Peter Russell

The French painter Édouard Manet, often associated with the Impressionists, broke new ground by defying traditional techniques of representation and by...

Widely regarded as the greatest composer that ever lived, Ludwig van Beethoven was the principal musical figure in the transitional period between the...

Revered by artists and collectors since the seventeenth century, Claude Lorrain was a master of landscape painting, raising the reputation of the art form...

The Polish composer Frédéric Chopin is widely revered today as one of the foremost figures of the Romantic period. Although he wrote almost exclusively for...

The operas of the German composer Richard Wagner had a revolutionary influence on the course of Western music. Unlike most opera composers, Wagner wrote...

The greatest sculptor of the Italian Renaissance, Donatello produced both marble and bronze masterpieces. His revolutionary statues were lauded for their...

The Post-Impressionist Paul Gauguin is now recognised for his experimental use of colour and synthetist style, seeking to achieve a “primitive” expression...

Camille Pissarro was a key figure in the history of Impressionism, being the only artist to show his work in all eight Impressionist exhibitions, remaining...

The nineteenth century French painter Gustave Courbet almost single-handedly challenged and subverted the prevailing tastes of High Art, rebelling against...

Widely regarded as the leading figure of the German Romantic movement, Caspar David Friedrich produced vast and mysterious landscapes and seascapes that...

The leader of the French Romantic school of art, Eugène Delacroix was influential in the development of both Impressionist and Post-Impressionist painting,...

The Venetian old master Canaletto achieved international fame for his landscapes, ‘vedute’, which were celebrated for their masterful expression of...

The first great artist of the Quattrocento period of the Italian Renaissance, Masaccio would have an incredible impact on the course of Western art, in...

The Italian Baroque artist Artemisia Gentileschi is considered one of the most accomplished painters in the generation following Caravaggio. In an era when...

The romantic painter Francisco de Goya is considered the most important Spanish artist of late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. Throughout his...

The Russian composer Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky was a monumental figure of the Romantic period, whose works are among the most popular music in the classical...

This stunning eBook is a concise illustrated guide, evaluating the masterpieces that have changed the course of art as we know it. Whether an art novice or...

The greatest German Renaissance artist, Albrecht Dürer produced a vast body of works, including altarpieces, religious works, portraits, copper engravings...

Renowned for melody and harmony, the Austrian composer Franz Schubert represents the foremost bridge between the worlds of Classical and Romantic music. In...