Claude Monet

November 14, 1840 - December 5, 1926)

Monet is consider to be the founder of French impressionist painting, and the most consistent and prolific practitioner of the movement's philosophy of expressing one's perceptions before nature, especially as applied to plein-air landscape painting. The term Impressionism is derived from the title of his painting Impression, Sunrise. 

Lasst year, during Tomasz Rut's audience with His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI, attended by thousands of spectators from around the world at the St. Peter's square in the Vatican, two large paintings by Tomasz Rut became part of the collection at St. Peter's cathedral after being blessed by the Holy Father.

Painted in 2011 to commemorate the beatification of John Paul II, the two originals on canvas: "Nolite Timere" & "Be Not Afraid" pay tribute to the beloved late Pope and depict John Paul II as the Saint and as the charismatic leader of the world accompanied by another legendary figure behind the political changes of the twentieth century, the first President of democratic Poland, Lech Walesa.

Kahlo's life began and ended in Mexico City, in her home known as the Blue House, which is now a museum.

Self Portrait, Frida Kahlo with Thorn Necklace and Hummingbird

Frida Kahlo's work has been celebrated in Mexico as emblematic of national and indigenous tradition, and by feminists for its uncompromising depiction of the female experience and form.  Click Here To See a 360o virtual tour of the famous Mexican painter Frida Kahlo's House and Museum located in the southern suburbs of Mexico City. 

March 30, 1853 - July 29, 1890

Vincent Willem Van Gogh was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who had a short lived career. He cut off a portion of his ear-lobe during a moment of rage, and at the age of 37  he shot himself “for the good of all”.  Where he was when he shot himself is unclear. Ingo Walther writes that "Some think van Gogh shot himself in the wheat field that had engaged his attention as an artist of late; others think he did it at a barn near the inn."  In "Van Gogh: The Life", a biography published in 2011, authors Steven Naifeh and Gregory White Smith argue that Van Gogh did not commit suicide. They contend that he was shot accidentally by two boys he knew who had "a malfunctioning gun". However experts at the Van Gogh Museum remain unconvinced.

Dale Chihuly

Born in 1941 in Tacoma, Washington, Dale Chihuly was introduced to glass while studying interior design at the University of Washington. After graduating in 1965, Chihuly enrolled in the first glass program in the country, at the University of Wisconsin. He continued his studies at the Rhode Island School of Design (RISD), where he later established the glass program and taught for more than a decade.  In 1968, after receiving a Fulbright Fellowship, he went to work at the Venini glass factory in Venice. There he observed the team approach to blowing glass, which is critical to the way he works today.