When you first learn how to read and write music, you are introduced to the “Classical Greats” like Beethoven, Bach, Chopin, Mozart, Schubert, Tchaikovsky and Brahms. Their scales and trills, harmonies and chords are the basis of many musical journeys. Below we illustrate a famous portrait of Mozart in Vienna, the music score of the…
Stained Glass as Sacred Art Form
Stained glass as sacred art form… From the 10th or 11th century, stained glass flourished as an art form used primarily in the decoration of churches and cathedrals. Stained glass windows enriched the spiritual quality of the otherwise dark church interiors and “let the light of God” shine in the sacred space. Today, stained glass…
Museum Jewelry | Ancestral Heirlooms
The history of jewelry making dates back thousands of years. Through the craftsmanship of previous artisans preserved in museums, we have the remnants from earlier cultures of things they considered valuable and beautiful. Whether ancient Egyptian earrings, Greek bracelets, or Ancient Goddess necklaces, they are heirlooms of an earlier age and tokens of appreciation. Another…
Medieval Tapestry – Bayeux, Lady Unicorn
Wall tapestries have been a functional art form since the middle ages. Artisans first stitched and wove on looms decorative scenes of nature, leadership, and religion. They are an extension of ancient wall frescoes interpreted in woven thread. Usually completed on a large scale for royalty within a workshop, they were hung on castle walls…
Pre-Greek | Cycladic Minoan Mycenaean
In Art History, three Greek Bronze Age cultures — Cycladic, Minoan, and Mycenaean — offer us insight into early Greek life. The region of the Greek Islands was a sea-faring, culture sharing community both trading and warring through their proximity. Unified by the sea, cultures that took advantage of trade built large palaces rich with artwork and…
Art Nouveau Ushering in Modernity
Art Nouveau is French for “New Art”. It was a multinational art movement in the period of 1880 to 1915 that reflected the need to transition from the traditional art into the modern industrial age. The spirit of the movement was to enhance the life of the people by incorporating artistic expressions into the daily objects….
Mesopotamian Art of Fertile Crescent
The lands of ancient Mesopotamia have a fascinating history as the seeds of early human cultural development. The lands between the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in modern Iraq, Syria and Kuwait, provided a lifeline of fertile lands to the ancient civilizations including Sumer, Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian. We celebrate Mesopotamian art for its evidence of…
Asian Oriental Art – Diversity & Spirituality
The classification “Asian art” includes a diverse variety of countries and cultural identities from the Pacific Asian Rim including: China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, North Korea, Philippines, Russia, Singapore, South Korea, Taiwan, and Vietnam.. We celebrate the richness of Asian culture through our broad selection of cultural motifs from Chinese Art, Buddhism Religion, Buddha and Kuan…
Bernini | Baroque Verve & Sprit
Gianlorenzo Bernini (1598 – 1680) was one of the most prolific and enduring artists of the Baroque era. His works capture the transience of the moment through an energetic portrayal of the characters as they twist and writhe in their narratives. He received commissions from popes and monarchs alike creating innovative sculptures, paintings, and architecture…
Impressionism | Study of Light
In the mid-1800’s, a group of French painters worked in nearby areas of Paris celebrating light in their paintings and capturing impressions of every day French life. The group of artists organized themselves and showed their paintings at six major avant-garde art shows. In their day, their art was unlike typical salon art because it…