Great European Artists
Introducing notable and famous painters from Europe
Great European Artists are those artists whose artwork has stood the test of time and still attracts people from miles around.
This site introduces some great European artists from France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and Low Countries, Scandinavia and Spain.
Notable and famous artists are categorised by the country they are associated with. The links below provide a good starting point to finding out more.
There are two types of links:
- links to compendium sites I've already developed about specific artists. These provide good quality information about and access to images by notable European artists that I admire
- links to the Wikiepedia article about artists I want to learn more about
The definition of Europe excludes Great Britain - because I've already developed a separate compendium site which focuses on Great British Artists
Below you can find out about
- GREAT DUTCH AND NETHERLANDISH ARTISTS
- GREAT FRENCH ARTISTS
- GREAT ITALIAN ARTISTS
- GREAT GERMAN & AUSTRIAN ARTISTS
- GREAT SCANDINAVIAN ARTISTS
- GREAT SPANISH ARTISTS
- EUROPEAN PAINTINGS
The list is by no means complete and this site - and the linked sites - will be updated periodically. All links are to other websites by makingamark.
GREAT DUTCH AND NETHERLANDISH ARTISTS
The Annotated Mona Lisa - A Crash Course in Art History from Prehistoric to Post-Modern
RECOMMENDED: Rated an average of 4.4 out of 5 stars by 58 customer reviews
I own a copy of this book and it's one of my favourite Art History Books. It's clear and succinct and makes art history accessible while not being patronising.
Great Dutch and Netherlandish Artists from the past
famous painters from the 15th to the 19th century
The Low Countries - comprising Holland, Belgium and Luxembourg - have produced many famous artists. They are also home to many of the painters which were influential during the Northern Renaissance.
Great Dutch and Netherlandish Artists
- About Jan van Eyck - Famous Painter
Learn about Jan van Eyck, the 15th century artist who is frequently credited with inventing oil painting. He's an important painter of the Northern Renaissance. - About Rembrandt van Rijn - Famous Painter
Find out about about Rembrandt van Rijn (1606-1669). This is a compendium of links to information about Rembrandt's drawings, etchings, paintings and portraits; museums and art galleries and exhibitions where you can see his work. - About Vincent Van Gogh - Famous Painter
Find out about Vincent Van Gogh, his drawings and paintings and where you can see and read about them online and in art museums and books.
![Portrait of a Man (Self-portrait?) by Jan van Eyck. Inscribed on frame (top): AΛC.IXH.XAN. (bottom): JOHES.DE.EYCK.ME.FECIT.ANO.MO. CCCCO.33O.2I.OCTOBRIS [As I can / Jan van Eyck made me on 21 October 1433]. The National Gallery, London.](https://usercontent1.hubstatic.com/11861438_f520.jpg "Portrait of a Man (Self-portrait?) by Jan van Eyck. Inscribed on frame (top): AΛC.IXH.XAN. (bottom): JOHES.DE.EYCK.ME.FECIT.ANO.MO. CCCCO.33O.2I.OCTOBRIS [As I can / Jan van Eyck made me on 21 October 1433]. The National Gallery, London.")
More Great Dutch Painters - including many Golden Age painters
These are a few of the Dutch artists which I plan to find out more about
- Balthasar van der Ast - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Balthasar van der Ast (1593/94 - 7 March 1657) painted flowers, shells and lizards. He was a Dutch Golden Age painter who specialized in still life.Still Life by Balthasar van der Ast (1593/1594-1657) [Public domain], via Wikimedia CommonsPen and wat - Hendrick Avercamp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Hendrick Avercamp was one of the first landscape painters of the 17th-century Dutch school. He painted many landscapes of the Netherlands in winter-time - Ambrosius Bosschaert - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder (18 January 1573 - 1621) was born in Antwerp (now in Belgium) and was a still life painter of the Dutch Golden Age. - Aelbert Cuyp - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Aelbert Jacobsz Cuyp (October 20, 1620 – November 15, 1691) was one of the leading Dutch landscape painters of the Dutch Golden Age in the 17th century. - Jan Davidsz. de Heem - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jan Davidsz. de Heem (1606-1684), was botn in Utrecht. He was a Flemish Baroque painter who painted still life. He was active in Utrecht and Antwerp. - Limbourg brothers - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Limbourg brothers (Herman, Paul, and Johan; fl. 1385 - 1416) came from Nijmegen. They were famous Dutch painters in the early 15th century, worked in France and Burgundy and painted miniature paintings.Trs Riches Heures du duc de Berry Folio 7, v - Jan Steen - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jan Havickszoon Steen (1626 – 1679) was a Dutch genre painter of the 17th century (also known as the Dutch Golden Age). Daily life was Jan Steen's main pictorial theme. - Johannes Vermeer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Johannes, Jan or Johan Vermeer (1632 – December 1675) was a Dutch painter who specialised in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. He did not paint many pictures.Lady at the Virginal with a Gentleman, 'The Music Lesson' (c.1662 - 1665) by J
The Dutch Golden Age - the Golden Age (1609-1713)
Dutch Golden Age started after the Twelve Years' Truce in 1609 and lasted until the conclusion of the Peace of Utrecht in 1713.
