Italian 1267-1337 Giotto Galleries Giotto di Bondone (c. 1267 ?C January 8, 1337), better known simply as Giotto, was an Italian painter and architect from Florence. He is generally considered the first in a line of great artists who contributed to the Italian Renaissance. Giotto's contemporary Giovanni Villani wrote that Giotto was "the most sovereign master of painting in his time, who drew all his figures and their postures according to nature. And he was given a salary by the commune [of Florence] in virtue of his talent and excellence." The later 16th century biographer Giorgio Vasari says of him "...He made a decisive break with the ...Byzantine style, and brought to life the great art of painting as we know it today, introducing the technique of drawing accurately from life, which had been neglected for more than two hundred years." Giotto's masterwork is the decoration of the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, commonly called the Arena Chapel, completed around 1305. This fresco cycle depicts the life of the Virgin and the life of Christ. It is regarded as one of the supreme masterpieces of the Early Renaissance. That Giotto painted the Arena Chapel and that he was chosen by the commune of Florence in 1334 to design the new campanile (bell tower) of the Florence Cathedral are among the few certainties of his biography. Almost every other aspect of it is subject to controversy: his birthdate, his birthplace, his appearance, his apprenticeship, the order in which he created his works, whether or not he painted the famous frescoes at Assisi, and where he was eventually buried after his death.  Related Paintings of Giotto :. | The Death of the Boy in Sessa | Birth and Naming of the Baptist | Presentation of Christ at the Temple | Ecstasy of St Francis | Detail of Birth of Christ |
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Theodore Robinson
1852-1896 Theodore Robinson (July 3, 1852 ?C April 2, 1896) was an American painter best known for his impressionist landscapes. He was one of the first American artists to take up impressionism in the late 1880s, visiting Giverny and developing a close friendship with Claude Monet. Several of his works are considered masterpieces of American Impressionism. In 1884 Robinson returned to France where he would live for the next eight years, visiting America only occasionally. Robinson gravitated to Giverny, which had become a center of French impressionist art under the influence of Claude Monet. La Debacle, 1892, collection: Scripps College, Claremont, CaliforniaHistorians are unclear when Robinson met Monet, but by 1888 their friendship was enough for Robinson to move in next door to the famous impressionist. Robinson's art shifted to a more traditional impressionistic manner during this time, likely due to Monet's influence. While a number of American artists had gathered at Giverny, none were as close to Monet as Robinson. Monet offered advice to Robinson, and he likewise solicited Robinson for opinions on Monet's own works in progress. At Giverny, Robinson painted what art historians regard as some of his finest works. These depicted the surrounding countryside in different weather, in the plein air tradition, sometimes with women shown in leisurely poses. An example of his mature work during this period is La Debacle (1892) in the collection of Scripps College, Claremont California.
Jean Beraud
1848-1935 French Jean Beraud Galleries Berauds father (also called Jean) was a sculptor and was likely working on the site of St. Isaacs Cathedral at the time of his sons birth. Berauds mother was one Genevieve Eugenie Jacquin; following the death of Beraudes father the family moved to Paris. B??raud was in the process of being educated as a lawyer until the occupation of Paris during the Franco-Prussian war in 1870. Beraud became a student of Leon Bonnat, and exhibited his paintings at the Salon for the first time in 1872, however he only gained recognition in 1876, with his On the Way Back from the Funeral. He exhibited with the Society of French Watercolorists at the 1889 Worldes Fair in Paris. He painted many scenes of Parisian daily life during the Belle epoque, in a style that stands somewhere between the academic art of the Salon and that of the Impressionists. He received the Legion d honneur in 1894. Berauds paintings often included truth based humour and mockery of late 19th century Parisian life. Along with frequent appearances of biblical characters in then contemporary situations. Paintings such as Mary Magdalene in the House of the Pharisees aroused controversy when exhibited because of these themes. Towards the end of the 19th century Beraud dedicated less time to his own painting, but worked in numerous exhibition committees including the Salon de la Societe Nationale. Beraud never married and has no children, he is buried in Montparnasse Cemetery beside his mother.
John Vanderbank
John Vanderbank (9 September 1694 - 23 December 1739) was an English portrait painter and book illustrator, who enjoyed a high reputation for a short while during the reign of King George I, but who died relatively young due to an intemperate and extravagant lifestyle. Vanderbank was born in London, the eldest son of John Vanderbank Snr. His father was a Huguenot tapestry weaver, born in Paris, but who was forced to flee to Holland before coming to England where he became head of a Soho tapestry weaving factory. Vanderbank studied under Sir Godfrey Kneller at James Thornhill's art academy in Great Queen Street from 1711 until 1720, when he joined with Louis Cheron to found his own academy in St. Martin's Lane. The venture proved a failure, and in 1729 he went to France to avoid his creditors. On his return he entered "the liberties of the Fleet" - mansion houses near Fleet prison, London, in which certain privileged prisoners could serve out their sentences in return for payment. It was noted by George Vertue that "only intemperance prevented Vanderbank from being the greatest portraitist of his generation." He died of Tuberculosis in Holies Street, Cavendish Square, London, on 23 Dec. 1739, aged about 45, and was buried in Marylebone church.