The Birth of Venus ~ Botticelli

Location : Galleria degli Uffizi, Florence
Year : 1484-90 Tempera on Canvas 172.5 x 278.5 cm
Botticelli was born as Alessandro di Mariano Filipepi in Florence in 1445. The Birth of Venus was painted for the villa of Lorenzo di Pierfrancesco de' Medici at Castello and is documented at the half of the 16th century, as well as two other masterworks by Botticelli, the Primavera and Pallas and the Centaur (both at the Uffizi). The scene represents Venus, born of the sea, being sped by Zephir towards land, where an Hour is ready to cover her with a beautiful cloack. This mythological subject was very important in Renaissance literature and philosopy, so the scene can hint different allegorical means. Botticelli's Venus is so beautiful that we do not notice the unnatural length of her neck, the steep fall of her shoulders and the queer way her left arm is hinged to the body. Or, rather, we should say that these liberties which Botticelli took with nature in order to achieve a graceful outline add to the beauty and harmony of the design because they enhance the impression of an infinitely tender and delicate being, wafted to our shores as a gift from Heaven. The canvas, dating around 1485, certainly reflects the presence of Botticelli among the Florentine humanistic circle and his study on classical sculpture, since this celebrated Venus recalls many ancient statues of the goddess. It was restored in 1987. Larger view

Two Girls with Oleander ~ Klimt

German Title : Zwei Mädchen mit Oleader
Location : Private Collection, New York
Year : 1890-92 Oil on Canvas 55 x 128
This youthful work is one of Klimt’s rare paintings in which the figures are in a real and recognizable natural outdoor setting, a setting that has not yet been transfigured into a precious ornamental arabesque as in his mature works. In Two Girls with Oleander, although not yet 30, Klimt demonstrated his total mastery of painting. During these years his interest focused on English art from the Victorian era and mainly pre-Raphaelite painting. This was the moment in which Klimt went beyond the narrow confines of painting as a historical reconstruction or 'photographic' realism and embarked on the path of stylistic decoration that would, within a few short years, lead him to the full poetics of symbolism. Larger view

10 Most Expensive Paintings

1. Pablo Picasso, Garcon a la Pipe, $104m (£58m), May 2004
2. Vincent van Gogh, Portrait of Dr Gachet, $82.5m (£47.1m) May 1990
3. Pierre Auguste Renoir, Au Moulin de la Galette (shown at left), $78m (£44.5m), May 1990
4. Peter Paul Rubens, Massacre of the Innocents, $76.7m (£43.8m), July 2002
5. Vincent Van Gogh, Portrait de l'artiste sans barbe, $65m (£37.1m), November 1998
6. Paul Cezanne, Rideau, Cruchon et Compotier, $55m (£31.4m), May 1999
7. Pablo Picasso, Les Noces de Pierrette, $51.67m (£28m), November 1989
8. Pablo Picasso, Woman with Crossed Arms, $50m (£28.5m), November 2000
9. Vincent Van Gogh, Irises, $49m (£28m), November 1989
10. Pablo Picasso, La Reve, $48m (£27.4m), November 1997

Boy with a Pipe ~ Picasso

French Title : Garçon à la pipe
Year : 1905 Oil on Canvas
Say HELLO! to the most expensive painting in the auction history! Yup, the painting beats the price of Van Gogh's Potrait of Dr. Gatchet (which was as sold to a Japanese billionaire in 1990 for $82.5m at Christie's) as the most expensive painting sold to an annoymous bidder for $104m. Sotheby's doesn't even want to reveal the bidder's nationality. I saw the painting on Sotheby's website before the auction day and couldn't even believe that this painting could be so expensive! That made Picasso has four of the top 10 most expensive paintings sold at auction, ahead of Van Gogh with three. It was painted by Picasso at age 24 soon after his settling in Montmartre, showing a young Parisian working boy crowned with a garland of roses, holding a pipe in his left hand. It was bought by John Whitney in 1950 for $30,000 and it was among all the 30 collection that was auction on May 5 2004 and all the preceeds will go to the Greentree Foundation which was founded by Betsey Whitney, a philanthropist. Charles Moffet, co-director of Impressionist and modern art at Sotheby's praised it as one of Picasso's most celebrated images of adolescent beauty.