Comments on: Eight Paintings Every Traveler Should See (And Where to See Them)

By: undefined

undefined — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 12:54:12 +0000

Anyway it’s a good list – take it or leave it. Love that you have The Scream on it.

By: Wendy Anderson

Wendy Anderson — Mon, 19 Oct 2009 18:03:25 +0000

Everyone is hitting the mark by missing it! Art is subjective, it elicits a viseral response from the viewer and each one is different. Go ANYPLACE you can to view art something, famous or not will touch you, everyone becomes a winner but you gotta let you soul and your heart free to enjoy~

By: sissyt

sissyt — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 16:07:20 +0000

If you like Van Gogh wouldn’t it be more fun to visit the Van Gogh museum in Amsterdam than to see one picture in New York?
For that matter, many great works of art are in traveling exhibits that go from city to city so if you wait a while some of the most important works of art (to you) might come to your city.
If you are headed to these museums anyway, by all means check out the paintings but you can see other paintings from the same artist/style at many other venues.

By: Craze_b0i

Craze_b0i — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 12:36:58 +0000

@ TL, I don’t see why you have to go and see something just because its famous. I have seen enough impressionism to know I don’t like the genre, simply knowing it is famous won’t make me like it any better. In my view it is better to focus on the type of art you like.

If I dislike Guernica when I see it in a reproduction photo then I doubt seeing the real copy will suddenly convert me.

By: Susan Benford

Susan Benford — Tue, 13 Oct 2009 10:33:33 +0000

Cherrye,

I agree that these famous paintings are all iconic images in Western art, and well worth a major detour to see!

I was curious to learn what famous artwork is deemed “the best” by art historians, and undertook a rather exhaustive research project to find out. This “Famous Paintings ebook” lists these 250 paintings; the list can be sorted by the city in which the works are located — so when you ARE in Paris or New York, for instance, you can come prepared with an itinerary of what to see in the city’s numerous art museums. I had too many experiences of visiting one of the grand art museums, not wanting to miss any masterpieces, but not having a clear idea of where to start. Enjoy!

http://www.themasterpiececards.com/famous-paintings-ebook/

By: jim humberd

jim humberd — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 17:41:29 +0000

We think the reproduction of the “Last Supper,” carved in salt, full size, in the historic Salt Mine in Wieliczka, Poland, is almost more of an artistic achievement than the original in Milan.

The best painting in the Louvre is the Marriage at Cana.

Most of the ones shown here are kindergarten junk. Not considered good art, just an excuse to make fun of the “Normal” people, by claiming something that no one likes is the greatest, and to make sure the “Normal” people do not feel in common with the lefty nuts.

By: Texas Lebenskunstler

Texas Lebenskunstler — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 16:45:05 +0000

Both of you are missing the point, and yet you get the point. I love lists like these. For me, they are both a check list and a to-do list. Nice work, Cherrye.

First, go see the paintings. You just might be blown away by how much better the original is than the “frequently reproduced” versions that you think you really know. When you are there, standing in front of the Mona Lisa, and you see how small and fabulous the original is, you can then “go beyond the famous things” and see all the other works of the artist (plus a few other artists.)

At the Picasso museum in Barcelona, I went into the building thinking that Pablo was just some crazy guy who did a few too many mushrooms. My predjudice toward his art was quickly squelched when I saw the extent to which he was a phenominal master. His early works left me speechless and a little embarrased. Then, after experiencing more of his works mixed in with his biography, a much deeper understanding and appreciation of his art.

By the way, there is a reason why so many people wait in line to see pieces of art like the Mona Lisa or David or the Sistine Chapel or any other,… they are breathtaking. There is such a huge difference between looking at a sunset on tv or in a picture versus actually experiencing one live.

If you believe that you will have a “programmed response” to something, why travel at all?

By: Craze_b0i

Craze_b0i — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 12:15:15 +0000

I agree with the above poster. Yes these 8 pintings are quite famous, but it’s always inadvisable to start an article by saying every traveller in the world needs to see this or that.

My taste in art is quite selective, I don’t much like modern art forms such as impressionism. Of those 8 listed the Mona Lisa is the only one I can say I really like. That is not to say the other 7 are bad paintings, but they are not really my cup of tea.

By: arttrav

arttrav — Mon, 12 Oct 2009 09:20:29 +0000

Okay, i hate to be the first to kick up an argument, but WHY should everyone see these eight famous paintings? Okay, it’s true that for general culture one should be able to see that one has seen these. But in terms of personal enrichment and experience, there are two problems with this list. (1) art is a personal experience; i may not really be enriched by seeing the mona lisa in person. And (2) all of these works are so frequently reproduced that our reaction to them is programmed by previous knowledge. Yes, go to the world’s great museums, but GO BEYOND the famous things; stop in front of something that you’ve never heard of, that seems obscure, that grabs YOU.