Kandinsky | Lo Spirito dei colori

"Ogni opera d’arte è figlia del suo tempo, e spesso è madre dei nostri sentimenti" - Kandinsky

"Mi sembrava che l'anima viva dei colori emettesse un richiamo musicale, quando l'inflessibile volontà del pennello strappava loro una parte di vita", scriveva Wassily Kandinsky (1866-1944), il fondatore dell'Arte Astratta.

Nel sangue russo di Kandinsky si erano confusi quello tedesco della nonna materna e quello orientale della bisnonna paterna, che era una principessa cinese.

La musica diede una particolare impulso alla sua anima, Mussorgskij, Rimskji-Korsakov, Balakirev, Cui e Borodin erano i suoi preferiti.

Mentre, Monet, con i suoi Covoni esposti a Mosca nel 1895, gli diede la certezza della sua vocazione: egli ricorderà sempre quelle tele per l'impressione che ne aveva ricevuta d'esser la pittura in essa indipendente e comunque assai più forte della realtà per suo mezzo raffigurata.

Edvard Munch | Kiss by the Window, 1892

"The Kiss by the Window" or "Kissing by the Window" is an 1892 oil on canvas painting by Edvard Munch, now in the National Gallery of Norway. It forms part of his series known as The Frieze of Life, which treats the cycle of life, death and love and was produced between 1893-1918.

Kiss by the Window artwork depicts a couple who embrace each other as they fuse into one and their faces merge into a featureless single shape.

The kissing couple is surrounded by swirling darkness with the only source of light showing through the window which is covered by a curtain.

Edvard Munch | Kissing by the Window, 1892

Edvard Munch | Summer Day, 1908

Munch began working on "Summer Day" in 1903, as part of a major commission by Dr Max Linde, for his children’s nursery room at their family home at Lübeck.

Linde (1862-1940) was an ophthalmologist and one of Munch’s devoted patrons. The artist first met Linde in 1902, and later that year was commissioned to produce graphic work for the Linde Portfolio of etchings of his house and garden and the members of his family.

In 1903 Linde published a book Edvard Munch und die Kunst der Zukunft and, alongside Gustav Schiefler, was to become the artist’s main supporter in Germany.

Edvard Munch | Summer Day or Embrace on the Beach (The Linde Frieze) 1908

Frida Kahlo | Non ti chiedo di darmi un bacio..

I'm not asking you to kiss me,

nor apologize to me when I think you're wrong.

I won't even ask you to hug me when I need it most.

I don't ask you to tell me how beautiful I am,

even if it's a lie, nor write me anything beautiful.

Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera

Dante Alighieri | Ladies that have intelligence in love / Donne ch’avete intelletto d’amore..

Ladies that have intelligence in love,

⁠Of mine own lady I would speak with you;

⁠Not that I hope to count her praises through,

⁠But telling what I may, to ease my mind.

And I declare that when I speak thereof,

Love sheds such perfect sweetness over me

That if my courage failed not, certainly

⁠To him my listeners must be all resign'd.

Henry Holiday | Dante meets Beatrice a Ponte Santa Trinita, 1883 | Walker Art Gallery Liverpool

Paolo and Francesca | Dante Alighieri ~ Inferno, Canto V

Divina Commedia | Inferno| Canto quinto

Amor, ch’a nullo amato amar perdona,

mi prese del costui piacer sì forte,

che, come vedi, ancor non m’abbandona.

Amor condusse noi ad una morte.

Caina attende chi a vita ci spense".

Queste parole da lor ci fuor porte.

Quand’io intesi quell’anime offense,

china’ il viso, e tanto il tenni basso,

fin che ’l poeta mi disse: "Che pense?".

Auguste Rodin | The Kiss (Paolo and Francesca) detail | Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen

Douglas Kirkland, 1934 | Hollywood's photographer

Douglas Kirkland is a Canadian photographer based in the United States.

Douglas Kirkland is the legendary photographer who captured Hollywood elite.

Kirkland has been the cutting edge of fashion, photojournalism and portraiture, working for the world’s most reputable magazines for more than 50 years.

As a young photographer in 1961 he was assigned to shoot Marilyn Monroe during several hours in a closed studio one night, captured a stunning portfolio of alluring and intimate images that survive to this day as a testament to her beauty and vulnerability.

Douglas Kirkland | Marilyn Monroe, 1961

David Gray, 1970 | Classical Realist painter

David's Gray signature style reveals a personal and contemporary expression of beauty and order which pays homage to the Classical Tradition in its craftsmanship. Collectors of David's work often relate that his painting provoke a sense of peace, stillness, or a contemplative mood.

His award winning works have been covered by major art publications including Southwest Art, Art of the West, and American Art Collector.

David also teaches several workshops per year in portraiture and still life painting throughout the United States and abroad.

In addition to his well known signature style, David is also currently exploring a more contemporary sensibility in recent works. Keep an eye out for more new paintings to be released in this exciting, organic style.