Le Pont des Arts, Paris

Pierre-Auguste Renoir - Le Pont des Arts, Paris, 1867-1868

Le Pont des Arts/The Bridge of Arts or Passerelle des Arts is a pedestrian bridge in Paris which crosses the River Seine. It links the Institut de France and the central square (cour carrée) of the Palais du Louvre, (which had been termed the "Palais des Arts" under the First French Empire).
Between 1802-1804, under the reign of Napoleon I, a nine-arch metallic bridge for pedestrians was constructed at the location of the present day Pont des Arts: this was the first metal bridge in Paris. The engineers Louis-Alexandre de Cessart and Jacques Dillon initially conceived of a bridge which would resemble a suspended garden, with trees, banks of flowers and benches.

Joe Bowen, 1955 | Cityscape painter

British painter Joe Bowen lives in the heart of mid Wales with his family, amongst rolling hills and valleys which provide a constant source of inspiration.
Joe’s professional painting career spans over 15 years, during which time his work has developed from traditional figurative painting through a number of stages, to the more liberal and vigorous style he now employs.

Jean-François Raffaëlli | La Belle Époque

Jean-Francois Raffaëlli was born in Paris into a bourgeois family in which he enjoyed a privileged childhood until the age of fourteen when a reversal of his father's business fortunes forced him to seek employment. He held a series of jobs before being placed, unwillingly, in a commercial house as a book-keeper at the age of sixteen. While working there, he began to visit the Louvre and to spend his Sundays in the Musée de Luxembourg. His initial artistic interest was in drawing and as he developed this passion, he gave up his job and supported himself by singing in theatres and churches.

Sarah Kidner, 1964 | Impressionist cityscape painter

Sarah Kidner was born in 1964. After much travelling, Sarah and her family moved to Ontario in 1969. Growing up in Toronto, Sarah was exposed to and inspired by many great art exhibitions from the Group of Seven to the French Impressionists. At the University of Toronto she studied history and philosophy. A love of skiing, hiking and travelling drew Sarah to Banff in 1987. Now living in Alberta with her twin boys, she finds the Rocky Mountains an ideal setting for creative inspiration.

La Plaza de España, Seville

Spain Square / The Plaza de España is a plaza located in the Parque de María Luisa (Maria Luisa Park), in Seville, Spain built in 1928 for the Ibero-American Exposition of 1929.

It is a landmark example of the Renaissance Revival style in Spanish architecture.

The Plaza de España, designed by Aníbal González, was a principal building built on the Maria Luisa Park's edge to showcase Spain's industry and technology exhibits. González combined a mix of 1920s Art Déco and 'mock Mudejar', and Neo-Mudéjar styles.

The Plaza de España complex is a huge half-circle with buildings continually running around the edge accessible over the moat by numerous bridges representing the four ancient kingdoms of Spain. In the centre is the Vicente Traver fountain. By the walls of the Plaza are many tiled alcoves, each representing a different province of Spain.