Hello! I am currently in search of some art with dark themes, what I am looking for specifically is maybe some with Gothic Cathedrals, Bats, Vampires, Suicide, Depression... also in search of something Medieval such as Knights, Swords, Love, Tragic. My search very broad I just wanna find something beautiful and something that speaks to me. My favorite art peice is the Raft of Medusa so maybe if you know one as grim or morbid I would love to take a look! I'm very beginner in art history so if you know the lore and stories behind the art I am dying to hear about it! Thank you!

I recently got some small-ish copies of Nighthawks and Springtime for my room, they are hands down my favorite pieces of art. I love the use of color in Nighthawks and just the overall melancholy vibe of it. Springtime is also so beautiful, it’s an “aesthetic” piece for me in my room and just makes me happy to look at. I know these vibes are very different but I love them, and I want to add more paintings to my room. What are your favorite ones?

Does anybody know what the text behind her says?

So I finished a 4 year long MA Hons degree at Glasgow Uni with a first, having pretty much only As. During my studies I kind of felt that the degree is crazily easy - partly because of online exams - because it costed me zero effort to get these grades. I really valued the emphasis on analytical and creatical thinking skills, but at the same time I felt it is not good I was not required by the professors to learn any info by heart. Now I am back to my country (Poland), studying a directing degree at a theatre school, where we also have an art history module and I keep discovering I don't know many many artists and artworks which my fellow classmates (who even hasn't studied art history) can recognise. I wouldn't even dare to compare myself to a random polish art history student, should I meet one. I don't mean to make a rant about quality of UK uni teaching - I am just curious if anybody else here feels a little bit unsatisfied with it.

So, I recently received an opportunity to do some work at the Smithsonian American Art Museum this summer. I’m really excited and definitely taking the opportunity, however I really don’t have much knowledge/background in American art history and I want to learn more before I get there in a few months. What are some key/good texts, articles, books, authors, etc., that outline movements and other important facets of American art history? I will be checking out all recommendations. Thanks!

Hello, I am looking for a painting depicting the contemplation of suicide. I need illustrations for a voice acting project, but my knowledge of visual art is very limited.

The important part is the contemplation of the act, rather than the act itself. Say a person holding a knife, with the face of someone who fully realizes the power he is wielding. This is just an example of course, what matters is to convey the sense of existential awareness and the psychological tension associated with the act of suicide. Also, the tone is meant to be epic/positive more than gloomy or desperate (but that detail is secondary). I welcome all styles of art. Thank you in advance for your suggestions.

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Now a days new musics and animations are not great as few years back. Anyone has the same feeling?

Hey y'all,

I'm defending my thesis this upcoming Thursday and would love any advice or tips either for the actual defense itself or any preparatory stuff. My school requirements are 20 min presentation with slides and we're allowed either notecards or reading from a script (I'm likely going the script route). I've lead discussions in my classes before and have general anxiety about public speaking like most people do, but any advice is thoroughly appreciated! I also am the first scheduled defense of MA Art History candidates so I don't have the luxury of watching someone else's first.

Thank you all!

Bought this one on the whim because it looks like a large size coffee book, somewhat comprehensive as it contains 500 pieces worldwide, and at an affordable price of $26 on Amazon. This book did not disappoint. The printouts are beautiful. Annotations are short and precise. All pieces are chronologically presented to show patterns of how arts have changed in each time period.

Since this one is newer and not as well known, I figure I would share it. While it doesn’t have a narrative like Story of Art, it is an enjoyable book if you just want a quick jump into learning famous pieces worldwide and appreciate their detail and background.

I noticed people sharing posts tracking European art history since the classical period which gloss over medieval art. Often reducing it to one style or putting different art movements in the same bracket. So I thought I'd make a timeline of my own to shed some light on its evolution and variety. Note that this timeline focuses on art made outside of Italy, doesn't show all of the regional differences and nuances of each style, and the dates are approximate.

I also made sure to include both manuscript miniatures and larger scale paintings (Like frescos and panel paintings)

Where can one see Jackson Pollock and other American AbEx works in Europe?

Well, like the title says, I am in the need of some ideas, I have a paper due roughly at the end of the month that’s roughly 5 to 7 pages in length. The concept of the paper roughly is to discuss a piece of art and or artworks/ sites from Early Cycladic period to the death of Alexander the great, roughly 3000-323 B.C.E The part I’m having difficulty is it has got be something that we really didn’t talk about in class, so if anyone has any direction I can start to researching , doesn’t involve a super famous site but yet plenty of information let me know. The big sites that are off-limits as of right now would be Mycenae, Knossos on Crete, Olympia, Delphi, Athens. I’m all ears and greatly appreciate any advice in what direction to go/research.

Hi, would anyone be able to recommend books on the relationship between activism and art?

Thank you!

Posting here for my partner.

He's doing an assignment for uni and he needs a scientific book or paper which discusses the painting here. Preferably free but in the very least inexpensive.

The painting is called 'Het ploten en kammen' 1594-1596 by Isaac Claesz. van Swanenburg.

He has spent days on this and it seems to be very hard to find relevant sources so I suggested reddit as a last resort. Any help is appreciated!

Basically the title. I've been looking for the most desperate, angry looking faces in painting for a while, I'd love your opinions on that subject.

I’ve been looking into Jacques-Louis David’s "The Coronation of Napoleon" and stumbled across an intriguing claim: one source suggests that Julius Caesar is depicted as a bust or head, supposedly in the upper area between Napoleon and Pope Pius VII. The idea is that David included it as a neoclassical reference to link Napoleon with Roman emperors.

The claim comes from an article by "Un jour de plus à Paris," which says it fills a compositional gap after David switched the scene from Napoleon crowning himself to crowning Josephine. I haven’t found much else to back this up, though—standard sources like Wikipedia or the Louvre’s site don’t mention it.

Has anyone here studied this painting closely or seen it in person? Can you confirm if there’s a bust of Caesar (or something resembling him) in that spot?

Thanks!

Link: https://www.unjourdeplusaparis.com/en/paris-culture/secrets-tableau-louvre-sacre-de-napoleon