The man was perplexed. Salomé seemed disappointed when given the head of John the Baptiste. But he never tried to second-guess her, and he would never, ever question her, not with this sort of thing at any rate. . .
Salomé and the Head of John the Baptiste, 1610-1615, by Artemsia Gentileschi.
I'm thinking that Louise Pomeroy (Mrs. Charles E. Inches) is looking a bit wistful this morning. Or is it something else entirely?
1887 by John Singer Sargent (1856-1925).
Is she thinking about the milk, the bread or how her feet don't get so dirty staying indoors? Whatever thoughts were crossing her mind, there's no denying this man could paint LIFE.
The Milkmaid, c. 1660, by Jan Vermeer (1632-1675).
She loved walking barefoot but good lord her feet got so dirty!
The Milkmaid, c. 1890, by Joaquin Sorolla (1863-1923).
Years later, when she thought back on those times of being alone, locked in and locked down she felt that same bleakness come over her own sense of time and place.
Aunt Balda's Pastime by Elin Danielson-Gambogi
Madame de Loynes looked right through me and said: "Remember, there is no present or future just the past repeating itself over and over." How does she know that, I wondered? 1862 by Amaury-Duval.
Hilma Westerholm leaned forward and wondered: "What does you want? Not my last piece of fruit, I hope." 1888 by Elin Danielson-Gambogi.
Sitting outside with plenty of empty space surrounding her as she had lunch, she first wondered at what was that man looking? And then, for no particular reason, she asked herself if she was destined to be alone just today or for the rest of her life? Plein air by Ramon Casas
Yesterday, today and for some tomorrows to come, my mind drifts along with that wonderfully alive spirit known to some as the Lady of Shallot. For those of you who have lost someone during this past terrible year of isolation, distance, and turmoil: adieu, adieu!! 1888 by John William Waterhouse.
An old friend who still haunts the wilds of Rhode Island told me about a wonderful contemporary Danish artist Louise Camille Fenne. Louise presents her portraits with a fascinating juxtaposition of bird and woman. This one happens to be called Unraveller. I think you can see why.
Frankly, she thought to herself, this social distancing thing isn't half bad.
A Moment by Jean Béraud
I enjoyed this so much I decided to repost my notes from this 2013 exhibition. |
| "Paris Street: Rainy Day" (1877) by Gustave Caillebotte, The Art Institute of Chicago |
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| "In the Conservatory" (1881) by Albert Bartholome, Musée d'Orsay (model Bartholome's wife) |
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| "Le Repos" (1871) by Edouard Manet, Museum of Art, Rhode Island School of Design (model: Berthe Morisot) |
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| "Women in the Garden" (1866) by Claude Monet, Musée d'Orsay |
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| "Young Lady in 1866" (1866) by Edouard Manet, The Metropolitan Museum of Art (model: Victorine Meurent) |
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| "Luncheon on the Grass" central panel (1865-66) by Claude Monet, Musée d'Orsay |
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| "Camille" (1866) by Claude Monet, Kunsthalle Bremen (model: Camille Monet) |
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| "The Swing" (1876) by Auguste Renoir, Musée d'Orsay |
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| "The Loge" 1874) by Auguste Renoir, The Courtauld Gallery, London |
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| "July" Specimen of a Portrait" (1878) by James Tissot, The Cleveland Museum of Art |
She looked up at me as if to ask: "Things are never what they appear to be, are they?" I wasn't quite sure what she meant, but then I paid a little more attention to her left eye. . . In the Garden by Vittorio Matteo Corcos.
Stella looked up from her work and thought that women always have to do the work. Not that she minded so much but she just for once wanted to be a little less serious and a bit more frivolous, you know, like Pietro. . . 1889 by Vittorio Matteo Corcos.
Was this the magic flower her grandmother used to talk about at bedtimes? Would it make her not be sick anymore? If only her grandmother hadn't gone to heaven. . . The Convalescent, 1888, by Helene Schjerfbeck.
Cornelia Vetterlein (1812-1862) always wondered if she was going to be beautiful for the rest of her life. But right now she wanted to know what the flower was for? 1828 by Joseph Stieler.
She was so very tired, bone-tired, that she just sort of drifted off by the warmth of the fire, thinking of her man alone out at sea. And so we never got to hear the end of her tale of what might have been. Lhomme est en mer by Virginie Demont-Breton.
Emilie looked over at me and said: "I think this color is quite flattering on me, don't you agree?" Hmmm, I thought for a moment. A declarative followed by an interrogative. Tricky. What was I supposed to say? That it made her look thin as a rail? That she blended in nicely with the background of the room?
Portrait of Emilie Floege by Gustave Klimt.
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| Undertow 1886 by Winslow Homer |
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| child with bird (Mademoiselle Fleury in Algerian costume) 1882 by Renoir |
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| Venice, the Doge's Palace 1881 by Renoir |
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| Portrait of a young woman 1874 by Renoir |
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| Woman crocheting 1875 by Renoir |
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| a box at the theatre (concert) 1880 by Renoir |
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| Marie Therese Durand-Ruel sewing 1882 by Renoir |
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| the bath 1885-86 by Berthe Morisot |
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| the cliffs of Etretat 1885 by Claude Monet |
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| Comte Henri Amedee Mercure Turenne d'Aynac 1816 by Jacques Louis David |
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| Trumpeter of the Hussars 1815-20 by Théodore Géricault |
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| featured exhibition: Magna Carta |
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| Dance of the masked dancers 1879 by Degas |
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| Mery Laurent wearing a small toque 1882 by Edouard Manet |
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| Jane Avril 1891-92 by Henri Toulouse-Lautrec |
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| dancers in the classroom c. 1880 by Degas |
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| the dancer by Degas |
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| young woman crocheting 1875 by Giovanni Boldini |
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| young woman reading 1875 by Lucio Rossi |
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| the back side of the cafe |
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| turkey wrap |
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| flatbread with roast beef |
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| looking out toward the reflecting pool |
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| the reflecting pool |
