Images Dated 13th November 2012

Cader Idris, with the Mawddach River, c.1774 (oil on canvas)

500125 Cader Idris, with the Mawddach River, c.1774 (oil on canvas)
by Wilson, Richard (1713/14-82); 105.5x120.5 (framed) 89.8x105.5 (unframed) cm; Cleveland Museum of Art, OH, USA; (add.info.: In the distance the peak of Cader Idris is shown, while riders in the foreground descend toward the river Mawddach. Although almost all of Wilson's earlier pictures of Wales suggest some association with that country's heroic past, here the emphasis is on the pleasing beauty of the land. Another version of this picture is in the Walker Art Gallery in Liverpool.
Richard Wilson was the first major British artist to specialize in landscape, a focus he pursued intently after a visit to Italy in 1750-6. The countryside around Rome, with its rich associations of ancient grandeur, inspired him to look at landscape as a source of poetry. Back in England his Italian landscapes, which appealed to his patrons (mostly English noblemen) were a great success. He then applied a similar approach to his English and Welsh scenes, treating them as vehicles for ideas and emotions.

); Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund

© Leonard C. Hanna, Jr. Fund / Bridgeman Images

Intricately carved walls allow women in purdah to look out, Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur

Intricately carved walls allow women in purdah to look out, Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, India

© Inger Hogstrom / DanitaDelimont.com

Arch, Carving, Detailed, India, Inger Hogstrom, Intricate, Jaswant Singh, Jodhpur, Mehrangarh Fort, Mewar, Palace, Rajasthan, Sandstone, Screen, Stone, Window

Flowers in a Glass, 1606 (oil on copper)

499514 Flowers in a Glass, 1606 (oil on copper)
by Bosschaert, Ambrosius the Elder (1573-1621); 60.30x52.80 (framed) 35.60x29.30 (unframed) cm; Cleveland Museum of Art, OH, USA; (add.info.: One of the first artists to specialize in flower painting, Bosschaert depicted flowers with a fine technique that seems almost devoid of individual brushstrokes. His precision is also a result of the painting's copper support. When applied to the white ground typically used to coat a copper plate, oil paint takes on an enamel-like quality.
Placed in a simple studded glass, the principal flowers of this bouquet are tulips, each carefully silhouetted so that their individual features could be portrayed. The anchor of this carefully arranged composition is the spider lily (hymenocallis) in the lower center, accompanied by two yellow crocuses. Butterflies, other insects, and snails enliven this still life. Bosschaert worked in the town of Middelburg, where he had access to several botanical gardens and scientific collections of natural specimens. He was also an art dealer, who traded with Antwerp, Frankfurt, London, and Ireland.
); Gift of Carrie Moss Halle in memory of Salmon Portland Halle; Flemish, out of copyright

© Gift of Carrie Moss Halle in memory of Salmon Portland Halle / Bridgeman Images