In response to Julia's question about famous art

Have you ever seen a famous painting such as the Mona Lisa in person? What did you think of it? Did it live up to your expectations?


My dream is to go to the Louvre in Paris and see all the famous works such as the Mona Lisa. Some well known paintings I have seen recently were at The Clark in Williamstown. They have works from Monet and those were amazing to see in person. My favorite part of each painting was his signature. I don;t know about anyone else but I love looking at how artist sign their name. It is amazing to imagine how old the piece is and picture the artist painting it. The Clark also has Degas's work. The image on the museum brochure of a piece of his work, the ballerina. That work in itself it very impressive to behold. The room it is in is amazing. It is round with a tall ceiling and there is art all around you! In that room is one of my favorite paints that the museum has. It is called Nymphs and Satyr and it was painted by William Bouguereau in the late 1800s. It is a massive piece of work. I actually have a poster of it hanging on my wall in my room. I think it is beautiful, and I am into Greek Mythology so that is another reason why it appealed to me. Bouguereau's work is some of my favorite art work. His style is so smooth and calm. You feel at peace when you are in the presence of his work. He mostly painted people. Women and children the most frequently. It was said that he had an obsession with painting the female body, he depicts it beautifully in his work. A lot of his paints have to do with mythology, often including Eros (or the Roman equivalent, Cupid) in many of his pieces. I will end with  few pictures of his paintings.


Question: Do have a favorite artist? Why do you like them? Have you ever seen their work in person?