and total immersion into religious rituals. Spanish artists such as José Ribera (1591-1652), (1598-1664), Diego Velázquez (1599-1660) and Bartolomeo Murillo (1617-1682) are the brightest representatives this period. They are familiar with the works of Caravaggio, who influences them big influence, not with his still lifes, but with his understanding of what death is and how closely it comes into contact with life.
Spanish artists Ribera and Zurbaran
This association is somewhat arbitrary. The paintings of José Ribera (1591-1652) are distinguished by themes associated with martyrdom and naturalism in depicting the suffering of saints and heroes from mythology, as well as sharp contrasts of light and shadow. Francisco Zurbaran (1598-1664) his best paintings, colored with lyricism, creates in the 30s of the 16th century. In 1662, he wrote with emotion “Madonna and Child and John the Baptist.”
The bright image of the baby, located in the center of a simple and natural composition, immediately attracts attention, as does the gentle face of the Madonna, and the golden clothes of the kneeling John, at whose feet is a symbolic white sheep. The grown Christ will be the shepherd of a huge flock of those who believe in him. Zurbaran paints only from life - this is his principle, using the contrast of deep shadows and strong light. Zurbaran was friendly with a brilliant artist Diego Velazquez, who helped him with orders. Spanish artists sought to support each other.
Velazquez (1599-1660)
Initially, the Spanish artist Diego Velazquez, living in Seville, worked a lot on genre scenes, as well as on allegorical paintings. But getting to know Italian painting from the royal collection changed him a lot aesthetic views. It changes the color to soft silver and moves to transparent tones. With great difficulty he manages to get a position as a court painter. But King Philip IV immediately appreciated the gift young artist, and he subsequently created portraits of members of the royal family. The pinnacle of his work were two paintings that are still unsolved, so much meaning did the artist put into them. These are “Las Meninas” (1656), that is, the retinue of courtiers for the heirs to the royal throne, and “Spinners” (1658).
At first glance, everything in “Las Meninas” seems simple. In the large room there is a young infanta, surrounded by ladies-in-waiting, a bodyguard, two dwarfs, a dog and an artist. But behind the painter’s back there is a mirror hanging on the wall, in which the king and queen are reflected. Whether the royal couple is in the room or not is one of the mysteries. There are many more of them, enough for a huge article. And not a single riddle has a clear answer.
From Francisco Goya to Salvador Dali
Born in Zaragoza, Goya (1746-1828) became the official court artist, but then lost this position and received the post of vice-director of the Academy of Arts. In any capacity, Goya works hard and quickly, creating cardboards for tapestries, portraits, painting churches, and paintings for the Cathedral in Valencia. He works hard and hard all his life, changing as a master, moving from light festive compositions with rich colors to fast and sharp graphics, and if this is painting, then dark and gloomy.
The drawing school in Spain is not dying, but next artist Spanish painting, a great master, appears in 1881. This is Picasso. His work is notable for everything. These are the “blue” and “pink” periods, and cubism, and surrealism, and pacifism. Behind all his works there is a subtle irony and a desire to sell. And he knew how to draw. Having created portraits of his beloved during the Cubist period, which sold like hot cakes, for himself he painted her in the style of realism. And only after becoming a wealthy man, he began to allow himself to paint as he wanted.
His work “Don Quixote” (1955) is laconic. The knight himself, his squire, a horse, a donkey and several are depicted. Don Quixote is light and weightless, and Rocinante is almost a bag of bones. In contrast, Sancho on the left is a black, heavy mass. And although both figures stand still, the drawing is full of movement. The lines are energetic, catchy, and full of humor.
The famous Spanish artist Salvador Dali is eccentric. This man had everything for sale. And paintings, and diaries, and books. He made a fortune for himself thanks to the energetic help of his wife, better known as Gala. She was both his muse and manager. Their union was very successful commercially.
Concluding this article on the topic of famous Spanish artists, it must be said that they all had an individuality as bright as the sun of Spain.
