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Lately I’ve been greatly inspired by Kazimierz Sichulski, Jan Rembowski and Stanisław Wyspiański, to the point of occasional imitation I admit.

Their art in order: Die Huzulische Madonna by Sichulski, Pochód Górali by Rembowski, Macierzyństwo by Wyspiański

Occasionally you may see me reference Ivan Bilibin’s art, although it’s mostly when I want some particular piece to be instantly recognized as slavic by general audience :P

Another painter I look up to is Adam Styka, I’m not so much influenced by his art style but I adore the way he portrays comfortable interactions between people

And lastly, I also enjoy looking at the art of Aleksander Augustynowicz or Wojciech Kossak, just to get a general understanding of “this is how artists handle painting people at rest, or people interacting with each other”

All of these artists made me think about two of my favourite artists

The first one is Ivan Milev, one of the most well-known Bulgatian Sezession (Art Nouveau) artists.

And Vladimir Dimitrov- Maystora (the Master) who is considered to arguably be the best painter to ever come out of Bulgaria.

The Cloisters Playing Cards

ca. 1475–80

The Chariot (Italy, circa 1450–1480) by Bonifacio Bembo.

Visconti-Sforza Tarot Cards.

Title: The Rest, portrait of Berthe Morisot

Artist: Edouard Manet

Date: 1870

Style: Impressionism

Title: By the Window

Artist: Edvard Munch

Date: 1940

Style: Expressionism

Title: Race in Grandcamp

Artist: Georges Seurat

Date: 1885

Style: Pointillism

The Thirteen Emperors, second half of the 7th century A.D.

Yan Liben (600–673)

Tang dynasty, China Painting, colours on silk

51.3 x 531 cm (20 3/16 x 209 1/16 in.)

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

University of Chicago, Center for Art of East Asia

Thirteen emperors from Emperor Zhaodi (94-74 B.C.) of the Western Han Dynasty (206 B.C.-9 A.D.) to Emperor Yangdi (569-618) of the Sui Dynasty (581-618) were illustrated in the painting. Each emperor is surrounded by several servants, making the total number of characters 46. There are texts next to each group of characters, stating the time span of the emperor’s reign and His Majesty’s attitude towards Confucianism and Taoism.

Normally, portraits of historical figures like this one were created for education and edification as opposed to appreciation. Therefore, the illustration of the 13 emperors was not based on objective reality, rather, a historical attitude towards these figures could be sensed. The accomplished kings such as the founder of a certain dynasty were depicted taller and bigger, with noble bearings, while those fatuous emperors in history such as those who led to the subjugation of their states look either dispirited or unfriendly.

It is believed that the original work is attributed to the heavyweight painter Yan Liben(601-673) of the Tang Dynasty (618-907), as, first, the last emperor of the 13 being one from the Sui Dynasty indicates that the painter is highly possible to be from the following dynasty which is Tang, and second, to illustrate the appearances and also convey the inner world of so many historical figures require exceptional skills which is out of the reach of common artists. It is Fu Bi (1004-1083), a famous prime minister of the Song Dynasty (960-1279), who first associated this painting with Yan Liben. History of changing hands of this painting has been in official record until it was looted and sold to overseas in the end of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912).