Alexei Butirskiy, 1974 | Cityscape painter

Born in Moscow, Russian painter Алексей Бутырский entered Moscow Art College in 1992.

In 1996 he completed his studies at the Art College and graduated with an Excellence Diploma.

In 1998 he graduated from the Russian Academy of the Arts where he studied under respected professor, L.S. Hasyanova.

He graduated from the Academy with the highest honors attainable.

Alexei currently serves as Professor of Drawing at the same academy.

Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot | Genre painter

Hortense Haudebourt-Lescot, born Antoinette Cécile Hortense Viel (1784-1845), was a French painter, mainly of genre and historical scenes.

She was born in Paris to Jean-Baptiste Viel, a perfumer, and his wife Cécile, née Lejeune.

Her mother became a widow two years later and remarried; to Jean-Louis Lescot, a pharmacist.

Jacques Van Den Abeele, 1960 | Figurative sculptor

Jacques Van den Abeele, Belgian sculptor, is exhibited in galleries spread over Belgium, France, The Netherlands, Switzerland and the United States of America.

He realized also monumental sculptures for state orders.

For Jacques Van den Abeele, art is above all a quest for the essential foundations of existence, moving towards what lies behind appearances: feelings, emotions, fears.

Anna Klumpke | Catinou knitting, 1887

Encouraged by an independent, educationally oriented mother, Anna Elizabeth Klumpke (1856-1942) was a copyist in the Luxembourg Museum and studied at the Académie Julien in Paris.

She enjoyed an education guided by the concept that women artists could compete with their male counterparts.

In her memoirs of 1940, Klumpke cites a most influential moment in her childhood: receiving the gift of a Rosa Bonheur doll.

Her admiration of Bonheur, the French painter of animals, led her to paint the aging woman’s portrait - which is considered a companion piece to her portrait of leading suffragist Elizabeth Cady Stanton.

Louis Aragon | Amor mio, non dire niente / Mon Amour ne dis rien

Amor mio non dire niente

lascia cadere queste due parole nel silenzio

Come una pietra a lungo lisciata fra i palmi delle mie mani

Una pietra veloce e pesante una pietra

Che cada nel profondo della nostra vita