- Dutch Golden Age - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Dutch Golden Age (Dutch: Gouden Eeuw [ˈɣʌudə(n) ˈeːw]) was a period in Dutch history, roughly spanning the 17th century, in which Dutch trade, science, military, and art were among the most acclaimed in the world. - Golden Age (Dutch history) -- Britannica Online Encyclopedia
Golden Age (Dutch history)
The Golden Age: Dutch Painters of the Seventeenth Century
This is the landmark book on the subject of Dutch painting in the seventeenth century. The text has 1,117 reproductions from the Golden Age, including 74 in full color.
GREAT FRENCH ARTISTS
The story of "Impressionism" - "Impression, Sunrise" (1873) by Claude Monet
This painting became symbolic of the Impressionist movement in France.
Impression, Sunrise (1873) by Claude Monet was hung at the first exhibition by a new group of painters in 1874. An art critic called Louis Leroy described the work - dismissively - as "impressionistic". The term was adopted and the new group became known as Impressionist painters. That exhibition subsequently was described as the First Impressionist Exhibition.
The painting itself now belongs to the Musee Marmottan Monet in Paris - along with a number of other paintings by Monet. It was stolen in 1985 and later recovered in 1990 and has been on display there ever since.
Great French Painters of the past
Artists are listed below in chronological order of their birth date. You can find out more about them on the websites I've developed for each artist - just click a link to access one
- About Pierre Redoute - Botanical Artist
Many people first become interested in botanical art because of the paintings of roses, lilies and other flowers produced by Pierre-Joseph Redout. He is one of the most talented botanical artists ever known. - About Claude Monet - Impressionist Painter
Claude Monet is a very famous painter. He's also a key figure in the development of Impressionism in France and elsewhere. Learn about Monet, his life, his art, his career and his home and garden at Giverny - About Edgar Degas - French Artist
Introducing Edgar Degas - the artist and Impressionist painter. This is a compendium of information and links to websites where you can find out more about this artist and his artworks. - About Paul Cezanne - Famous French Painter
Find out about the famous Post-Impressionist painter Paul Cezanne. Includes information about his paintings, where you can see his work and the places where he painted in Provence.
![Mont Sainte-Victoire (1887) Paul Cézanne [Public domain]](https://usercontent2.hubstatic.com/11861469_f520.jpg "Mont Sainte-Victoire (1887) Paul Cézanne [Public domain]")
“Cezanne is the father of us all.”
Pablo Picasso
Cezanne created a new way of painting which changed the direction of modern art.
He worked pretty much in artistic isolation. His aim was to combine the clarity of composition in classical painting with the observation, freshness and spontaneity of Impressionism.
The Private Lives of the Impressionists
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED: Rated an average of 4.5 out of 5 stars by 39 customer reviews
This is both a chronicle of the development of Impressionism and a very enjoyable read.
It covers the lives of all the Impressionists - Manet, Monet, Pisarro, Czanne, Renoir, Degas, Sisley, Berthe Morisot and Mary Cassatt before, during and after the creation of their group. It also highlights the role played by other people such as Caillebotte and Durand Ruel who were important to the group
You can also read my review The Private Lives of the Impressionists for a LOT more about what this book is about and why I enjoyed it so much.
The Judgment of Paris - The Revolutionary Decade That Gave the World Impressionism
HIGHLY RECOMMENDED
This book is essentially about the changes which occurred in Paris and the world of art in the decade prior to 1870. It's also a good book for emerging artists who might be finding it a bit of a struggle to establish a career as a professional artist. The insight into what other famous artists went through is a real education!
It focuses in particular on the lives of two painters and their very different approaches to painting - in terms of the 'old school' of academic painting and involvement in the the brave new world of Impressionism:
- one is Ernest Meissonier, who is a famous painter in Paris in the 1860s. He has had an illustrious track record of exhibiting at the all important Salon, His reputation has been built on his meticulously detailed, realistic rendering of historical subjects.
- the other is the young Edouard Manet, who is trying to make his career as a serious painter and who is torn between keeping the Salon happy and wanting to paint the way he wants to paint
I found it particularly interesting with respect to the inner workings of the Salon - and anybody who is involved with art societies will doubtless find this a good read for the same reason!
