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The Death of General Warren at the Battle of Bunker Hill by John Trumbull
The Battle of Bunker Hill represents an ealry stage in the American Revolutionary War, in which the colonial forces occupying Boston were invaded by the British. (Map of Peninsula) Despite suffering many casualties, the colonists won a Pyrrhic victory by causing the British to suffer large losses for their modest gain in territory. The man pictured here, Joseph Warren, was a volunteer and also a politician. -
Vase by Wedgwood and Co., Etruria/Staffordshire, England
This vase was modeled after a greek vase, thought to be Etruscan. It's markings and basalt color were then copied and reproduced by Wedgewood and Co. The vase is a prime example of how, throughout history, art moves in different cycles. Here we see the popularity of antiquity, which was later supplanted by romanticism and other arts concerned more with nature and the sublime. -
Vauxhall Gardens by Thomas Rowlandson
This piece of gaudy partying serves as a fantastic snapshot into the life of the British aristocrat in the late 18th century. Pictured here is a large gathering of people all in their best clothes, in what appears to be a garden of sorts. The piece was actually designed as a satire on British life. In fact, it was also printed in aquatint, an early way or reprinting watercolor paintings onto paper. -
Cape Dutch House in South Africa
These whitewashed houses, featuring gables and thatched rooves, sprouted up all over South Africa's Western Cape in the 17th century. The notably Dutch architecture tells the story of how the Dutch traveled and made settled there. The houses remain incredibly poignant and beautiful to this day, strikingly original and yet perhaps not-so-subtle reminders of how architectural practices have been brought across oceans. -
The Bather by Louise Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun, a.k.a. Madame Lebrun
This French painter is often considered the most important female painter in the 18th century. Her mixture of the bold colors and bodies of Neo-classicism with the smooth grace of Roccoco lead to many noteworthy paintings of subjects with pristine faces and gorgeous figures. Seen here is an anonymous bather, her innocence and human beauty radiating out of the dark background. This piece may represent the human-centric nature of her paintings, with many others more gaudy with regard to fashion. -
The United States Capitol
This incredibly iconic structure is perhaps one of the most well-known entries on my list. The crown known as the Capitol dome was a later addition, but the buildings themselves may represent the governmental offices and traditions which the U.S. is so famous for. The pure white colors emphasize purity, justice, and all sorts of similarly pleasing moral values. -
Pectoral of Saint Anthony
This brass pendant was created somewhere in the Congo in the 18th century. A child-version of Jesus Christ can be seen standing upon a book clutching a bird, while the Saint's other hand holds a cross. This profound religious imagery, melted into metal on the African continent, tells of the fearless nature of missionaries of that time. The gradiated curves and etched-in surfaces also give the pendant a three-dimensional quality, as if the Saint and his Christ Child may come alive at any moment. -
Serape
The Saltillo Serape pictured here is considered one of the strongest and most flamboyant of all Northern American textiles in the late 18th and early 19th century. The bold, consistent pattern made it recognizable and its use by horsemen in 1821 gave it certain political connotations at the time. As a cloth, it symbolizes practical creation driven by necessity, which may create beauty. -
Sette designed by Andrei N. Voronikhin
This luxurious bench is a symbol of Russian aristocracy, and has stories to tell: It was part of a much grander array of fineries which a person of royal decent used for his ostentacious pleasures. For our purposes however, we can focus on what it is composed of: Beech and pine wood with a cover made of blue silk. The crisp and seemingly delicate design of the wood match the smooth and seemingly royal colors of the silk. The materials seem to speak of frailty as much as they do of showing off. -
Justice and Divine Vengeance Pursuing Crime by Pierre-Paul Prud'hon
Very much in the style of neo-classicism, this French artists depiction of two moral entities hunting down a murderer, with the victim lying in the foreground, is a truly stark piece. The contrasts of dark and light, particularly the darkness of the murderer's face and the pale shade of the victim's body, deliver a powerful message supposedly inspired by Horace: "retribution rarely fails to pursue the evil man." -
