Stationary Figure (1973) by Philip Guston
What makes Philip Guston’s painting Stationary Figure a masterpiece?
– Passage of time and imminent death
– A child’s drawing… of pooling blood
– Preposterous solidity in a puff of smoke
Bleu II 1961 – Joan Miro
What makes Joan Miro’s painting Bleu II so groundbreaking in the art history canon?
– Miro breaks the Bourgeoisie’s guitar
– A red slash stops abstract traffic
– The vast, cobalt sky highlights our insignificance on Earth
Luncheon on the Grass – Édouard Manet
Why is Édouard Manet’s Luncheon on the Grass or Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe a masterpiece?
– A conformist rebellion
– Flâneur – a French Impressionist version of a dandy
– The insignificance of eating at lunch
The Harvesters by Pieter Bruegel the Elder
What makes Pieter Bruegel’s painting The Harvesters so significant?
– Bringing the art world down to earth
– Golden nourishment
– How nature provides
Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1. – James Whistler
Why does James Whistler not even mention his mother in the painting title Arrangement in Grey and Black No. 1. ?
– Rebellion in grey and black planes
– Whistler inherited her cold manner
– He only cared for form and composition
Les Demoiselles d’Avignon 1907 – Pablo Picasso
What makes Picasso’s painting Les Demoiselles d’Avignon one of the most influential Western paintings of all time?
– Powerful, nude women
– Racism
– Geometrical figures can seduce too