With most of the artists I discuss in “Feel Art Again,” there are so many great works of art available that it’s hard to decide which painting to include in the post. I’ve rounded up 5 such artists who really deserve a second exhibition.
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To celebrate the end of the (school) year, I’ve rounded up the 11 most popular “Feel Art Again” posts. Take a break out of your day to check out these great works of art, the best of “Feel Art Again”:

11. “Judith Beheading Holofernes,” Artemisia Gentileschi
Read about the most scandalous trial of the 17th century, Gentileschi’s patronage from the Medicis and King Charles I, and her famous friends.

10. “Joan of Arc at Coronation of Charles VII,” Jean Auguste Dominique Ingres
Old age, the collapse of Napoleon’s reign, and silly details like historical accuracy couldn’t hold Ingres back. (more…)

This weekend will mark the 170th anniversary of the birth of Walter Goodman to the portrait painter Julia Salaman Goodman and her husband, Louis Goodman. Walter Goodman grew up to be a fairly well-known painter, illustrator, and author in his time, but in recent years he has not been as well-known, partly because the present whereabouts of most of his works of art are unknown. Some flossy facts to get you acquainted with this talented British artist and his 1883 painting, “The Printseller”…

1. Goodman was reputedly the first English artist to receive a commission from a Chinese. In 1878, the Chinese minister to the Court of Berlin, Liu Hsi-Hung, commissioned Goodman to copy Giovanni Battista Salvi da Sassoferrato’s “Madonna in Prayer,” which was in the National Gallery.

2. “The Printseller” is a tromp l’oeil, or “trick the eye,” painting of a printseller’s window, so the objects appear to be three-dimensional. The printseller himself is included in image, along with books, coins, vases, a teacup, a necklace, statues, and photographs, six of which depict great Victorian painters. (more…)

Yesterday marked the 108th anniversary of the death of the Armenian painter Ivan Aivazovsky. Aivazovsky is most famous for his seascapes, which constitute more than half of his oeuvre. Karly Briullov’s “Last Day of Pompeii” (previously featured on ‘Feel Art Again’) had a significant impact on Aivazovsky, influencing some of his work.

1. As a young boy growing up in Theodosia, Ivan Aivazovsky was known to draw in charcoal on the whitewashed walls throughout the town. Luckily, his graffiti did not land him in trouble, but instead attracted the attention of the town-governor, who then helped Aivazovsky attend high school and later the St. Petersburg Academy of Arts to further develop his talents. Aivazovsky graduated the Academy at age 20,with their highest honor, the gold medal.

2. Aivazovsky honed his skill for seascapes with hands-on experience. In 1836, he participated in training exercises of the Baltic Sea fleet. By a Tsar’s edict, he was attached to the Chief Naval Staff “with the title of painter to the Staff and with the right to wear the uniform of the naval ministry.” He was so revered by the navy that, in 1846, they marked the tenth anniversary of his artistic career with a special squadron of battleships sent from Sevastopol to congratulate him. (more…)

Sir John Lavery, who painted “Spring,” was a prominent Irish artist in the late 19th and early 20th century. Both he and his wife, Hazel, were well-known throughout Ireland, England, and America for his artwork, their A-list friends, and their work with the Anglo-Irish Treaty in 1921.

1. When John Lavery was only 3 years old, his father drowned at sea while emigrating to America. Shortly thereafter, Lavery’s mother also passed away. He was raised by relatives on a farm; today, the farm is the location of a restaurant that features John Lavery paintings and memorabilia.

2. Lavery was commissioned in 1888 to paint the state visit of Queen Victoria to the Glasgow International Exhibition. He managed to get a sitting with the queen herself, and his career as a society painter was launched. In the ensuing years, he painted portraits of George Bernard Shaw, J.M. Barrie, Winston Churchill, Lord Asquith (the British prime minister) and his family, and Michael Collins, among others. During a brief stay in Hollywood, he painted a self-portrait with Shirley Temple. (more…)

The 240th anniversary of the death of Giovanni Antonio Canal was earlier this month, on April 19th. Canaletto, as he was known, was a well-known, well-paid, and prolific 18th century Venetian painter who specialized in view paintings (vedute). “View of the Entrance to the Arsenal,” painted in 1732, is one of Canaletto’s many paintings focused on the Venetian canals.

