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Painting

Joshua Reynolds, Portrait of Mai, circa 1776 

A Monumental 18th-Century Portrait of a Young Polynesian Man—a ‘Supreme Work of Art’—Visits the U.S. for the First Time

The massive “Portrait of Mai” depicts the first Pacific Islander to visit Britain, a young man who became a quasi-celebrity in the 1770s after joining the expedition of explorer James Cook

Large sits on Île Seguin, the former home of the original Renault factory.

On an Island Outside Paris, a Sprawling Contemporary Arts Center Aptly Called ‘Large’ Prepares to Open Its Doors

The landmark institution’s first exhibition pays homage to a historic Renault automobile plant that once operated on the Île Seguin in the Seine River. “The project called for a great deal of perseverance,” one official says

Canaletto's capriccio of a ruined Renaissance arcade and pavilion by a waterway

Venetian Artist Canaletto Merged Fantasy and Architectural Detail in This Previously Unseen Sketch, Heading to Auction This Month

The 18th-century painter was a key practitioner of “capriccio” artworks, which blended scenes of everyday life with bold, out-of-place structures. This work was not known to exist for centuries and could now fetch up to $80,000

Châtaigniers en fleurs, or Chestnut Trees in Blossom, on display in Hong Kong

This Vincent van Gogh Painting Has Not Been Seen in Public for Over 60 Years. It Is Now Poised to Set a Record at an Upcoming Auction

The Dutch Post-Impressionist painted “Chestnut Trees in Blossom” during the highly productive yet tragic final months of his life. It is heading to auction as part of a “legendary” private collection which also includes works from Cézanne and Renoir

Investigators say they have recovered Young Woman at the Well (left) and Portrait of Madame Colonna Romano (right), two paintings by Pierre-Auguste Renoir that were stolen last month.

Two Recently Stolen Renoir Paintings Were Found Hidden Behind a Cinderblock Wall. French Police Used DNA Evidence and Vehicle Tracking to Crack the Case

The bungled heist took place at the Renoir Museum on the French Riviera in September. French authorities made six arrests and believe they prevented another “imminent” theft, possibly at a nearby modern art museum

An exhibition of the kinetic art of Argentinian artist Julio Le Parc at Tate Modern, London

With the Help of Family Wealth and Instagram, Gen Z Is Spending Big in the Art Market

According to a new survey, high-net-worth 20-somethings are emerging as the most active members of the global art trade, outspending other generations by wide margins. Their habits are changing how the art world works

Rome, From Mount Aventine, J.M.W. Turner, 1836

J.M.W. Turner Painted This Breathtaking Roman Landscape Nearly 200 Years Ago. If You Look Closely, You Can Still See His Fingerprints

The Romantic painter completed “Rome, From Mount Aventine” in the 1830s. It became his most expensive artwork in 2014, and it’s expected to sell for another record-breaking sum in December

Art historians believe the rediscovered red-chalk sketch may have been a character study for the young girl who appears in the Manet’s The Old Musician (1862). 

An Enigmatic Chalk Drawing, Rediscovered in a Private Italian Collection, Has Been Identified as the Long-Lost Work of Édouard Manet

The sketch of a young girl, in the red chalk characteristic of Manet’s 1860s life studies, is thought to be linked to several of the artist’s paintings

Built in the mid-16th century, the Villa Silvestri Rivaldi sat abandoned for decades just a short walk from Rome’s Colisseum. A new improvement project is revitalizing the complex and bringing its interior artworks to light. 

In One of Rome’s Most Famed and Neglected Villas, Centuries-Old Risqué Frescoes, Painted Over by Nuns, Have Reappeared

Nearly a year into a $40 million restoration of the Villa Silvestri Rivaldi, conservators are rediscovering and reviving 16th-century art

The Icebergs, Frederic Edwin Church, oil on canvas, 1861

‘The Icebergs’ Is One of Frederic Edwin Church’s Most Spectacular Paintings. For Decades, No One Knew Where It Was

In the 1970s, the administrator of a boys’ home in England wound up finding the missing 19th-century piece and bringing it back into the spotlight

Monet painted Rouen Cathedral more than 30 times in the 1890s.

