Famous artists in the context of this article will be taken from those most popular. Famous or best artists is something too hard for a mere mortal like me to quantify simply whereas popularity, particularly on the internet can be calculated. Art is all about subjectivity, so i don't claim for the following list to be exhaustive or fully comprehensive, but please treat it as a fun way to discover more about artists you already know about, and to perhaps find some new artists that you had not heard of before. This is the main purpose of this article. The artists are not listed in any particular order, so the final entry would not necessarily be the least famous artist, it is more a general collection to browse through.
Michelangelo was an Italian Renaissance painter. He was considered by many to be the key Renaissance figure because of his versatility and knowledge across a wide range of disciplines. Michelangelo's most famous paintings include The Torment of Saint Anthony, Manchester Madonna, Doni Tondo, The Entombment, Battle of Cascina, Leda and the Swan, The Last Judgment, The Martyrdom of St Peter & The Conversion of Saul (1542-50)
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Leonardo Da Vinci was an Italian genius best known as a painter, sculptor and architect, though he performed well in a wide variety of disciplines. Along with Michelangelo, Da Vinci is believed to be one of the most extraordinary artists of all time with such diversity and quality attained over his whole career. Da Vinci most famous paintings include The Adoration of the Magi, Salai as John the Baptist & Annunciation.
Gustav Klimt was an Austrian painter and a key member of the Vienna Art Nouveau art scene as well as a famous Symbolist artist. Klimt produced paintings of the highest order, which he is best known for, plus wall murals and other art mediums. Klimt's primary subject was the female body as shown in some of his most famous works. He also is well known for use of gold leaf paint which many artists do not use frequently. Klimt most famous paintings include The Kiss, Judith & Danaë.
Vincent Van Gogh was a Dutch artist from the Impressionist era and well known for his connections to Paul Gauguin and his art collector brother, Theo. He was a pioneer of Expressionism with enormous influence on 20th century art, especially on the Fauves and German Expressionists. Some of his paintings are now among the world's best known, most popular and expensive works of art. Van Gogh most famous paintings include Sunflowers, Starry Night, Potato Eaters & Van Gogh Self-portraits.
Claude Monet was a founder and key member of French impressionist painting and also one of the most famous landscape artists of all time, alongside the likes of Van Gogh, Turner & Constable. Impressionism is taken from the name of his painting Impression Sunrise. Claude Monet most famous paintings include Water Lilies, Japanese Bridge & Camille Monet Portraits.
Pablo Picasso was a Spanish Cubist painter and one of the most recognized figures in 20th-century art, he is best known for co-founding the Cubist movement and for the wide variety of styles embodied in his work. Among his most famous works are the proto-Cubist Les Demoiselles d'Avignon (1907) and Guernica (1937), his depiction of the German bombing of Guernica during the Spanish Civil War.
David Hockney is an English painter, draughtsman, printmaker, stage designer and photographer, based in Yorkshire, United Kingdom, although he also maintains a prominence in London. An important contributor to the Pop art movement of the 1960s, he is considered one of the most influential British artists of the twentieth century. David Hockney most famous paintings include Los Angeles Pool, Garrowby Hill & Malibu.
This initial article is the first part of a series of different articles covering major artists from the west. For further artists please return back for future articles here.
Western Art - Famous Western Artists & Paintings
Tom Gurney - Regular blogger on western art prints & paintings - art150.com. I try to cover all artist styles where possible, and also have included some photographers alongside oil painters. The name of art150 is from our aim to have 150 famous artists and paintings covered in detail by the end of the project. If successful, we will add more too, but the name will remain!
In future months i will add further articles here covering each artist in greater detail, including the likes of Andy Warhol, Pablo Picasso and others. I shall include links to each of them here.
I also sell oil paintings online through my highly efficient Magento store, check it out here - Renaissance Baroque Impressionist Oil Paintings.