A coffee with Art

Rubens does not have the task of telling historical events of enormous political and European value. Rubens is asked to mythologize a person and an event. So when the arrival of Maria de Medici at Marseille, nymphs and water gods participate, the corner plays the trumpets. Nature and Spirits participate in a whirlwind of actions. A scene that in all respects honors the best film colossal.

Anton Raphael Mengs - Perseus and Andromeda (1774-1777)

The inspiration perhaps came from a cameo of Mengs' wife, now preserved in the egrmitage. Apotheosis of the Roman collections. Andromeda is the reproduction of a relief from the Doria Panphili collection in Rome. Perseus is inspired by the Apollo of the Belvedere of Villa Albani. Fiero indicates the sea monster killed to free the beautiful Andromeda. Cupid with his torch leaves the stage, already aware of having done his duty.

Leonardo da Vinci - The Virgin of the Rocks (1483-1486)

One of the absolute masters of Art (not only Italian) gives shape to religious translation and legend. Baby Jesus and the cousin, Saint John, would both escape the massacre of the innocent and would meet during the flight to Egypt. The symbolic references are many, in full Leonardo style, and range from baptism (puddle of water) to the Passion (the sword-shaped leaves of the Iris) up to the Resurrection (the palm leaves). Leonardo loves the symbol and uses his strong expressive charge, the symbol is mystery though.

Jean-Marc Nattier - Peter the Great (1717)

Jean-Marc Nattier is a curious character. In France he was not famous, one of his most important clients was the Tsar of Russia who asked him to follow him to Moscow and become his court artist. But he refuses preferring to stay in his native country. Tenacious, he manages to achieve notoriety in his country, thanks to his elegant ability to portray and the speed of his stroke. His career will end in oblivion, moreover attacked and opposed by Diderot, consultant of Catherine II to create the collection that would later become the central nucleus of the Hermitage ... where this work found a home.

Karel APPEL - Ghost with mask (1952)

Ghost with mask 1952 Olio su tela (116x89 cm) Private collection ******* A not easily recognizable figure watches us, grinding his teeth demonicly. Fat, broad and very dense brushstrokes of color create a harsh and decidedly brutal image. In the background you can hear an echo of the boyish and humorous drawings. For Appel, applying color directly to the canvas is a liberating, almost sensual experience. Design matters very little; what the painter is looking for is the energy that is released from real tears of violent colors. The primitive and disturbing subjects are not intellectually elaborated but they are decidedly energetic. This work is perhaps one of the most representative of the Cobra movement. Born in 1948 from a heterogeneous group of artists from Copenhagen, Brussels and Amsterdam. The movement opposed the abstractionism that had increasingly taken hold in the post-war period; this kind of art was seen as a lifeless and too passive manifestation. This new bru...

Jusepe de Ribera (called Spagnoletto) - San Girolamo (1626)

Spanish by birth, Neapolitan by adoption and Caravaggesco by free choice. The lesson of the Milanese master violently enters the painting of Jusepe de Ribera, who in 1616 arrives in Naples after traveling around Italy. We all know San Girolamo and his vulgate, but de Ribera focuses on his old woman and his words, his face is terrified. An angel, like many in the history of art, is suspended in the dark. A trumpet sounds. It is the hour of the Last Judgment.

Tiziano Vecellio - San Sebastiano (c. 1570)

The result of long years of study and reflections on this work. Tiziano, in old age, can afford to make this painting without drawing but the construction takes place directly and only with color. The near vision seems a chaotic set of brush strokes and signs that only from a distance take the shape we can admire. It is a work in progress. The initial idea was that of the half-length bust, then he rethinks it and creates a more classic full-length work, that's why he adds two pieces of canvas and adds the saint's legs. A master, in all senses.