The Mona Lisa theft of 1911 turned a quiet Leonardo into the world’s most famous painting. Here is how Vincenzo Peruggia walked out with her.

It is one of the most famous views in history. A swirling, energetic sky of blue and gold roils above a quiet, sleeping village. Vincent…

If you have ever hiked to the top of a mountain, looked out over the world, and felt a mix of awe and insignificance, you…

It is arguably the most recognizable painting in American art. A stern, pitchfork-wielding farmer stands beside a weary-looking woman, both posed stiffly before a modest…

Some paintings are beautiful. Some are revolutionary. Édouard Manet’s Le Déjeuner sur l’herbe (The Luncheon on the Grass) is both. When it was first exhibited…

In the vast halls of the Prado Museum in Madrid hangs a painting that is more than just a picture; it’s an enigma. Diego Velázquez’s…

Andrea Mantegna was a master of the Early Renaissance whose work is immediately recognizable for its sharp, sculptural quality and intense emotional depth. His painting,…

Willem de Kooning’s monumental 1950 painting, Excavation, is a landmark of Abstract Expressionism. It’s a sprawling, turbulent canvas that confronts the viewer with a sense…

Some portraits capture a likeness; others define an entire era. Raphael’s Portrait of Baldassare Castiglione, painted around 1514-1515, is firmly in the latter category. Housed…