One of the great aspects of Ross Kings book is he does amazing research and then provides all his contextual notes and the associated timeline of events in an appendix at the end of the book.
More Great French Painters
More Great French Artists are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Frederick Bazille - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Frdric Bazille (December 6, 1841 – November 28, 1870) was a founder member of the Impressionist movement. He's also very important in that his personal wealth helped support some of the other painters in their early years as artists and his home act - Pierre Bonnard - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pierre Bonnard (1867 - 1947) was a French painter who is renowned for his decorative effects and use of colour. He was also a printmaker and photographer. - Jean-Baptiste-Simon Chardin - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jean-Baptiste-Simon Chardin (1699 - 1779) was an 18th-century French painter. He specialised in still life paintings. - Gustave Caillebotte - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gustave Caillebotte (1848 - 1894) was a French painter who was part of the Impressionist movement. He was also a great art collector - Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot (1796 - 1875) is an important painter in the history of landscape painting. He was a French painter who was a leading figure within the Barbizon school of landscape painting France in the mid-nineteenth century. - Gustave Courbet - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jean Dsir Gustave Courbet (1819 - 1877) was a French painter who led the Realist movement in 19th-century French painting. - Henri Matisse - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Henri-mile-Benot Matisse (1869 - 1954) was a French artist, known for his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. - Pierre-Auguste Renoir - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Pierre-Auguste Renoir (1841–1919) was a French painter who was a leading artist in the Impressionist movement. - Camille Pissarro - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Camille Pissarro (10 July 1830 – 13 November 1903) was a Danish-French Impressionist and Neo-Impressionist painter - Maurice Utrillo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Maurice Utrillo (1883-1955) was the son of Suzanne Valadon and was born in Montmartre in Paris. He became famous for his paintings of townscapes
GREAT ITALIAN ARTISTS
Great Italian Artists from the Past
- About Canaletto - Italian Painter
Canaletto is famous for his landscape paintings - particularly those of Venice - and he is a key figure in the development of landscape painting
More great Italian Artists - before 1600
More Great Italian Artists are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Duccio - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Duccio di Buoninsegna (c. 1255-1260 - c. 1318-1319) was the Founder of the Sienese school. His most celebrated work is a large altar called the Maest (1308-1311) in Siena cathedral - Giotto - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Giotto di Bondone (1266/7 - 1337) is best known as Giotto. He was an Italian painter (of frescos) and an architect who worked in Italy in the late Middle Ages.His work includes cycles of frescoes in Assisi, the Arena Chapel in Padua and the Church of - Giuseppe Arcimboldo - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Giuseppe Arcimboldo (1527-1593) was an Italian painter who became famous for his allegorical compositions of fruits and vegetables in the form of the human face
GREAT GERMAN & AUSTRIAN ARTISTS
Famous German and Austrian Botanical Artists
Merian, Besler, Bauer and Ehret
Artists are listed below in chronological order of their birth date.
- About Maria Sibylla Merian - Botanical & Natural His...
Maria Sibylla Merian was a Naturalist, Entymologist and Botanical Illustrator and is rated as being one of the greatest ever botanical artists. This site will be of interest to all botanical and natural history artists - About Basilius Besler - Famous Botanical Art Publish...
Find out about Basilius Besler (1561-1629) and the book known as the Hortus Eystettensis which was a florilegium of all the plants grown in the garden of the prince bishop of Eichsttt in Bavaria. - About The Bauer Brothers - Famous Botanical Artists
The Bauer brothers - Franz and Ferdinand - are regarded as two of the best botanical artists that have ever lived by many botanical art experts - About Georg Dionysius Ehret - Famous Botanical Artis...
Georg Dionysius Ehret was a German-born artist who became one of the most influential botanical artists of all time through his development of the Linnaean style of botanical illustration.
Great German Painters of the past
- About Hans Holbein - Famous Portrait Painter
This is a compendium about Hans Holbein (1497 - 1543). He was an extraordinarily talented draftsman and painter and one of the greatest artists in 16th century Europe
More Great German Painters - before 1900
More great German Artists who lived before 1900 are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Albrecht Altdorfer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Albrecht Altdorfer (c. 1480 - 1538) was a German painter, engraver and architect of the Renaissance. He was the pioneer painter of pure landscape. - Caspar David Friedrich - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Caspar David Friedrich (1774 - 1840) was a 19th-century German Romantic landscape painter, generally considered the most important German artist of his generation.