1. Giovanni Antonio Canal got his start as an apprentice with his brother and his father, a theatrical scene painter. During a stay in Rome, though, Canaletto became “irritated by the immodesty of the playwrights” and “formally foreswore the theatre.” He then studied under Luca Carlevaris, an urban cityscapes painter, and is said by many to have surpassed his teacher’s skills.

2. Unlike many artists of the time, Canaletto painted his early works from nature, out at the sites themselves, instead of in a studio. He also used a camera obscura to help with his highly detailed topographical paintings. The impact of the camera obscura is seen in the distant objects in Canaletto’s paintings, which just appear as out-of-focus blobs of color. (more…)

Recently, I discovered Alexei Savrasov’s 1871 painting, “Sunset Over the Marsh,” and it has quickly become a favorite of mine. Today, we’ll take a look at Savrasov who, despite being the “father of Russian landscape painting,” is not very well-known in the U.S.

1. In 1838, at the tender age of 8, Alexei Savrasov enrolled at the Moscow School of Painting, Sculpture and Architecture, where he immediately began to specialize in landscape painting. Just four years into his studies, the report of the Council of the Moscow Art Society mentioned Savrasov as the best pupil in the perspective and landscape class. He graduated from the school at age 20, in 1850.

2. Savrasov became head of the landscape class at the Moscow School in 1857, a position he held until 1881. That same year, he married Sophia Karlovna Hertz, the sister of a prominent archaeologist and art historian. As a result, their home became a gathering place for artists. (more…)

Today marks the anniversary of the death of Henry Lerolle, a French painter, art collector, and patron. Though Lerolle is not as well known as some of his contemporaries, he has recently begun to receive more attention, especially for his large 1888 painting, “The Organ Rehearsal.”

1. At the age of 17, Henry Lerolle was a pupil of Louis Lamothe, who also instructed Edgar Degas. Lerolle also studied at Académie Suisse, but never attended the Ecole des Beaux-Arts. By age 20, though, he was exhibiting at the Paris Salon.

2. In addition to painting, collecting, and patronizing, Lerolle also worked for a time at the Louvre, where he met other artists, including Albert Besnard and Jean-Louis Forain, and spent time studying and copying the works of Nicolas Poussin (classical French painter), Peter Paul Rubens (Flemish Baroque painter), and Paolo Veronese (Italian Renaissance painter). (more…)

Today is our final installment in this week’s three-part ‘Feel Art Again’ mini-series. The mini-series explores Charles Willson Peale’s fascinating life and artwork.

On Tuesday, we looked at the artist and his family, accompanied by one of his seven self-portraits, painted in 1822. Yesterday, we delved into his role as a naturalist, his museum, and his self-portrait, “The Artist in His Museum.” And today, we’ll explore his role as an American patriot, accompanied by one of his most well-known paintings, “‘George Washington at Princeton.”

The Patriot

1. A supporter of America’s independence and a member of the Sons of Liberty, Charles Willson Peale traveled to Philadelphia, then the capital, in 1776. While there, he painted portraits of American notables, including John Hancock, Thomas Jefferson, and Alexander Hamilton, as well as visitors from other countries. (more…)

‘Feel Art Again’ usually only appears on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but today is a special exception. In this three-part mini-series, we’re looking at Charles Willson Peale’s fascinating life and artwork.

Yesterday, we looked at the artist and his family, accompanied by one of his seven self-portraits, painted in 1822. Today, we’ll delve into his role as a naturalist, his museum, and his self-portrait, “The Artist in His Museum.” And tomorrow, we’ll explore his role as an American patriot, accompanied by one of his most well-known paintings, “‘George Washington at Princeton.”

The Naturalist & His Museum

1. Charles Willson Peale was greatly interested in natural science and history; he organized the first United States scientific expedition in 1801. He later established the Philadelphia Museum, which was the first museum to display North American mammoth bones. (more…)