Why Did Claude Monet Paint the Same Scenes Over and Over Again? The Impressionist Artist Was Obsessed With Capturing the Fleeting Nature of Time

An upcoming exhibition at Tate Modern will feature more than 60 artworks created by Monet between the 1870s and 1920s. These pieces reveal how he documented changing light and weather conditions

Iris, Claude Monet, oil on canvas, 1924-25

Claude Monet’s Long-Hidden ‘Iris’ Is About to Become the Most Expensive Painting Ever Auctioned in France

The artwork reflects the famed Impressionist’s later, abstract style. Sotheby’s estimates that it will sell for $25 million to $34 million

Gertrude Abercrombie gave Alderman Merriam’s Shells to a doctor in exchange for a medical procedure in 1952. 

Bought for $30 at an Estate Sale, This Long-Lost Gertrude Abercrombie Painting Could Now Fetch $250,000

The Chicago-based Surrealist created the piece in 1951, then gave it to a doctor in exchange for medical services

Art expert Ariel Bassano speaks at last year’s press conference in front of Portrait of a Lady, the 18th-century painting stolen by Nazis in 1945 and rediscovered in Argentina. A judge ruled this month that the artwork must be returned to its rightful heirs.

A Rare Nazi-Looted Painting, Lost for Some 80 Years, Turned Up in a Real Estate Listing. Now, a Judge Has Ordered It Returned to Its Rightful Heirs

Missing since it was stolen in Amsterdam in 1945, Giacomo Ceruti’s ‘Portrait of a Lady’ will be restored to its true owners, a court in Argentina has ruled in a landmark decision

The Renoir Museum occupies the Impressionist's final home.

Thieves Broke Into a French Museum and Made Off With Renoir Paintings Worth More Than $2.5 Million

Early today, burglars stole four artworks from the Renoir Museum, in the French Riviera, only to drop two of them as they escaped

Claude Monet's Bord des falaises à Pourville (1882) is the centerpiece of the auction, expected to sell for up to $17.4 million. 

Historic Trove of Monets, Renoirs and Other Impressionist Masterpieces Expected to Fetch Up to $50 Million on Auction Block This Fall

More than 60 paintings from the private estate of Paul Durand-Ruel, who shepherded Impressionism out from obscurity, will be up for sale

Ambient Art London has seen an uptick in young adults joining the group’s mobile art events.

Why Gen Z Is Learning to Paint Like 19th-Century Artists

Paint groups are popping up in parks. Art schools are seeing a surge in applications. The rise of A.I. has people turning to more traditional art forms

Italian officials pose with the three recovered artworks: Paul Cézanne’s Still Life With Cherries, Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Les Poissons and Henri Matisse’s Odalisque on the Terrace.

Stolen Masterpieces Worth $10 Million Discovered in a Cardboard Box, Months After Thieves Snuck Into a Museum and Whisked Them Away Into the Night

The artworks by Cézanne, Renoir and Matisse disappeared in a three-minute heist earlier this year. Now, police have arrested five suspects in connection with the burglary in northern Italy

Thieves stole three panels (one of which is pictured at left) from Antonello da Messina’s Polyptych of San Gregorio. They also took a small devotional painting (seen at right).

As Sicilians Flocked to a Religious Festival, Thieves Broke Into a Nearby Museum and Stole Four Renaissance Paintings

The missing works include three panels from a 15th-century altarpiece by Antonello da Messina, as well as a two-sided devotional painting by the artist

A Man Smoking and a Woman Drinking in a Courtyard, Pieter de Hooch, 1658-60, with the soldier missing from the table 

This Dutch Painting Showed a 17th-Century Drinking Game Until Someone Smudged Out a Player, Spoiling the Fun. A Museum Just Restored the Imbibing Soldier

Pieter de Hooch was known for his 17th-century portrayals of domestic life. Some scenes suggested scandal or taught a moral

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