Antonio Canova | Hebe, 1796

Hebe is one of the most famous works of Antonio Canova (1757-1822), an outstanding Neoclassical sculptor of the late 18th - early 19th century.

According to ancient myth, Hebe was the daughter of Zeus and Hera and was the embodiment of youth.

As serving-maid to the gods on Mount Olympus, she was responsible for bringing round cups of nectar, the drink of eternal youth and immortality, during feasts.

Canova depicted the goddess flitting swiftly and easily across the clouds, hardly touching them with the toes of her bare feet.

Antonio Canova (1757-1822) | Hebe, 1800-1805 | Hermitage Museum, St. Petersburg

Bertel Thorvaldsen | Neoclassical sculptor

Bertel Thorvaldsen, Thorvaldsen also spelled Thorwaldsen, (born Nov. 19, 1770, or Nov. 13, 1768, Copenhagen, Den.-died March 24, 1844, Copenhagen), sculptor, prominent in the Neoclassical period, who was the first internationally acclaimed Danish artist.

Prominent in Roman intellectual and artistic circles, he influenced many emerging artists from Europe and the United States.

Giovanni Fattori | Macchiaioli painter

Italian painter Giovanni Fattori (1825-1908) was one of the leaders of the group known as the Macchiaioli.

He was initially a painter of historical themes and military subjects.

In his middle years, inspired by the Barbizon school, he became one of the leading Italian plein-air, painting landscapes, rural scenes, and scenes of military life.

Gregg Chadwick | Figurative painter

"Art can speak across oceans and cultures when words are not enough" - Gregg Chadwick.

Gregg Chadwick is a contemporary American painter who lives and works in Santa Monica.

He earned a Bachelor's Degree at UCLA and a Master’s Degree at NYU, both in Fine Art.

A man of passion, art and engaged purpose, he is currently focused on exploring notions of time, place and memory.

James Clarke Hook (1819-1907)

James Clarke Hook RA was an British painter and etcher of marine, genre and historical scenes and landscapes.

Hook was born in London, the son of James Hook, a draper and one time Judge of the Mixed Commission Court in Sierra Leone.

His mother was the second daughter of Bible scholar Dr Adam Clarke - hence the painter's second name.

Young Hook's first taste of the sea was on board the Berwick smacks which took him on his way to Wooler.