Marc Chagall’s I and the Village is one of his earliest surviving works and demonstrates many of the key qualities for which his paintings are known. In this article, Singulart discusses the life and style of Marc Chagall, in addition to the meaning behind I and the Village. Who was Marc Chagall? Marc Chagall (1887-1985) was a Russian-French artist and…
Artworks under the lens
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Gray Tree is an early artwork by Dutch artist Piet Mondrian. The stark, monochromatic piece is almost unrecognizable as a Mondrian artwork; it certainly does not encapsulate the bold lines and primary colors that became his legacy. However, Gray Tree shows us Mondrian’s early experiments with cubism. In this article, Singulart looks at Mondrian’s brief but influential dalliance with cubism,…
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Look Mickey signifies a turning point in Roy Lichtenstein’s career as a pop artist. It closed the gap between his abstract expressionism work and the beginning of his work in pop art, and was praised by critics for its humor and irreverence. It is the first piece in which Lichtenstein used many of his trademark elements, such as Ben Day…
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Woman in a Purple Coat exemplifies Matisse’s mature style, characterized by its decorative, fluid, colorful aesthetic. It depicts his assistant Lydia Delectorskaya, who helped him in the last years of his life and was essential to the creation of his last masterpieces. In this article, Singulart takes a closer look at their relationship and at Matisse’s signature style in Woman…
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Marcel Duchamp’s Fountain is one of his most iconic readymades and a masterpiece of twentieth century art. In this article, Singulart explores the concept of the readymade and the history of Fountain in the context of Duchamp’s life. Who was Marcel Duchamp? Marcel Duchamp (1887-1968) was born in Blainville, Normandy in a family where all his siblings also became artists.…
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Horn Players exemplifies many of the qualities now characteristic of Basquiat’s oeuvre, from his interest in contemporary African American culture, to his unique style of painting, scattered with words, figures and an array of mark making techniques. In this article, Singulart takes a closer look at the artist’s life and work and discusses the meaning of his masterpiece Horn Players. …
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Woman in Front of the Sun represents Miro’s quest for freedom and simplicity in his paintings, created using his Surrealist-inspired subconscious painting style. Consequently Woman in Front of the Sun treads a line between abstraction and figuration and is a wildly ambiguous composition that exemplifies Miro’s mature style. In this article, Singulart discusses the artist’s life and his style in…
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When Wassily Kandinksky created Composition VIII, he considered it the high point of his postwar achievement. Looking at the playful, complex composition, it is easy to see why – the intersecting lines and circles show a mastery of abstract art. In this article, Singulart will discover why Kandinsky is considered the father of abstract art, explore Composition VIII, and delve…
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Henri Matisse’s The Joy of Life (1905-1906) is a radical Fauvist work that placed him as one of the leaders of early modernism, with its expressive use of color, fluid lines and distorted perspective. In this article, Singulart takes a closer look at the masterpiece, its Fauvist style and its influence on modernism. Who was Henri Matisse? Henri Matisse (1869-1954)…
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Claude Monet was one of the first impressionists, and the paintings he completed at his house in Giverny are some of his most beloved works. Towards the end of his life, Monet developed cataracts in both his eyes, leading to a departure from his bright, soothing color palette into the more rich, robust colors seen in The Japanese Footbridge. Singulart…