Great Contemporary German Artists - 20th and 21st century painters and photographers
These are famous German painters and a photographer born in the 20th century. They are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Gerhard Richter - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gerhard Richter (born 9 February 1932) is a German visual artist who produces both abstract and photorealistic painted works. Richter is regarded as the top-selling living artist. - Anselm Kiefer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Anselm Kiefer (born March 8, 1945) is a German painter and sculptor. His work revolves around addressing taboo and controversial issues from recent history. - Wolfgang Tillmans - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Wolfgang Tillmans (born 1968 in Remscheid) is a German Fine-art photographer. He won the Turner Prize in 2000. His photography revolves around aesthetic and political interests and issues relating to gender identity
GREAT SCANDINAVIAN ARTISTS
Great Scandinavian Artists from the past
- About Vilhelm Hammershoi - Danish Artist
Vilhelm Hammershoi is a Danish artist who developed a very distinctive style of painting. This site provides links to information on the internet and in books about Vilhelm Hammershoi
More Great Scandinavian Artists - from Norway, Sweden and Denmark - predominantly before 1940
More great artists from Norway, Sweden and Denmark are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Johan Christian Dahl - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Johan Christian Claussen Dahl (1788-1857) was a Norwegian artist is often described as "the father of Norwegian landscape painting". He is also known J. C. Dahl. - Carl Larsson - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Carl Larsson (1853 - 1919) was a Swedish painter and interior designer, representative of the Arts and Crafts Movement. - Edvard Munch - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Edvard Munch (1863-1944) was a Norwegian painter, printmaker and draughtsman. He was an expressive painter and was associated with the development of Symbolism in painting - Anders Zorn - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Anders Leonard Zorn (1860 - 1920) was one of Sweden's foremost artists who obtained international success as a painter, sculptor and printmaker in etching.
GREAT SPANISH ARTISTS
Great Spanish Artists from the past - before 1900
- About Francisco de Goya - Spanish Painter
This lens is about Francisco de Goya (1746 - 1828) - one of Spains's greatest painters. He's characterised as the last of the Old Masters and the Father of Modernism. - About Joaquin Sorolla - Spanish Painter
Sorolla was a very popular and prolific Spanish painter - he was renowned as a painter of the colour of sunshine and light. Find out more about his Spanish version of Realism/Impressionism.
Sorolla: The Masterworks
Rated 4.6 out of 5 stars by 22 customer reviews on Amazon
Joaqun Sorolla, the Spanish Impressionist painter, was often compared to his contemporary John Singer Sargent. If you like Sargent's work, you're bound to like Sorolla as well
There aren't many good books by Sorolla around and when they're published they sell out fast and then become expensive to buy second hand. This is the latest book about Sorolla and it's essentially a picture book - including a 100 paintings - with not a lot of text.
More Great Spanish Artists from the past
More great artists from Spain are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- El Greco - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Domnikos Theotokpoulos, (1541 - 1614) was a painter, sculptor and architect of the Spanish Renaissance. He was known as "El Greco" (The Greek) because he was born in Crete. He signed his paintings with his full birth name in Greek letters. - Diego Velázquez - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Diego Rodrguez de Silva y Velzquez (1599 - 1660) was a highly regarded Spanish Baroque painter. He was an important portrait artist and the leading artist in the court of King Philip IV..
Modern and Contemporary Spanish Artists
- About Pablo Picasso - Famous Artist
Pablo Ruiz Picasso (1881 - 1973) was a very famous Spanish painter and sculptor. He had a huge influence on how art developed in the twentieth century. This is a compendium of links to information on the Internet
More Modern and Contemporary Spanish Artists - 20th century artists
More great 20th century Spanish artists are listed below in alphabetical order by surname.
- Salvador Dal - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dal i Domnech, 1st Marqus de Dal de Pubol (1904 - 1989), was better known as Salvador Dal. He was a prominent Spanish surrealist painter. - Joan Mir - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Joan Mir i Ferr (1893 - 1983) was born in Barcelona. He was a notable Catalan painter, sculptor, and ceramicist
EUROPEAN PAINTINGS
More about European Painting - Museum Collections
Great collections of European paintings are found in great Museums within and outside Europe
- European Painting and Sculpture | The Art Institute of Chicago
The Art Institute of Chicago has what is considered to be one of the finest collections of European paintings and sculpture in the world. The collection of European painting contains more than 3,500 works dating from the 12th through the mid-20th cen - NGA - Northern European Painting 15th-16th centuries
At the end of the Middle Ages, some of the most active centers of painting were in the Netherlands, also known as the Low Countries, an area comprising present-day Holland, Belgium, Luxembourg, and parts of France. - Brooklyn Museum: European Paintings
The Brooklyn Museum's holdings of European Old Master and modern paintings have grown in equal measure over the past century, with a parallel commitment to the presentation of both collections since the institution's opening exhibition in 1987.