Eight Men in Indian and Burmese Costume
This colorful watercolor was actually commissioned by two Scottish brothers on their travels on India. The mix of characters and styles of dress indicate that all men in the picture of high class. Dehli can be seen in the distant background as well. This picture, with its simple execution and subtly beautiful earthtones, is a great piece of art from India. -
The Wanderer Above the Sea of Fog by Caspar David Friedrich
This painting, by the incredibly influential German artist, is my choice for a symbol of the sublime in art. The main in the painting stands before a sea of the unknown, danger shooting up out of the misty ground in the form of various rock shapes and what may be deep waters. The man stands in awe of nature's greatness, enjoying its might at a safe distance. -
Page of Calligraphy, signed by Muhammad Shafi
This page from the Koran, printed in watercolor, ink and gold, is signed by an incredibly famous calligrapher of the Qajar period (1779–1925) in Iran. The three-dimensional nature of the lettering and the awe-inspiring beauty of the script perhaps lend a holy book the royal writing style it deserves. I find the black background and colorful lettering a stark contrast, bringing out the unique arabic characters which appear so mysterious to the Western World. -
Mother and Daughter by the Sea by Johan Christian Dahl
This stunning picture by a Norweigan artist arguably inspired by the romantic leanings of Germany at the time is nonetheless incredibly unique in its story and execution. It appears to tell of a reunion between family, while surrounded by stark imagery such as the lone anchor on the beach. The dark tones on the top and bottom seem foreboding, but the crisp cheer of the family balances out the picture into one that seems incredibly real. -
The Great Wave at Kanagawa (from a Series of Thirty-Six Views of Mount Fuji) by Katsushika Hokusai
One of the most easily recognizable pieces of Japanese art in history, this painting flipped the tradition of focusing on the great Mt. Fuji by instead picturing the wave crashing over and above it. The power of nature in this piece proves the universal nature of art, able to exist across any number of cultures. Despite being created in an isolated island country, it would be right at home next to Caspar David Friedrich's piece from 1817. -
Years of Pilgrimage by Franz Liszt
Listen Here! This collection of pieces, in full length nearly an hour long, were inspired by Liszt's travels around Europe, and his observations that life is not as smooth, harmonic and structured as other music of the day. The amorphous nature of the piece grants it a unique position in the classical tradition of music: It shows how the world was changing, and how art changed with it. -
Bowl of the late Qing Dynasty
This bowl is representative of a type of heavily decorated dish popularized by the royalty during the Qing Dynasty. The patterns of colorful flowers and vegetation overlap one another, creating an almost hypnotizing enamel on the porelain dish. Alongside a wooden bowl of the poor farmer, this bowl could represent social stratification in history. As a lone peice, it is undeniably lovely and would be at home in anyone's collection of fine china (pun intended). -
Birds and Flowers
This Korean ten-panel folding door comes from some time in the 19th century. Birds and flowers are ubiquitous amongst East Asian Art, and this door represents the time that would have been used for Bridal chambers. The birds represent fecundity and longevity. Such practical art is a crucial part of understanding art as part of life, not merely something hung in a museum to be observed and bragged about. -
Kanadehon Chūshingura by Toyokuni Utagawa III
Chūshingura are Japanese historical fiction pieces which tell of a famous incident in which 47 ronin, or masterless samurai, conspired to avenge the death of their master. Here we see a depiction of an 1849 kabuki version of this story, kabuki being a theatrical style in Japan which was popularized in the Edo era (1600s-1800s roughly). The patterns on the warriors' clothes speak volumes about their huge roles in the play, and the make-up is also a huge part of traditional kabuki performances. -
Seated Chief (Mwanangara)
Made from a mixture of wood, cloth, and beads, this representation of a Chokwe village leader comes from the mid-19th century in Angola, Central Africa. The stature and the powerful figure were made to display the characteristics of a leader, while at the time the Chokwe were engaged in large amounts of trade. The amount of detail is amazing, and invokes a strong image of tribal societies of the past.
