From the Pre-Raphaelites to Postmodernism. I love labeling art – but the more I learn, the harder it gets. A reflection on the messiness of art history and why not everything fits into neat little boxes anymore.
I'm a person who always seeks nuance.
I struggle to see things as black or white. Whether it's about politics, people, or art, I see that kind of thinking as inauthentic and sometimes even harmful. I want to understand contexts and contradictions, sometimes to the point where it becomes counterproductive. I'm the devil's advocate even when I don't want to be.
1 months ago
As soon as an artwork meets its audience, it begins to take on a life of its own—often beyond the artist's original intentions. Art that initially had no political or social agenda can suddenly become a symbol for a movement or idea.
An example is Eugène Delacroix's Liberty Leading the People, which has long been associated with the fight for freedom, despite the artist not being an activist himself. According to Barthélémy Jobert—a historian of art and a specialist in 19th-century Romantic art—Delacroix saw himself more as an observer than someone actively involved in political movements. Despite this, the work has become an icon of revolutionary spirit. A more modern example is internet memes, where images and symbols are often taken out of their original context and gain completely new meanings depending on how they are used and interpreted. Just as Liberty Leading the People has lived on as a symbol of freedom and struggle, a meme can transform and adapt to new contexts, often in ways the creator couldn’t foresee.
6 months ago
Spring is often associated with light, life, and beauty – a time of renewal and blooming. But in Teodor Axentowicz's painting Spring (1900), we find a sensual undertone that gives the work another, more charged dimension. Here, we see a woman holding a mirror in one hand and a tulip in the other, symbols that both reflect the beauty of spring and simultaneously open up to a deeper interpretation.
In the work Spring (1900), the Polish artist Teodor Axentowicz (1859–1938) presents a seemingly classic allegory of spring, a symbol of renewal, fertility, and beauty. The depicted woman holds a mirror in one hand and a tulip in the other. In many allegorical depictions, the tulip represents love or the blooming life force of nature, while the mirror is often linked to self-reflection or beauty and sometimes even vanity.
6 months ago
El Greco, born Domenikos Theotokopoulos, is one of the most distinctive artists in art history. His artistic journey took him from Crete, where he was born and raised, to Rome via Venice, and finally to settle in Spain. It was in Spain that he painted many of his most famous works. Undoubtedly, he was inspired by the great masters of his time such as Michelangelo, Raphael, and Tintoretto, but despite this, he developed a style that was not only unique in his own time but still stands out today.
El Greco, originally trained as an icon painter in Crete, spent several years (from the mid-1560s to 1577) in Italy to reshape his style and learn the new Western techniques, first in Venice where he studied under Titian, and later in Rome, where Michelangelo had the greatest influence. At that time, Michelangelo was widely regarded as the foremost artistic authority, with works such as the Sistine Chapel ceiling and The Last Judgment as evidence of this. In Rome, El Greco embraced many elements of Italian art, such as the use of perspective, the anatomy of the human body, and dramatic compositions. However, it soon became clear that El Greco's artistic philosophy differed significantly from the prevailing Renaissance ideals, especially those advocated by Michelangelo.
6 months ago
Welcome to The Untaught Eye, a place where I explore the art world from my own perspective – one that is still learning but always curious. Art has the ability to open doors to new ideas, emotions, and stories. Whether it concerns an artist's life story, an exhibition, or the meanings hidden beneath layers of symbolism in a work of art.
6 months ago