11) THREE MUSICIANS
Created By – Pablo Picasso
Year – 1921
An oil painting by Picasso, the Three Musicians was completed in 1921. At first which might look as a collage of different drawings, is actually two paintings which he collectively referred as the Three Musicians. Playing a trio, the three musicians in the painting are a Harlequin, a Monk, and a Pierrot. Considered as one of the greatest works of Cubism, the painting is on display in Museum of Modern Art in New York.
12) THE SCHOOL OF ATHENS
Created By – Raphael
Year – 1509-1511
The School of Athens is a fresco which decorates the wall of the Stanza della Segnatura in Vatican. The painting was commissioned by Pope Julius II and thus Raphael was summoned to Rome for the same. Believed as a significant product of the renaissance period linked to antiquity, the painting is one of Raphael’s most marvellous works. The painting depicts philosophers of the ancient classical world, like Aristotle, Plato, Pythagoras, conversing and learning from one another, a scene typical of the ancient city of Athens, thus the name.
13) THE KISS
Created By – Gustav Klimt
Year – 1908
Painted by the Austrian artist Gustav Klimt, The Kiss is an exquisite example of the artist’s ethereal, pattern like painting. The piece is a geometric depiction of a kissing couple and has been touted as Klimt’s most famous work. The portrait also stands out for being an oil painting with gold leaf on canvas, featuring stylized forms and shimmering golden hues in the piece. A simple painting of love and lust, The Kiss is now housed in Osterreichische Galerie Belvedere in Vienna.
14) THE PERSISTENCE OF MEMORY
Created By – Salvador Dali
Year – 1931
This bizarre piece by the Spanish painter Salvador Dali is considered to be inspired from Einstein’s Theory of Relativity. Created with detailed precision, The Persistence of Memory is one of his most famous work. With strange arrangement of objects and droopy clocks in a dreamy landscape, the painting strikes our normal minds at a first look. The painting became a symbol of Surrealist Movement and is in the collections of Museum of Modern Art in New York since 1934.
15) AMERICAN GOTHIC
Created By – Grant Wood
Year – 1930
Another piece of iconic American art is the American Gothic painted by Grant Wood. The painting is a classic example of the Regionalist painting genre, and depicts a common farmer and his common daughter, symbolising the situation of a then small-town America during the Great Depression. The name comes from the structure of the house in the background, and the painting has been considered an accurate representation of the American heartland.
16) THE OLD GUITARIST
Created By – Pablo Picasso
Year – 1903
Composed using an impoverished tone and a monochromatic blue palette, The Old Guitarist was painted by Picasso in 1903. As the picture itself portrays, the guitar seems to fill up the misery and loneliness of the old and poor man and is a symbol of only hope in the destitute life. The painting is in the collection of an Art Institute in Chicago, the Helen Birch Bartlett Memorial Collection.
17) LAS MENINAS
Created By – Diego Velazquez
Year – 1656
A product of the Baroque period, Las Meninas was painted by the leading artist of the Spanish Golden Age, Diego Velazquez. The painting is a nuanced depiction of life in the court of King Philip IV of Spain. This masterpiece from 1656 went on to become one of the most important paintings in the Western Art history and is now housed in Madrid’s Prado Museum.
18) CAFÉ TERRACE AT NIGHT
Created By – Vincent Van Gogh
Year – 1888
Another inspiration of the 20th Century German Expressionist Movement is the Café Terrace at Night by the ever-prolific Vincent van Gogh. Another nocturnal setting after the Starry Night, this work also depicts a star lit sky and tables lit by lanterns hanging over head, with people sitting on tables in the background. The painting shows the terrace of Palace du Forum, France, which to the normal eye would be a mundane setting but for the art lovers, a real masterpiece of Gogh. The painting is currently available at Kroller-Muller museum in Netherlands.
19) THE FLOWER CARRIER
Created By – Diego Rivera
Year – 1935
A work by one of the greatest Mexican painter Diego Rivera, The Flower Carrier reflects simplicity and symbolism. The painting depicts a man struggling with a large basket of flower strapped to his back, being helped by a woman from behind to stand up. What makes the work a great piece is the usage of shadows and the geometric shapes which provide intense and bold contrasts. Rivera was known for his simple paintings dominated by bold colours and The Flower Carrier is no exception with its colour structure. Originally called as Cargador de Flores in Mexican, this painting is a tempera oil paint.
20) WATER LILIES
Created By – Claude Monet
Year – 1840-1926
Painted by the French painter Claude Monet, Water Lilies is a composition of a series of 250 paintings, depicting a realistic water lily pond, typical to that from his backyard. The painting is a great example of French Impressionism, while it captures the impressions of light reflected upon the water which ripples through the reflection of tree branches and leaves. What makes the work a masterpiece is the detailed precision of the reflections and the intensity of colours which eventually become darker, blurred and gradually abstract. While lilies have always been a subject of choice for the painter, this work particularly reflects the glory and beauty of nature and is currently on display at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
These works have been revered by the young and old as greatest gifts to human art and culture and have been held dearly by states and museums as pieces of achievement. There have been versions of the original as remodelled, repainted, and redesigned as decorative pieces for homes, hotels and otherwise. Yet the originals have somehow always managed to take breath away, and thus have been in utmost diligent custody. Such treasures thus deserve a face to face interaction, rather than just a website lookup.
Which is greatest work of art according to you? Let us know in the comments section!
